Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development and Characterization of Green Composites from Agro Waste Aloe Vera and Pineapple Leaf Fiber

Natural fibers possess the advantage of low cost, abundant in quantity and biodegradability. Rising awareness about green products and supportive government regulations are likely to propel the growth in the field of green composite. In this current research, a comparative study of mechanical characteristics and water absorption behaviour of green composites incorporating Aloe Vera and pineapple leaf fibers in biodegradable matrix (polylactic acid) has been experimentally examined. Composite has been developed using compression molding technique. The effect of surface modification of fibers on mechanical properties and water absorption behaviour of developed composite was investigated. Surface treatment was done using alkaline solution of sodium hydroxide having concentration of 5%. Treatment of fiber enhanced tensile, flexural, microhardness and impact properties of developed green composite and reduces water absorption capacity. Moreover, experimental results show that Aloe Vera reinforced composites have better mechanical properties in comparison to Pineapple leaf fiber reinforced composites. Thereby having potential to be used in various engineering applications
Double intertropical convergence zones—a new look using scatterometer

The high‐resolution wind vectors observed by the space‐based scatterometer QuikSCAT, from 1999 to 2002, show that the double intertropical convergence zones (ITCZ) exist in the Atlantic and the eastern Pacific oceans for most of the annual cycle, and are far more extensive than previously recognized. For most of the time, the southern ITCZ is weaker than the northern one. The stronger ITCZ occurs when the northerly trade winds meet the southerly trade winds over warm water, resulting in deep convection. The weaker ITCZ over cooler water is caused by the deceleration of the surface winds as they approach the cold upwelling water near the equator. Decreases in vertical mixing and increases in vertical wind shear in the atmospheric boundary layer are suggested to be the causes of the deceleration of the trade winds as they move from warmer to colder water.
Provenance Variation of Eucalyptus nitens on the Eastern Transvaal Highveld in South Africa

SYNOPSIS Eucalyptus nitens is a promising species for commercial afforestation in the cooler-temperate, humid region of South Africa where frosts are moderate to severe. In a trial of 12 provenances representing most of the entire natural range of the species and established at two locations on the Eastern Transvaal Highveld, the provenances from New South Wales, Australia, had greater height, diameter at breast height and volume growth after four years than the provenances from Victoria, Australia. All provenances were affected by a leafspot disease on the juvenile foliage caused by Mycosphaerella nubilosa, formerly identified as M. molleriana, which leads to premature defoliation. The New South Wales provenances had less defoliation than the Victorian provenances. Results from this trial and other trials in South Africa have been used to recommend further testing of populations within all New South Wales provenances.
Variability in categories of Arctic sea ice in Fram Strait

An attempt to quantify the temporal variability in the volume composition of Arctic sea ice is presented. Categories of sea ice in the Transpolar Drift in Fram Strait are derived from monthly ice thickness distributions obtained by moored sonars (1990–2011). The inflection points on each side of the old ice modal peak are used to separate modal ice from ice which is thinner and thicker than ice in the modal range. The volume composition is then quantified through the relative amount of ice belonging to each of the three categories thin, modal, and thick ice in the monthly ice thickness distributions. The trend of thin ice was estimated to be negative at −8.8% per decade (relative to the long-term mean), which was compensated for by increasing trends in modal and thick ice of 7.9% and 4.7% per decade, respectively. A 7–8 year cycle is apparent in the thin and thick ice records, which may explain a loss of deformed ice since 2007. We also quantify how the categories contribute to the mean ice thickness over time. Thick (predominantly deformed) ice dominates the mean ice thickness, constituting on average 66% of the total mean. Following the loss of deformed ice since 2007, the contribution of thick ice to the mean decreased from 75% to 52% at the end of the record. Thin deformed ice did not contribute to this reduction; it was pressure ridges thicker than 5 m that were lost and hence caused the decrease in mean ice thickness.
Unravelling country-of-origin : semiotics as a theoretical basis for a meaning-centred approach towards country-of-origin effects

