Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Seasonal variation and sources of PM2.5 bound water‐soluble ions at Jammu city in the foothills of the North‐western Himalayas, India

In this study, PM2.5 aerosols were collected from the campus of the University of Jammu situated along the Shivalik foothills of the North‐western Himalayas in the Jammu urban area to understand the seasonal variability of PM2.5 mass concentrations and associated water‐soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs). Results showed that the annual average PM2.5 mass concentrations were average 65.02 μg/m3 which significantly exceeded the annual National Ambient Air Quality Standards (40 μg/m3) by ~1.6 times. In addition, PM2.5 and WSIIs mass concentrations exhibited significant seasonal variability with the highest average concentrations observed during winter and the least during monsoon. Furthermore, WSIIs accounted for 24.56% of PM2.5 mass annually. Cl−, Na+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ depicted higher concentrations in summer whereas higher mass concentrations of SO42−, NO3− and NH4+ observed during winter pointed to their formation from gas to particulate conversion mechanisms. The variability of source strength during peak tourist seasons in holidays, festivities and new year appears to have significantly accounted for high PM2.5 in the study area. Additionally, meteorological conditions also appear to have played an important role in secondary aerosol formation which is noticeable from the high correlation observed among SO42−–NO3− (0.97), NH4+–SO42− (0.69), K+–Cl− (0.85), NH4+–NO3− (0.64), SO42−–K+ (0.63), NH4+–Cl− (0.65) at p < . 05 during winter. On the other hand, significant correlations (p < .01) observed between Ca2+–Mg2+ (0.94), SO42−–Ca2+ (0.78) and SO42−–Mg2+ (0.89) during summer indicated their primary origin as crustal‐based sources.
Comparison of the effects of indoor and outdoor exercise on creativity: an analysis of EEG alpha power

Previous research finds that natural environments and exercise enhance creativity. In this within-subjects design study, we examined the influence of outdoor exercise that combined a natural environment with exercise on creativity compared to an indoor exercise control condition by analyzing cognitive activities related to creativity. The participants performed an Alternative Uses Test (AUT), in which ordinary objects are presented to the participants (e.g., a brick), to prompt as many ideas for alternative uses as possible, which are transformed into a creativity score, after indoor running and outdoor running. During the test, brain activity was recorded using electroencephalography (EEG) and a short version flow state scale (FSS) was completed after the experiment. Results showed that while AUT scores did not significantly differ between conditions, alpha band activity at the parietal occipital region involved in divergent creativity increased during the AUT after outdoor exercise while it did not during the AUT after indoor exercise. In addition, FSS scores for positive emotional experience and absorption were higher after outdoor exercise than after indoor exercise. Our results from the FSS suggest that exercise in a natural environment is perceived subjectively differently from indoor exercise, participants report greater experiences of flow compared to indoor exercise, and the EEG measures objectively indicate enhanced cognitive activity in a creativity task after outdoor exercise. This study suggests that outdoor exercise increases neuronal activity in brain regions related to creativity. Further research is needed to understand how this can lead to increased creativity.
Decision-Theoretic Meta-Learning: Versatile and Efficient Amortization of Few-Shot Learning

This paper develops a general framework for data efficient and versatile deep learning. The new framework comprises three elements: 1) Discriminative probabilistic models from multi-task learning that leverage shared statistical information across tasks. 2) A novel Bayesian decision theoretic approach to meta-learning probabilistic inference across many tasks. 3) A fast, flexible, and simple to train amortization network that can automatically generalize and extrapolate to a wide range of settings. The VERSA algorithm, a particular instance of the framework, is evaluated on a suite of supervised few-shot learning tasks. VERSA achieves state-of-the-art performance in one-shot learning on Omniglot and miniImagenet, and produces compelling results on a one-shot ShapeNet view reconstruction challenge.
Obese Adipocytes Have Altered Redox Homeostasis with Metabolic Consequences

