Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Overcoming the clinical challenges of traditional ayahuasca: a first-in-human trial exploring novel routes of administration of N,N-Dimethyltryptamine and harmine

Recently, the Amazonian plant medicine “ayahuasca”—containing the psychedelic compound N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and numerous β-carboline alkaloids, such as harmine—has been suggested to exhibit beneficial effects in patients with affective and other mental health disorders. Although ayahuasca ingestion is considered safe, its pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics and tolerability profile pose some challenges and may limit the clinical applicability in vulnerable patient populations. While overdosing and the admixture of intolerable plant constituents may explain some of the common adverse reactions, the peroral route of administration may represent another relevant source of gastro-intestinal intolerabilities and unpredictable pharmacokinetics across users. To overcome these challenges, the present work aimed at creating ayahuasca-analogue formulations with improved pharmacokinetics and tolerability profiles. To this end, we developed peroral formulas and compared them with parenteral formulas specifically designed to circumvent the gastro-intestinal tract. In more detail, peroral administration of a capsule (containing purified DMT and harmine) was tested against a combined administration of an oromucosal harmine tablet and an intranasal DMT spray at two dose levels in an open-label within-subject study in 10 healthy male subjects. Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles were assessed by means of continuous blood sampling, vital sign monitoring, and psychometric assessments. Common side effects induced by traditional herbal ayahuasca such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea were significantly attenuated by our DMT/harmine formulations. While all preparations were well tolerated, the combined buccal/intranasal administration of harmine and DMT yielded substantially improved pharmacokinetic profiles, indicated by significantly reduced variations in systemic exposure. In conclusion, the combined buccal/intranasal administration of harmine and DMT is an innovative approach that may pave the way towards a safe, rapid-acting, and patient-oriented administration of DMT/harmine for the treatment of affective disorders. Clinical Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov, identifier NCT04716335
Evaluation of eelgrass beds mapping using a high-resolution airborne multispectral scanner

Eelgrass (Zostera marina) can provide vital ecological functions in stabilizing sediments, influencing current dynamics, and contributing significant amounts of biomass to numerous food webs in coastal ecosystems. Mapping eelgrass beds is important for coastal water and nearshore estuarine monitoring, management, and planning. This study demonstrated the possible use of high spatial (approximately 5 m) and temporal (maximum low tide) resolution airborne multispectral scanner on mapping eelgrass beds in Northern Puget Sound, Washington. A combination of supervised and unsupervised classification approaches were performed on the multispectral scanner imagery. A normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from the red and near-infrared bands and ancillary spatial information, were used to extract and mask eelgrass beds and other submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) in the study area. We evaluated the resulting thematic map (geocoded, classified image) against a conventional aerial photograph interpretation using 260 point locations randomly stratified over five defined classes from the thematic map. We achieved an overall accuracy of 92 percent with 0.92 Kappa Coefficient in the study area. This study demonstrates that the airborne multispectral scanner can be useful for mapping eelgrass beds in a local or regional scale, especially in regions for which optical remote sensing from space is constrained by climatic and tidal conditions.
EFFECTIVENESS OF EMIS FOR STUDENT INFORMATION MANAGEMENT ON MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN UASIN GISHU COUNTY, KENYA

