Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Combustion-Induced Rapid-Phase Transition (cRPT) in CH4/CO2/O2-Enriched Mixtures

Explosion of oxygen-enriched fuel mixtures can exhibit severe behavior because of the rapid evaporation of the water produced by the combustion reaction. The phenomenon underlying this behavior has been recently named combustion- induced rapid-phase transition (cRPT). If the cRPT phenomenon is not invoked, the observed behavior cannot be explained by the classical theory for deflagration to detonation transition or pre-compression effects. In this work, the cRPT phenomenon was analyzed by varying either the oxygen enrichment or CO2 content in three closed vessels with different internal surface area/ volume ratios. Characteristic times for condensation, radiation, and reaction have further demonstrated the opportunity to predict either the likelihood or the trend of the intensity of the observed over-adiabatic maximum pressures as functions of the surface/volume ratio.
Structural and optical study of glutathione-capped Ag–In–S nanocrystals

Abstract Aqueous synthesis of glutathione-capped Ag–In–S nanocrystals (NCs) at various [Ag]:[In]:[S] molar ratios was performed under mild conditions. The average NC size is determined from X-ray diffraction data. Size-selective fractioning of the colloidal solutions is performed by repeated centrifuging with addition of 2-propanol. Based on the optical absorption and photoluminescence (PL) measurements, the dependence of the bandgap and the PL maximum position on the NC size and composition is analyzed. The analysis of the size-fractioned Ag–In–S NC Raman spectra shows that for small NCs the [Ag]/[In] ratio affects the Raman features only slightly and confirms the increase of [S]/[Ag] ratio with the decrease in NC size.
SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD AND REVISIT INTENTION FOR TEA TOURISM DESTINATIONS: AN APPLICATION OF THEORY OF REASONED ACTION

The current study aims to investigate the revisit intention of tea tourists, and its determinants, including attitude, subjective norm, and tea tourism satisfaction. The sample included 409 tea tourists with experiences of visiting the tea tourism destinations. Research instruments were developed from the related literature. The structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data for the study. The results showed that tea tourism satisfaction, subjective norm and attitude are influential to revisit intention of the tea tourists. Additionally, sustainable livelihood has a positive significant effect on tea tourism satisfaction. Based on theory of reasoned action and sustainable livelihood approach, the study extended the application of the theory of reasoned action by focusing on the revisit intention, rather than the intention to visit. In addition, prior to this study, the concept of sustainable livelihood approach has not been used in the context of tea tourism. The findings of the research help tea tourism destination managers develop the guidelines to increase the satisfaction of the tea tourists and to increase the revisit intention. Moreover, this research also found that promoting sustainable livelihood of the tea community can be an effective strategy to attract and satisfy the tea tourists. Past research in tea tourism has not applied the theory of reasoned action for revisit intention and this study used the satisfaction factor as one of the predictors for revisit intention. In other words, the current research expanded the usage of the theory of reasoned action. Additionally, past research did not investigate the concept of sustainable livelihood of tea tourism destinations where tea plantation is usually located in the local community, supported by the local peoples and their ways of life.
Excessive adventitial stress drives inflammation-mediated fibrosis in hypertensive aortic remodelling in mice

Hypertension induces significant aortic remodelling, often adaptive but sometimes not. To identify immuno-mechanical mechanisms responsible for differential remodelling, we studied thoracic aortas from 129S6/SvEvTac and C57BL/6 J mice before and after continuous 14-day angiotensin II infusion, which elevated blood pressure similarly in both strains. Histological and biomechanical assessments of excised vessels were similar at baseline, suggesting a common homeostatic set-point for mean wall stress. Histology further revealed near mechano-adaptive remodelling of the hypertensive 129S6/SvEvTac aortas, but a grossly maladaptive remodelling of C57BL/6 J aortas. Bulk RNA sequencing suggested that increased smooth muscle contractile processes promoted mechano-adaptation of 129S6/SvEvTac aortas while immune processes prevented adaptation of C57BL/6 J aortas. Functional studies confirmed an increased vasoconstrictive capacity of the former while immunohistochemistry demonstrated marked increases in inflammatory cells in the latter. We then used multiple computational biomechanical models to test the hypothesis that excessive adventitial wall stress correlates with inflammatory cell infiltration. These models consistently predicted that increased vasoconstriction against an increased pressure coupled with modest deposition of new matrix thickens the wall appropriately, restoring wall stress towards homeostatic consistent with adaptive remodelling. By contrast, insufficient vasoconstriction permits high wall stresses and exuberant inflammation-driven matrix deposition, especially in the adventitia, reflecting compromised homeostasis and gross maladaptation.
Growth strategies of a model picoplankter depend on social milieu and pCO2