White and brown adipose tissues are organized to form a real organ, the adipose organ, in mice and humans. White adipocytes of obese animals and humans are hypertrophic. This condition is accompanied by a series of organelle alterations and stress of the endoplasmic reticulum. This stress is mainly due to reactive oxygen species activity and accumulation, lending to NLRP3 inflammasome activation. This last causes death of adipocytes by pyroptosis and the formation of large cellular debris that must be removed by macrophages. During their chronic scavenging activity, macrophages produce several secretory products that have collateral consequences, including interference with insulin receptor activity, causing insulin resistance. The latter is accompanied by an increased noradrenergic inhibitory innervation of Langerhans islets with de-differentiation of beta cells and type 2 diabetes. The whitening of brown adipocytes could explain the different critical death size of visceral adipocytes and offer an explanation for the worse clinical consequence of visceral fat accumulation. White to brown transdifferentiation has been proven in mice and humans. Considering the energy-dispersing activity of brown adipose tissue, transdifferentiation opens new therapeutic perspectives for obesity and related disorders.
Signals of Human Polygenic Adaptation: Moving Beyond Single-Gene Methods and Controlling for Population-Specific Linkage Disequilibrium

This research aimed to identify signals of polygenic adaptation in various phenotypes – such as educational attainment, height, and schizophrenia – by employing traditional Fst enrichment tests and polygenic score differentiation tests like Qst and Qx. Fst tests offered inconclusive evidence for over-differentiation in allele frequencies, while Qst tests indicated significant differences for cognitive traits but not for height. The investigation underscores that Fst underestimates the extent of phenotypic differentiation due to additive genetic influences because it fails to account for the covariance of allelic effects across populations. The research demonstrates that Bird's (2021) analysis of the genetic IQ disparity between Africans and Europeans is based on the incorrect assumption that Fst should be equal to the phenotypic variance between populations (Qst), assuming all between-group variation results from additive genetic effects. The findings emphasize the importance of considering both Fst and Qst values when assessing population genetic differentiation. They also stress the importance of controlling for population-specific Linkage Disequilibrium (LD) decay. Indeed, LD decay produced a pro-European bias in polygenic scores, inflating the European mean compared to Africans and East Asians. Finally, family based or multi-ancestry GWAS are needed to account for other sources of bias such as population stratification and ancestry-specific variants or effects. The currently available data does not allow us to provide accurate estimates of the genotypic potential of ancestral groups that are genetically very different from Europeans.
Optimal Pressure Measurement Layout Design in Water Distribution Network Systems

This paper addresses the problem of locating the optimal pressure measurement points in a hydraulic system to help system management, calibration/validation of hydraulic models and measurement planning. Two approaches are discussed in the present work. The first method splits the hydraulic system by means of community concept borrowed from graph theory and uses merely the topology of the network. The resulting subsystems will have minimum number of external and maximum number of internal connections and leaves the choice of locating the single pressure measurement location per subsystem to a higher-level decision. The second technique is based on the sensitivity analysis of the hydraulic network and places the measurement points at the most sensitive locations, while trying to preserve the spatial diversity of the layout, i.e. preventing the accumulation of the measurement points within a small area of high sensitivity. The performance of both techniques is demonstrated on real-size hydraulic networks. The proposed sampling layouts are compared to classic D-optimality, A-optimality and V-optimality criterion.
Partisanship and performance of youth leaders in the Philippines