The government of Kenya implemented a policy advocating for Education Management Information Systems (EMIS). This is because the manual system for managing the students’ record is becoming more cumbersome affecting the management of secondary schools. In this regard the study investigated the influence of EMIS for Student Information Management on Management of Public Secondary Schools in Uasin Gishu County. The study adopted pragmatic philosophical paradigm and employed mixed methods research design with a target population 1334 respondents which included 183 principals, 189 deputy principals, 955 HODs in public secondary schools, 6 Sub-County Directors and 1 County Director of Education in Uasin Gishu County. Kerjcie and Morgan (1970) table was used for determining the sample size of 302 respondents which was proportionately allocated to each stratum. Structured questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data from principals, deputy principals and heads of departments (HODs) while semi-structured interview schedules were used to collect qualitative data from sub-county directors and the County Director of Education. Internal validity was attained by increasing the sample size. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics while qualitative data was analyzed in narratives and themes. Results of data analysis were presented using tables. From the findings, the value of adjusted R squared was is 0.627, an indication that there was a variation of 62.7% on the management of public secondary schools in Uasin Gishu County due to effectiveness and efficiency of EMIS for Student Information Management. There was a significant association between EMIS and management of public secondary schools with F statistics (437.414). Regression coefficient of student information management was . 577 with P<0.05. This implied that there is a significant relationship between EMIS for student information management and management of public secondary schools. The effectiveness of EMIS for student information management on management of public secondary schools is also premised on the effective communication of student development records and instructional strategies between the management and other teachers precipitating students’ progress. In this regard, the study recommended that public secondary schools must continuously improve on their implementation of EMIS for student information management.
EXAMINING SERBIAN EFL LEARNERS’ METAPHORIC COMPETENCE: METAPHOR IDENTIFICATION AND TRANSLATION

The paper presents the results of a study devoted to the examination of students’ metaphoric competence. The participants received no precoding training, or structured metaphorical in- put. The study was based on The Economist’s climate change coverage, a film titled “Climate change technology: Is shading the earth too risky? ”, which was a part of an English composition assignment. We transcribed the oral data and, following the MIPVU (Steen 2010), identified sentences which contained at least one lexical unit that was metaphorically used. The students were asked to complete a questionnaire that was organized in accordance with our research goals. Namely, our study tested the students’ ability to distinguish between metaphorical and literal meaning in order to check their intuitions about what constitutes a metaphor. They were also asked to translate the given sentences into Serbian so that we could examine how they deal with metaphor in translation. The results suggest that the differences in translation are caused by the availability of the conventionalized metaphorical senses across the SL and TL lexicon. The research offered insight into students’ metaphoric competence prior to any exposure to Conceptual Metaphor Theory (Lakoff, Johnson 1980), which could be contrasted with the results obtained after a structured metaphorical input.
Model‐based Cluster Analysis of Artefact Compositional Data

Cluster analysis is the most widely used multivariate technique in archaeometry, with the majority of applications being exploratory in nature. Model-based methods of clustering have their advocates, but have seen little application to archaeometric data. The paper investigates two such methods. They have potential advantages over exploratory techniques, if successful. Mixture maximum-likelihood worked well using low-dimensional lead isotope data, but had problems coping with higher-dimensional ceramic compositional data. For our most challenging example, classification maximum-likelihood performed comparably with more standard methods, but we find no evidence to suggest that it should supplant these.
Toward a Sociology of International Law: John Hagan and Beyond

Socio-legal scholars these days devote themselves routinely to the study of international law. It was not always thus. In the late twentieth century, no more than a handful of law-and-society scholars asked themselves how international law worked. Even fewer ventured into the field. John Hagan was one of those who did and the first sociologist to study empirically—and rigorously—what we now call international criminal law. In this article, I use Hagan’s oeuvre to reflect on the intellectual history of international legal scholarship in the twenty-first century. I argue that Hagan brought three things to the study of international law: criminology, methodology, and ideology. I trace each of these contributions in detail, assess their intellectual import, and relate them to alternative ways of seeing international law. The story I tell is of a pioneering scholar who charted an empirical path toward the sociology of international law, but whose moral compass—acquired during his socialization in the Vietnam era—also occasionally blinded him to the dark sides of virtue.
Determination of U-Pb age and rare earth element concentrations of zircons from Cenozoic intrusions in northeastern China by laser ablation ICP-MS