Phytoplankton exist in genetically diverse populations, but are often studied as single lineages (single strains), so that interpreting single-lineage studies relies critically on understanding how microbial growth differs with social milieu, defined as the presence or absence of conspecifics. The properties of lineages grown alone often fail to predict the growth of these same lineages in the presence of conspecifics, and this discrepancy points towards an opportunity to improve our understanding of the factors that affect lineage growth rates. We demonstrate that different lineages of a marine picoplankter modulate their maximum lineage growth rate in response to the presence of non-self conspecifics, even when resource competition is effectively absent. This explains why growth rates of lineages in isolation do not reliably predict their growth rates in mixed culture, or the lineage composition of assemblages under conditions of rapid growth. The diversity of growth strategies observed here are consistent with lineage-specific energy allocation that depends on social milieu. Since lineage growth is only one of many traits determining fitness in natural assemblages, we hypothesize that intraspecific variation in growth strategies should be common, with more strategies possible in ameliorated environments that support higher maximum growth rates, such as high CO2 for many marine picoplankton.
Dominance style is a key predictor of vocal use and evolution across nonhuman primates

Animal communication has long been thought to be subject to pressures and constraints associated with social relationships. However, our understanding of how the nature and quality of social relationships relates to the use and evolution of communication is limited by a lack of directly comparable methods across multiple levels of analysis. Here, we analysed observational data from 111 wild groups belonging to 26 non-human primate species, to test how vocal communication relates to dominance style (the strictness with which a dominance hierarchy is enforced, ranging from ‘despotic’ to ‘tolerant’). At the individual-level, we found that dominant individuals who were more tolerant vocalized at a higher rate than their despotic counterparts. This indicates that tolerance within a relationship may place pressure on the dominant partner to communicate more during social interactions. At the species-level, however, despotic species exhibited a larger repertoire of hierarchy-related vocalizations than their tolerant counterparts. Findings suggest primate signals are used and evolve in tandem with the nature of interactions that characterize individuals' social relationships.
A comparative analysis of parechovirus protein structures with other picornaviruses

Parechoviruses belong to the genus Parechovirus within the family Picornaviridae and are non-enveloped icosahedral viruses with a single-stranded RNA genome. Parechoviruses include human and animal pathogens classified into six species. Those that infect humans belong to the Parechovirus A species and can cause infections ranging from mild gastrointestinal or respiratory illness to severe neonatal sepsis. There are no approved antivirals available to treat parechovirus (nor any other picornavirus) infections. In this parechovirus review, we focus on the cleaved protein products resulting from the polyprotein processing after translation comparing and contrasting their known or predicted structures and functions to those of other picornaviruses. The review also includes our original analysis from sequence and structure prediction. This review highlights significant structural differences between parechoviral and other picornaviral proteins, suggesting that parechovirus drug development should specifically be directed to parechoviral targets.
Eco-friendly methoximation of aromatic aldehydes and ketones using MnCl2.4H2O as an easily accessible and efficient catalyst

Methoximes are important as a class of intermediates and products, among fine chemicals and specialties. The development of a new, facile and efficient method for their synthesis is reported. The methoximes were properly accessed from the corresponding aromatic aldehydes and ketones in good to excellent yields, under mild conditions, employing the inexpensive and environmentally friendly MnCl2.4H2O as a catalyst (at low loading and without the addition of ligand), in EtOH at 50°C. The scope of the process was systematically assessed.
Topological colouring of fluid particles unravels finite-time coherent sets

Abstract This work describes the application of a technique that extracts branched manifolds from time series to study numerically generated fluid particle behaviour in the wake past a cylinder performing a rotary oscillation at low Reynolds numbers, and compares it with the results obtained for a paradigmatic analytical model of Lagrangian motion: the driven double gyre. The approach does not require prior knowledge of the underlying equations defining the dataset. The time series taken as input corresponds to the evolution of a position coordinate of an individual fluid particle. A delay embedding is used to reconstruct the dynamics in phase space, and a cell complex is built to characterize the topology of the embedding. Fluid particles are said to belong to the same topological class when the Betti numbers, orientability chains and weak boundaries of the associated cell complexes coincide. Topological colouring consists of labelling or ‘colouring’ advected particles with the topological class obtained in their finite-time analyses. The results suggest that topological colouring can be used to distinguish between regions of the flow where trajectories exhibit different finite-time dynamics.
Properties and Genesis of Associated Red and Black Soils in North Karnataka