Numerous academics and marketers are sceptical about the relevance of research on country-of-origin (coo) effects. This criticism is based on a series of studies suggesting that coo-cues are of no more than marginal importance as determinants of people's attitudes towards foreign-sourced products. More specifically, this criticism is directed towards studies focussing on the relevance of a coo's more general environmental conditions (like for instance its cultural identity, political climate, geography, religion, language, national history, etc.). Additionally, the theoretical status of the coo-field as a whole has frequently been questioned for its lack of solidity and transparency. Our study intends to put this situation into its proper context. Its main objective is to contribute to a better 'understanding' of coo-effects with special attention going to the role of a coo's more general environmental conditions as determinants of attitude formation towards products made abroad. A large-scale field survey was designed, questioning a Belgian student sample about their images of Spain and Denmark's environmental conditions. Also, participants were questioned about their images of Spanish/Danish beer (hedonic product) and DVD-players (utilitarian product). Hypotheses concerning the structure of country images and their role as potential determinants of attitude formation were developed based on semiotics (and more in particular based on Discourse Theory). Data were analyzed by means of Structural Equation Modeling (AMOS 5.0). Results indicate first of all that images about Spanish/Danish country-related environmental conditions significantly contribute to the formation of attitudes towards Spanish/Danish beer and DVD-players. Secondly, these country images were found to be based on a hierarchically ordered tri-component structure. Thirdly, in line with Discourse Theory, it could be established how coo-effects are supported by composite mechanisms with country-related cognitions, feelings and conations operating simultaneously during product attitude formation. More in detail, effects generated by the country image's conative component were found to be strongest. Interestingly, country-related cognitions were more important for attitude formation towards DVD-players while country-specific feelings were more influential in case of beer. Finally, the level of cultural similarity with a product's coo did not moderate the size of coo-effects
Tidal Creek Morphology and Sediment Type Influence Spatial Trends in Salt Marsh Vegetation

Zonal patterns of salt marsh plants and physical conditions have been addressed primarily across the elevation gradient from inland to coastline rather than across tidal creeks in relation to their hydro-geomorphic processes such as bar formation and bank erosion. We found at a Danish marsh that by shaping major geomorphic features and providing sediments to the adjacent sites, fluvial-geomorphic processes of tidal creeks exert fundamental controls on the cross-channel distribution of abiotic and biotic factors. These results point to a need for biogeomorphic and landscape ecological perspectives to fully understand the underlying structure and geographic variability in salt marshes.
The Contribution of Agroforestry Tree Products to Rural Farmers in Karim-Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State

A study to evaluate the contributions and economic benefits of agro-forestry tree products to rural farmers in Karim-Lamido Local Government Area was conducted. Fourty (40) farmers randomly selected from 45.5% of eleven wards were interviewed, using a well-designed and pretested questionnaire. The data obtained were analysed using simple descriptive statistic. The results showed that, all the farmers maintained trees on their farms, the most popular species were Balanites aegyptiaca, Borassus aethiopium, Vitex doniana Zizipus, Mauritiana and Ficus capensi;, and planted species were Moringa oleifera, Psidium gujava, Mangifera indica, Anacardium occidentale. The protected/planted trees contribute several products such as food, fruits, leaves/fodders, medicine, seeds, fibre, oil, and services such as nutrients fixation to the soil. The contribution of agro-forestry tree products to the livelihood of rural farmers was high and accounted for about 50% as indicated in table 4. More awareness on the overall benefits derivable from this practice and its contributions and economic benefit to farmers’ livelihood should be intensified through both media enlightenment and tree planting campaign.
Fluid and Sediment Interaction over a Plane Bed

A mathematical model is developed for the fluid and sediment interaction in an erodible channel. The model is based on the conservation of mass and momentum for the fluid and sediment. The interaction between the fluid and sediment, as well as the interaction of sediment particles moving in the vicinity of the bed is described in the model. An analysis is performed to derive the vertical distributions of the fluid velocity and sediment concentration over a plane bed in a wide open channel. The analysis yields the friction factor due to the combined effects of grain roughness and sediment movement, as well as the rate of sediment transport. The developed model agrees with existing data for plane beds. The predicted rate of transport of coarse sediment agrees with the Meyer-Peter and Mullen formula. However, detailed measurements of the fluid velocity and sediment concentration over a plane bed are required for a rigorous verification of the developed model.
Land Use/Cover Mapping with Quad-polarization Radar and Derived Texture Measures near Wad Madani, Sudan

This study examines the relative utility of quad-polarization spaceborne radar and derived texture measures for classification of specific land cover categories at a site in east-central Sudan near the city of Wad Madani. Japanese Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS) Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR) quad-polarization spaceborne radar data at 12.5 m spatial resolution were obtained for this study. Measures of variance texture were applied to the original PALSAR data over varied window sizes. Transformed divergence (TD) measures of separability were calculated in order to evaluate the best bands from the original and texture measures for classification. Results show that quad-polarization radar data and derived texture measures have high separability between different land cover classes, and therefore hold potential to attain high levels of classification accuracy. Specifically, when used individually the cross-polarization bands showed the highest separability, but when used in combination some mix of cross- and like-polarization bands had the highest separability.
Quids and Aprons: Ancient DNA from Artifacts from the American Southwest