Using the in situ zircon U-Pb dating method of LA-ICPMS, we analyzed the 31 Ma old SHRIMP U-Pb age of the Yongsheng nepheline syenite from southern Jilin Province under different spot sizes. The obtained ages are comparable with that of SHRIMP in both accuracy and precision. The age is also identical to that of the Yinmawanshan gabbro from the Liaodong Peninsula within error. Both the Yongsheng nepheline syenite and the Yinmawanshan gabbro represent the youngest known exposed intrusions in northeastern and even eastern China. The results indicate the Eocene mantle-derived magmatic underplating, and the rapid crustal uplifting of this region since 30 Ma. The analyses also document extremely high LREE concentrations and relatively flat REE patterns for the zircons from the Yongsheng nepheline syenite, which represent a new type of zircon REE pattern.
Landscape and smaller-scale effects of lugworm ( Arenicola marina ) deposit feeding on benthic bacterial assemblages

Objectives of this study were to (1) determine whether feeding by the lugworm, Arenicola marina , reduces abundance or alters composition of sedimentary bacterial assemblages, (2) examine recovery of “disturbed” patches of egesta, and (3) test for effects on bacterial abundance, diversity and composition at spatial scales larger than individual fecal mounds. Field comparative studies in Lubec, Maine, were conducted to test for the effects of ingestion, and manipulative experiments were done to assess rates and mechanisms of recolonization of egesta. Bacterial assemblage attributes were followed using epiﬂuorescence microscopy and DGGE analysis of 16S rDNA. Next we examined landscape-scale effects using ﬁeld addition experiments to manipulate lugworm density (0, 5, and 15 worms m -2 ). Findings indicate that (1) lugworm feeding qualitatively and quantitatively alters bacterial assemblages, (2) recovery in these biotically disturbed sediments is minimal during a single tidal emersion ( (cid:1) 4.5 h), (3) the small-scale patchiness caused by animal feeding is homogenized by sediment movement following tidal immersion, and (4) landscape-scale effects appear to be small, e.g. with respect to bacterial abundance and “species” richness. One notable landscape-scale effect, however, was a consistent and stable increase in relative abundance of a few speciﬁc bacterial phylotypes in high lugworm density plots.
Plant-Derived Nanocellulose with Antibacterial Activity for Wound Healing Dressing

The medical sector is one of the biggest consumers of single-use materials, and while the insurance of sterile media is non-negotiable, the environmental aspect is a chronic problem. Nanocellulose (NC) is one of the safest and most promising materials that can be used in medical applications due to its valuable properties like biocompatibility and biodegradability, along with its good mechanical properties and high water uptake capacity. However, NC has no bactericidal activity, which is a critical need for the effective prevention of infections in chronic diabetic wound dressing applications. Therefore, in this work, a natural product, propolis extract (PE), was used as an antibacterial agent, in different amounts, together with NC to obtain sponge-like structures (NC/PE). The scanning electron microscope (SEM) images showed well-impregnated cellulose fibers and a more compact structure with the addition of PE. According to the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), the samples containing PE underwent thermal degradation before the unmodified NC due to the presence of volatile compounds in the extract. However, the peak degradation temperature in the first derivative thermogravimetric curves was higher for all the sponges containing PE when compared to the unmodified NC. The antibacterial efficacy of the samples was tested against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli, as well as on two clinically resistant isolates. The samples completely inhibited the development of Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was partially inhibited, while Escherichia coli was resistant to the PE action. Considering the physical and biological properties along with the environmental and economic benefits, the development of an NC/PE wound dressing seems promising.
Investigating the impacts of digital finance technology on financial stability of the banking sector: New insights from developing market economies

Abstract This study investigates the effects of digital finance technology, i.e., mobile phones and internet usage on financial stability of the banking sector in developing market economies. We used data from 2000 to 2020 from 55 selected developing economies to examine the link between digital finance technology and financial stability. According to the empirical results from the quantile regression, mobile phone subscriptions as a proxy for digital finance technology has a negative impact on the financial stability of the chosen emerging economies. In contrast, the findings indicate that internet usage as a proxy for digital finance technology has a favorable impact on the financial stability (FS) of developing economies. Given that digital finance technology has a variety of implications on the financial stability of emerging countries, the study advises policymakers to assess current digital finance technology (internet usage and mobile phone subscription) and banking-related regulations and align them with various aspects of financial stability.
Human pose estimation from a single view point