This study was designed to determine the partisanship and performance of youth leaders locally known as Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials in the Second District of Negros Oriental, Philippines. This study also aimed to determine the profile of the youth leaders and the extent of partisanship before and after the election. There were 153 youth leaders who participated in the study. The descriptive research design with the quantitative method of data gathering was utilized. The questionnaire was the primary data-gathering tool triangulated with focus group discussions and interviews. Based on the data collated, the following findings were revealed: The majority of the youth leaders are aged 22 - 26 years old, males, single, studying in college, receive a monthly honorarium of P 5,001 - 6,000, and do not have any official political party. There is a high extent of partisanship before and after the election. The programs implemented were focused on equitable access to education, environmental protection, climate change, youth employment and livelihood, health, anti-drug abuse, gender sensitivity, sports development, and capability building. The youth leaders have high performance in the programs focusing on sports development, anti-drug abuse, environmental protection, and health. On the other hand, the programs on climate change, equitable access to education, gender sensitivity, and youth employment and livelihood are rated “moderate”.
Risk Factors and Outcomes of Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation—A Ten-Year Single-Center Report

For children born with congenital heart defects (CHDs), extracorporeal life support may be necessary. This retrospective single-center study aimed to investigate the outcomes of children with CHDs on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), focusing on various risk factors. Among the 88 patients, 36 (41%) had a single-ventricle heart defect, while 52 (59%) had a biventricular defect. In total, 25 (28%) survived, with 7 (8%) in the first group and 18 (20%) in the latter. A p-value of 0.19 indicated no significant difference in survival rates. Children with biventricular hearts had shorter ECMO durations but longer stays in the intensive care unit. The overall rate of complications on ECMO was higher in children with a single ventricle (odds ratio [OR] 1.57, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.67–3.7); bleeding was the most common complication in both groups. The occurrence of a second ECMO run was more frequent in patients with a single ventricle (22% vs. 9.6%). ECMO can be effective for children with congenital heart defects, including single-ventricle patients. Bleeding remains a serious complication associated with worse outcomes. Patients requiring a second ECMO run within 30 days have lower survival rates.
Cs2TiI6 (Cs2TiIxBr6-x) Halide Perovskite Solar Cell and Its Point Defect Analysis

This work presents a comprehensive numerical study for designing a lead-free, all-inorganic, and high-performance solar cell based on Cs2TiI6 halide perovskite with all-inorganic carrier transport layers. A rigorous ab initio density-functional theory (DFT) calculation is performed to identify the electronic and optical properties of Cs2TiI6 and, upon extraction of the existing experimental data of the material, the cell is designed and optimized to the degree of practical feasibility. Consequently, a theoretical power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 21.17% is reported with inorganic TiO2 and CuI as carrier transport layers. The calculated absorption coefficient of Cs2TiI6 reveals its enormous potential as an alternative low-bandgap material for different solar cell applications. Furthermore, the role of different point defects and the corresponding defect densities on cell performance are investigated. It is found that the possible point defects in Cs2TiI6 can form both the shallow and deep defect states, with deep defect states having a prominent effect on cell performance. For both defect states, the cell performance deteriorates significantly as the defect density increases, which signifies the importance of high-quality material processing for the success of Cs2TiI6-based perovskite solar cell technology.
What drives income inequality? Bayesian evidence from the emerging market economies

ABSTRACT What drives income inequality in emerging market economies? To end it, we approach this topic utilizing Bayesian model averaging and 27 emerging market economies panel dataset from 1990 to 2019. First, differently, we find a U-shaped Kuznets curve in emerging market economies rather than the notable inverted U-shaped curve. Besides, we find four strictly robust determinants of income inequality in emerging market economies, including the population aging, the female labor force participation, the unemployment level and the share of labor compensation in output. These results remain stable through a series of robustness checks. In most cases, the government expenditure and real exchange rate could also robustly drive the dynamics of income inequality in emerging market economies. Further, a comparative analysis suggests that financial development, inflation, human capital condition, total factor productivity and urbanization are distinct determinants of income inequality in the market economies.
P38 MAPK Signaling in the Retina: Effects of Aging and Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of irreversible visual impairment worldwide. Age is the greatest risk factor for AMD but the underlying mechanism remains unascertained, resulting in a lack of effective therapies. Growing evidence shows that dysregulation of the p38 MAPK signaling pathway (SP) contributes to aging and neurodegenerative diseases; however, information about its alteration in the retina with age and during AMD development is limited. To assess the contribution of alterations in p38 MAPK signaling to AMD, we compared age-associated changes in p38 MAPK SP activity in the retina between Wistar rats (control) and OXYS rats, which develop AMD-like retinopathy spontaneously. We analyzed changes in the mRNA levels of genes of this SP in the retina (data of RNA-seq) and evaluated the phosphorylation/activation of key kinases using Western blotting at different stages of AMD-like pathology including the preclinical stage. p38 MAPK SP activity increased in the retinas of healthy Wistar rats with age. The manifestation and dramatic progression of AMD-like pathology in OXYS rats was accompanied by hyperphosphorylation of p38 MAPK and MK2 as key p38 MAPK SP kinases. Retinopathy progression co-occurred with the enhancement of p38 MAPK-dependent phosphorylation of CryaB at Ser59 in the retina.
Association between self-esteem and perception of body image in college students