Abstract The success of ancient DNA (aDNA) studies rests on the preservation of DNA through time, and can be limited by the availability of skeletal samples from particular times and locations. To help overcome this limitation, we sought to extract, amplify, and type human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) preserved within 1000- to 2000+-year-old artifacts from the American Southwest. In this study, we successfully typed mtDNA from 21 quids and aprons from Basketmaker II and Mimbres contexts. Recovery and analysis of human DNA from such artifacts will be helpful in confirming and extending genetic characterization of ancient populations for which human remains are scarce or unavailable. To illustrate the potential of these techniques, we tested them as a preliminary and independent line of evidence, relevant to the hypothesis that Western Basketmaker populations in the U S. Southwest were descendants of migrant farmers from central Mexico.
Optimal Constituent Alignment with Edge Covers for Semantic Projection

Given a parallel corpus, semantic projection attempts to transfer semantic role annotations from one language to another, typically by exploiting word alignments. In this paper, we present an improved method for obtaining constituent alignments between parallel sentences to guide the role projection task. Our extensions are twofold: (a) we model constituent alignment as minimum weight edge covers in a bipartite graph, which allows us to find a globally optimal solution efficiently; (b) we propose tree pruning as a promising strategy for reducing alignment noise. Experimental results on an English-German parallel corpus demonstrate improvements over state-of-the-art models.
Promises of oncolytic viral therapy for adult and children with brain glioma

Purpose of review The purpose of this review is to give an overview of early clinical studies addressing the safety and efficacy of oncolytic immunovirotherapy in adults and children with brain gliomas, and to highlight the extensive potential for the development of this therapeutic alternative. Recent findings The lack of curative treatments and poor prognosis of high-grade glioma patients warrants research on innovative therapeutic alternatives such as oncolytic immunovirotherapy. Engineered modified oncolytic viruses exert both a direct lytic effect on tumor cells and a specific antitumor immune response. Early clinical trials of different DNA and RNA oncolytic viruses, mainly Herpes Simplex Virus Type-1 and adenovirus based platforms, have consistently demonstrated an acceptable safety profile, hints of efficacy and the potential of this therapy to reshape the tumor microenvironment in both adult and pediatric patients with glioma, thus constituting the basis for the development of more advanced clinical trials. Summary The future landscape of oncolytic immunovirotherapy is still plenty of challenges and opportunities to enable its full therapeutic potential in both adult and children with brain gliomas.
Neurorehabilitation in brain tumours: evidences and suggestions for spreading of knowledge and research implementation

Purpose of review The last few decades have seen an increase in life expectancy in brain tumour patients; however, many patients report sensory-motor and cognitive disabilities due to the tumour itself, but also to the effect of anticancer treatments (surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy), supportive treatments, as well as individual patient factors. This review outlines the principles on which to base neurorehabilitation treatments, with the aim of stimulating an early rehabilitative management, in order to reduce disability and functional limitation and improve the quality of life of the persons affected by brain tumour. Recent findings Although not definitive, evidences suggest that an early neurorehabilitative evaluation, performed with a multidisciplinary approach, may identify the different functional impairments that can affect people with brain tumour. Furthermore, identifying and classifying the person's level of functioning is useful for designing achievable recovery goals, through the implementation of tailored multidisciplinary rehabilitation programs. The involvement of different professional figures allows to treat all the components (physical, cognitive, psychological and participation) of the person, and to redesign one's life project, lastly improving the quality of life. Summary Overall, the evidences suggest a critical need for the development of this clinical area by spreading the concept of rehabilitation among neuro-oncologists and producing high quality research.
Atmospheric dynamics over northwest Africa and linkages with Sahelian rainfall

The variability of sea level pressure (SLP) anomalies over Northwest Africa (NA) that is, one of the two poles of the NAWA index identified by Paz et al. (2003), and its relationship with Sahelian summer rainfall is investigated during the 1950–1998 period. Significant positive linear correlations of 0.55 (0.60) are found first between spring (summer) SLP anomalies of the southernmost grid‐points of the NA pole and Sahelian summer rainfall of the same year. Moreover, by tracking the location of the center of the Azores anticyclone it is argued that the thickness of the Sahara/Sahel thermal low and the latitudinal position of the ITCZ during springtime, are important parameters/predictors modulating ensuing Sahelian precipitation on different time‐scales. Other factors such as natural penta‐decadal climate variability, local increase in greenhouse gases concentrations, and sea surface temperature or neighboring oceans might modify global SLP fields and contribute as well to low‐frequency Sahelian summer rainfall variability.
The Rise of Online Medical Education in Craniofacial Surgery