Three pairs of red and associated black soils on basalt, granite-gneiss and chlorite - schist formation from Bidar, B'Gudi and Mantagani in North Karnataka were compared to study their genesis. Red soils were characterised by redder hue, high chroma and abundance of coarse fragments. Black soils on the other hand were characterised by yellower hue, low chroma and fewer coarse fragments. Clay content in black soils was more than their associated red soils. All red soils showed accumulation of clay in B horizons but was more evident in B'Gudi. The surface area of soil and clay content were highly correlated and the study also revealed the predominance of smectite in the black soils compared well with that of red soils. Dithionite-extractable iron content was also more in red than in associated black soils. Based on these properties it is hypothesized that the difference in genesis and occurrence in close proximity of these two contrasting soils is mainly related to drainage as conditioned by relief. The low chroma and dithionite-Fe along with smectitic minerals of black soils are the clear cut indications of the impeded drainage in black soils compared to their red counterparts.
Burnout and Coping Perceptions of Volleyball Players Throughout an Annual Sport Season

Abstract Burnout is a psychological syndrome of reaction to chronic stress that occurs in athletes who feel exhausted by a sport activity that was previously pleasurable and enjoyable. One technique to prevent and control the syndrome is through coping, which is the ability to deal with stressful situations. In contrast to traditional cross-sectional approaches, this study aimed to investigate burnout and coping strategy characteristics over time and to analyze the relationship between burnout dimensions and coping strategies. Fifty-four high-level volleyball athletes (twenty-eight men and twenty-six women, age M = 25.57, SD = 4.72, range 18-35) completed paper-and-pencil measures of burnout and coping four times throughout a sport season. The Friedman test presented a significant increase in the reduced sense of athletic accomplishment (X2 = 20.58; p < 0.01) and sport devaluation (X2 = 19.83; p < 0.01) perceptions during the season. However, no coping differences were observed through the longitudinal analysis. Burnout dimensions showed a moderate inverse correlation to confidence/motivation at all measurement points during the season. Overall, the findings suggest that burnout perceptions increase as the season progresses, highlighting the relevance for the periodization of burnout prevention and control
Hydration to Maximize Performance and Recovery: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors Among Collegiate Track and Field Throwers

Abstract Hydration plays an important role in performance, injury prevention, and recovery for athletes engaged in competitive sports. Therefore, it is important that strength and conditioning coaches understand an athlete’s hydration needs to prevent illness and enhance performance. The purpose of this study was to identify hydration knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of collegiate track and field throwers, as well as identify barriers to hydration and sources of nutritional information. The Rehydration and Refueling in Collegiate Track and Field Throwers Survey was sent to 271 track and field thrower coaches with a request to forward the email to current track and field throwers. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated regarding knowledge, attitude, and behavior scores among the participants in this sample. Differences among response patterns were assessed via Chi-square analysis. Alpha level was set at p = . 05. Results demonstrated that 97.3% (n = 287) of respondents knew that dehydration would decrease performance, but 50.5% (n = 149) erroneously believed thirst was the best indicator of dehydration. Chi-square analysis demonstrated a significant difference in reported values between participants who intended to eat a performance-enhancing diet and those who consumed less fluid than recomended values (207 – 295 m)l in the 2-3 hours prior to competition (χ2 = 10.87, p < .05). Pearson correlation coefficients demonstrated a large association between knowledge and behavior (r = .70, p < .05), a medium association between knowledge and attitude (r = .41, p < .05), and a small association between attitude and behavior (r = .21, p < .05). This suggests that strength and conditioning coaches and health staff need to educate and monitor hydration behaviors among collegiate track and field throwers to optimize performance.
Evaluating 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios and Sr mass fractions in otoliths of different European freshwater fish species as fishery management tool in an Alpine foreland with limited geological variability

The focus of this study was to assess the potential of otolith microchemistry as a fishery management tool for different European freshwater fish species in an Alpine foreland with a diverse range of different water bodies but low geological variation. 87Sr/86Sr isotope and Sr/Ca ratios in water samples from 26 habitat sites in a pre-alpine catchment region around lake Chiemsee, Germany, an important region for recreational and economic fisheries, were analysed. 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios and the Sr mass fractions in otoliths of 246 fish out of 16 species were determined using (laser ablation) inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry ((LA)-ICP-MS). Habitats could be discriminated into three distinct strontium isotope regions (SIGs) and seven clusters with characteristic 87Sr/86Sr isotope and Sr/Ca ratios. The direct comparison of 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in water and otolith samples allowed to identify fish that might have been a) migrating b) transferred from other water bodies or c) stocked from fish farms. Sr/Ca ratios in water and the Sr mass fraction in otoliths were highly correlated, although significant differences between species from the same environment could be documented. Sr mass fractions in sagittae of Perca fluviatilis were about 60 % of those in sagittae of Coregonus spp and of lapilli of roach Rutilus rutilus from the same habitats. Different partition factors for water to otolith Sr/Ca mass fractions were determined for different species. Discrimination of fish otoliths by 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios and Sr mass fractions according to habitat clusters was possible with success rates ranging from 92 % to 100 % for cyprinids, European perch Perca fluviatilis, whitefish Coregonus spp. and European grayling Thymallus thymallus, and was 74 % for salmonids. Otolith microchemistry proved to have great potential to serve as a fishery management tool at smaller spatial scales such as in the studied Alpine foreland when considering the limited variation of 87Sr/86Sr isotope and Sr/Ca ratios, the type and spatial distribution of habitats, and the species and question under investigation. Highlights Otolith microchemistry applied in in area with limited geological variability Fish transferred, stocked or migrated were identified Regressions between Sr/Ca ratios in water predict Sr mass fractions in otoliths Species specific Sr discrimination from water into otoliths European freshwater fish species assigned to habitat clusters of origin
Epigenetic reprogramming ameliorates type 1 diabetes by decreasing the generation of Th1 and Th17 subsets and restoring self-tolerance in CD4+ T cells