La autoestima y la imagen corporal juegan un papel muy importante en la actual epidemia de sobrepeso. El objetivo es asociar la autoestima con la autopercepcion de la imagen corporal en universitarios. Para ello, se realizo un estudio transversal en el 2014 en estudiantes de la Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosi. Se realizaron 1002 encuestas, de las cuales el 52.86% eran mujeres, con una edad promedio de 21 anos (17 anos-45 anos). El 79.9% de los estudiantes presentaron autoestima alta, el 11.6% media y el 8.5% baja. El 27.1% de los participantes se percibio en desnutricion, el 32.96% en un peso adecuado y el 39.96% en sobrepeso u obesidad. Se encontro una correlacion negativa entre la autoestima y la percepcion corporal ( p = 0.008), es decir, entre mayor autoestima, en menor peso se percibian. El tener una autoestima alta es un factor protector para una percepcion en obesidad ( p = 0.042). La autoestima y la percepcion corporal estan asociadas.
Physical and mental health conditions account for variability in awareness of age-related changes

Background The concept of Awareness of Age-Related Changes captures people’s perceptions of the positive (AARC-gains) and negative (AARC-losses) age-related changes they experience in several life domains, including their health. We investigated the cross-sectional associations of number and type of physical and mental health conditions with AARC-gains and AARC-losses. Methods The sample comprised 3,786 middle-aged and older adults (mean age = 67.04 years; SD = 6.88) participating to the UK PROTECT study. We used hierarchical regression models to analyze whether after having included sociodemographic variables (model 1), number of physical (model 2) and of mental (model 3) health conditions explained a significant additional amount of variance in AARC-gains and AARC-losses, and whether the association between number of conditions and AARC depended on participants’ age. We used multiple regression models to analyze the associations of types of physical and mental health conditions with AARC-gains and AARC-losses. Results A higher number of physical health conditions was associated with higher AARC-gains and higher AARC-losses, but the association did not depend on participant age. After controlling for the number of physical health conditions, a higher number of mental health conditions was associated with higher AARC-losses but not with AARC-gains, and the association was stronger among older participants. Small effects were found between greater AARC-gains and current cancer and between greater AARC-losses and diagnoses of mild cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease, arthritic condition, cancer in full remission, osteoporosis, depression, anxiety disorders, and personality disorder. The remaining health conditions were either negligibly or non-statistically related to AARC-losses. Conclusion Middle-aged and older adults having more physical health conditions and more mental health conditions may be at higher risk of negative views on their own aging. However, specific physical health conditions, such as arthritis, and certain mental health conditions, such as depression, may make adults particularly vulnerable to negative age-related perceptions.
Stress, satisfaction with life and general health in a relationship to health behaviors: the moderating role of temperament structures