Background International travel had been radically disrupted by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), leaving traditional medical conferences on a 2-year hiatus. The International Craniofacial Chang Gung Group (ICC) was thus created to disseminate knowledge related to craniofacial surgery. This study aimed to reveal how webinars fundamentally transformed the traditional format of medical conferences. Materials and Method In total, 64 ICC webinars held between December 13, 2020, and May 21, 2023, were documented and reviewed. A questionnaire was designed and sent to ICC members. The questionnaire collected information on attitudes and habits relating to videoconferencing in general before and after the start of COVID-19 and on the ICC webinars specifically. Responses were analyzed to inform our understanding of respondents' experience and satisfaction with the webinars. Results The webinars covered a variety of topics related to craniofacial surgery. In total, 64 webinars were included for analysis. The mean number of attendees at each webinar was 86.7. In total, 111 respondents were more satisfied (4.25 ± 0.72 out of 5) with ICC webinars than with other media of online meetings (P < 0.001). In total, 89.2% of respondents were willing to continue attending ICC webinars after COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted. Conclusions Webinars are an effective format for imparting knowledge, especially in the ICC, and will become key in continuing medical education.
Recent advances in allogeneic transplantation for acute myeloid leukemia

Purpose of review This review highlights recent advancements in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Recent findings Important improvements have been observed throughout the allo-HSCT procedure and patient management. Universal donor availability and reduced risk of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) have been achieved with the introduction of posttransplant cyclophosphamide for GVHD prophylaxis. It has contributed, together with advances in conditioning regimens, GVHD treatment and supportive care, to a reduced overall toxicity of the procedure. Relapse is now the most frequent cause of transplant failure. With increased knowledge of the biological characterization of AML, better prediction of transplant risks and more profound and standardized minimal residual disease (MRD) monitoring, pharmacological, and immunological strategies to prevent relapse are been developed. Summary Allo-HSCT remains the standard of care for high-risk AML. Increased access to transplant, reduced toxicity and relapse are improving patient outcomes. Further research is needed to optimize MRD monitoring, refine conditioning regimens, and explore new GVHD management and relapse prevention therapies.
Morphology, histology and identification of the ‘granicones’ from the Purbeck Limestone Formation (Lower Cretaceous: Berriasian) of Dorset, southern England

Abstract The identification of the ‘granicones’, small, conical and shield-like phosphatic structures with a pustulate surface ornamentation, from the Purbeck Limestone Formation of Dorset, has been problematic for over 130 years. They have been interpreted as the osteoderms of theropod or ornithischian dinosaurs, lizards or crocodiles, though only circumstantial evidence was presented in support of these hypotheses. Here, we provide anatomical, histological and geological evidence that demonstrates the true affinities of the granicones: they are the limb osteoderms of turtles and may be referable to either Helochelydra (= Tretosternon ) anglica or ‘ Tretosternon ’ bakewelli .
The glocalised telenovela as a space for possible identifications for diaspora girls in Northern Belgium

Because research on glocalised telenovelas in Western Europe is absent in literature and telenovelas seem highly popular among diaspora girls from Moroccan descents living in Northern Belgium, this paper studies the embedded themes and identification possibilities of telenovelas and explores its thematic interest and meanings for diaspora girls. By means of an audience cum content analysis on the case study Sara, text and audience are combined. Sara is predominantly a ‘Cinderella story’ with a clear ‘love’ and ‘class and social mobility’ discourse where emotional identification is triggered through different parameters. Belgian girls from Moroccan descent mainly watch the Sara for reasons of entertainment and escapism. They negotiate between lived and telenovela-created experiences and consequently formulate aspirations and dreams for future partners, gender roles, careers and (family) life.
Detecting the anthropogenic influences on recent changes in ocean carbon uptake

Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions have modified the rate at which oceans have absorbed atmospheric CO2 over the last centuries through rising atmospheric CO2 and modifications in climate. However, there are still missing pieces in our understanding of the recent evolution of air‐sea CO2 exchanges related to the magnitude of their response to anthropogenic forcings versus that controlled by the internal variability. Here, to detect and attribute anthropogenic influences on oceanic CO2 uptake between 1960 and 2005, we compare an ensemble of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) climate model simulations forced by individual drivers to ocean‐only model reconstructions. We demonstrate that the evolution of the global oceanic carbon sink over the last decades can be understood without invoking climate change, attributing rising atmospheric CO2 as prominent driver of the oceanic sink. Nonetheless, at regional scale, the influence of climate change on air‐sea CO2 exchanges seems to emerge from the internal variability within the low‐latitude oceans.