The histone modifier Trichostatin A (TSA) ameliorated diabetes and repressed IFN-γ and IL-17A expression in prediabetic female NOD mice. Purified CD4+ cells could be polarized ex vivo into Th1 and Th17 subsets, which comparably transferred diabetes into NOD.scid mice. Polarized Th1 cells were devoid of IL-17A-producing cells and did not transdifferentiate into Th17 cells in an immunodeficient environment. However, Th17 cells had contaminant Th1 cells, which expressed IFN-γ upon adoptive transfer into lymphopenic recipients. Notably, TSA treatment abrogated the transfer of diabetes by CD4+ T-cells cultured under Th1 or Th17 polarizing conditions accompanied by the absence of Ifng and Il17a expression in NOD.scid recipients. Significantly, the histone modifier restored the ability of CD4+ but not CD8+ T-cells to undergo CD3-mediated apoptosis ex vivo in a caspase-dependent manner. Thus, the histone modifier afforded protection against autoimmune diabetes by negative regulation of signature lymphokines and restitution of self-tolerance in CD4+ T cells.
The cold-drought tolerance trade-off in temperate woody plants constrains range size, but not range filling

Interspecific differences in plant species’ ranges are shaped by complex mechanistic interactions, which have so far remained largely beyond the reach of comprehensive models and explanations. Previous attempts to find underlying mechanisms by examining physiological tolerances to cold and heat separately have yielded contradictory results. Here we test the hypothesis that, instead of examining single stressors, abiotic stress tolerance syndromes that involve trade-offs between multiple abiotic stressors (namely drought, cold, waterlogging and shade), will provide reliable explanations. We compiled a dataset of actual range size and range filling (the ratio between actual and potential species range) as range metrics for 331 temperate woody plants species from Europe and North America. Tolerance syndromes were expressed as two PCA axes. One axis reflects a drought-cold/waterlogging tolerance trade-off (cold/wet-drought trade-off), the second axis represents a shade tolerance spectrum. Phylogenetic generalized linear mixed models were used to model the range metric-tolerance axes relationships using latitude as an additional main effect, and phylogeny and plant functional type as random effects. Actual range scaled negatively with the cold/wet-drought tolerance trade-off axis, mostly independently of latitude and continent. Thus, cold/wet-tolerant species had the largest ranges and drought tolerant species the smallest. The sign (−) of the relationship was independent of phylogeny and plant functional type. In contrast, range filling depended on latitude. However, deciduous and evergreen species displayed different distributions of range metrics and tolerance syndromes. No significant relationships with the shade tolerance spectrum were found. Our findings demonstrate that the cold/wet-drought trade-off partly explains interspecific range size differences. However, this trade-off did not explain range filling. We also showed that fundamental adaptations of species also significantly influence range sizes – stress avoidance through the deciduous habit also explained interspecific differences in range size.
Segmenting biological specimens from photos to understand the evolution of UV plumage in passerine birds

Ultraviolet (UV) colouration is thought to be an important signalling mechanism in many bird species, yet broad insights regarding the prevalence of UV plumage colouration and the factors promoting its evolution are currently lacking. Here, we develop a novel image segmentation pipeline based on deep learning that considerably outperforms classical (i.e. non-deep learning) segmentation methods, and use this to extract accurate information on whole-body plumage colouration from photographs of >24,000 museum specimens covering >4,500 species of passerine birds. Our results demonstrate that UV reflectance, particularly as a component of other colours, is widespread across the passerine radiation but is strongly phylogenetically conserved. We also find clear evidence in support of the role of light environment in promoting the evolution of UV plumage colouration, and a weak trend towards higher UV plumage reflectance among bird species with ultraviolet rather than violet-sensitive visual systems. Overall, our study provides important broad-scale insight into an enigmatic component of avian colouration, as well as demonstrating that deep learning has considerable promise for allowing new data to be bought to bear on long-standing questions in ecology and evolution.