: The main goal of this study is to check if the relationship between the perceived stress and life satisfaction or the general health is mediated by health behaviors and whether this mediated relationship is moderated by temperament structures: sanguine, melancholic, phlegmatic and choleric. A total of 254 people from local community sample, aged 18-93, took part in the study and filled a set of questionnaires. The results show that there are significant differences in the level of perceived stress, life satisfaction and the level of general health between different temperament structures. The relationship between perceived stress and life satisfaction is partially mediated by health behaviors only in the group of people with melancholic temperament structure. The higher level of stress turned out to be only directly and negatively related to the life satisfaction in all other structures. Among all temperament structures the perceived stress is only directly related to general health, and health behaviors do not serve as a mediator for this relationship. The obtained results suggest that incorporating more health behaviors may have a specifically beneficial effect on people with a melancholic temperament structure. Subsequent studies of experimental design are needed to directly test this hypothesis.
Complex dynamic behaviour of an economic cycle model

Abstract In this paper, we investigate the dynamics of a nonlinear economic cycle model. The necessary and sufficient conditions are given to guarantee the existence and stability of the fixed point. It is also shown that the system undergoes a Neimark–Sacker bifurcation by using center manifold theorem and bifurcation theory. Furthermore, Marotto’s chaos is proved when certain conditions are satisfied. Numerical simulations are presented not only to illustrate our results with the theoretical analysis, but also to exhibit the complex dynamical behaviour, such as the period-10, -16, -20 orbits, attracting invariant cycles, quasi-periodic orbits, 10-coexisting chaotic attractors, and boundary crisis. Specifically, we have stabilized the chaotic orbits at an unstable fixed point using the feedback control method.
The Effect of Dietary Synbiotics in Actively Racing Standardbred Horses Receiving Trimethoprim/Sulfadiazine

Simple Summary Synbiotics are often provided to horses receiving antibiotics to protect against disturbances of gut microbioma, despite a lack of evidence for efficacy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a synbiotic (PROBIOPlusTM) in horses receiving antibiotics. Sixteen actively racing Standardbred horses were randomly allocated to one of four groups: antibiotics (10 days; AB), synbiotic (28 days; PBP), PBP + AB, or Control. Make-up of the bacterial gut population was assessed, as well as indicators of manure quality. The PBP + AB group had a significantly different population of bacteria in their manure compared with all other groups. Most of the differences were found in bacterial populations that function to degrade fiber, including Fibrobacter and Ruminococcaceae. The Fibrobacter population was significantly higher in AB and PBP + AB horses than Control. For Ruminococcaceae, Control was significantly higher than AB and PBP during antibiotic treatment, and PBP + AB horses were significantly higher than PBP horses after antibiotic treatment. In conclusion, these data provide support for the ability of PROBIOPlus™ to maintain healthy gastrointestinal microbiome during antibiotic treatment. Abstract Synbiotics are often provided to horses receiving antibiotics to protect against microbiome disturbances, despite a lack of evidence for efficacy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a synbiotic product in horses receiving antibiotics. Sixteen actively racing Standardbred horses were randomly allocated (four-way crossover) to one of four groups: antibiotics (10 days; AB), synbiotics (28 days; PROBIOPlusTM; PBP), PBP + AB, or Control. The fecal microbiome was investigated using 16S rRNA sequencing, and fecal dry matter (DM; %), pH, and scores (FS; 0–9) were measured. Data were analyzed with two-way ANOVA. Results found microbiota differences in community membership between PBP + AB and all other treatments during and after antibiotic treatment. During antibiotic treatment, AB and PBP + AB were significantly different from Control. After antibiotic treatment, PBP + AB was significantly different from all other treatments. The few differences found in relative abundance of phyla or predominant genera were mostly in fiber degrading bacteria. The Fibrobacter population was significantly higher in AB and PBP + AB horses than Control. Unclassified Ruminococcaceae was significantly higher in Control than AB and PBP. After antibiotic treatment, PBP + AB horses were significantly higher than PBP horses. In conclusion, these data provide support for the ability of PROBIOPlus™ to maintain healthy gastrointestinal microbiome during antibiotic treatment.