We address the estimation of human poses from a single view point in images and sequences. This is an important problem with a range of applications in human computer interaction, security and surveillance monitoring, image understanding, and motion capture. In this work we develop methods that make use of single view cameras, stereo, and range sensors. First, we develop a 2D limb tracking scheme in color images using skin color and edge information. Multiple 2D limb models are used to enhance tracking of the underlying 3D structure. This includes models for lateral forearm views (waving) as well as for pointing gestures. In our color image pose tracking framework, we find candidate 2D articulated model configurations by searching for locally optimal configurations under a weak but computationally manageable fitness function. By parameterizing 2D poses by their joint locations organized in a tree structure, candidates can be efficiently and exhaustively localized in a bottom-up manner. We then adapt this algorithm for use on sequences and develop methods to automatically construct a fitness function from annotated image data. With a stereo camera, we use depth data to track the movement of a user using an articulated upper body model. We define an objective function that evaluates the saliency of this upper body model with a stereo depth image and track the arms of a user by numerically maintaining the optimum using an annealed particle filter. In range sensors, we use a DDMCMC approach to find an optimal pose based on a likelihood that compares synthesized and observed depth images. To speed up convergence of this search, we make use of bottom up detectors that generate candidate part locations. Our Markov chain dynamics explore solutions about these parts and thus combine bottom up and top down processing. The current performance is 10fps and we provide quantitative performance evaluation using hand annotated data. We demonstrate significant improvement over a baseline ICP approach. This algorithm is then adapted to estimate the specific shape parameters of subjects for use in tracking.
The global precipitation response to volcanic eruptions in the CMIP5 models

We examine the precipitation response to volcanic eruptions in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) historical simulations compared to three observational datasets, including one with ocean coverage. Global precipitation decreases significantly following eruptions in CMIP5 models, with the largest decrease in wet tropical regions. This also occurs in observational land data, and ocean data in the boreal cold season. Monsoon rainfall decreases following eruptions in both models and observations. In response to individual eruptions, the ITCZ shifts away from the hemisphere with the greater concentration of aerosols in CMIP5. Models undergo a longer-lasting ocean precipitation response than over land, but the response in the short satellite record is too noisy to confirm this. We detect the influence of volcanism on precipitation in all three datasets in the cold season, although the models underestimate the size of the response. In the warm season the volcanic influence is only marginally detectable.
Coatings on Lithium Battery Separators: A Strategy to Inhibit Lithium Dendrites Growth

Lithium metal is considered a promising anode material for lithium secondary batteries by virtue of its ultra-high theoretical specific capacity, low redox potential, and low density, while the application of lithium is still challenging due to its high activity. Lithium metal easily reacts with the electrolyte during the cycling process, resulting in the continuous rupture and reconstruction of the formed SEI layer, which reduces the cycling reversibility. On the other hand, repeated lithium plating/stripping processes can lead to uncontrolled growth of lithium dendrites and a series of safety issues caused by short-circuiting of the battery. Currently, modification of the battery separator layer is a good strategy to inhibit lithium dendrite growth, which can improve the Coulombic efficiency in the cycle. This paper reviews the preparation, behavior, and mechanism of the modified coatings using metals, metal oxides, nitrides, and other materials on the separator to inhibit the formation of lithium dendrites and achieve better stable electrochemical cycles. Finally, further strategies to inhibit lithium dendrite growth are proposed.
Development of Wind-Powered Smart Transition Electric Vehicle Charging Station

The power industry is embracing green energy solutions to meet growing demand along with advancement in its technological innovations. Among the myriad innovations, electric spring stands out as a cutting-edge technology, embracing the concept of smart load to intelligently manage power systems. Concurrently, the emergence of electric vehicles (EVs) has paved the way for a new branch of power networks in the transport system. Ingeniously combining these two trends, a smart charging mechanism has been developed through an EV charging station within an isolated microgrid having a wind energy conversion system as the lone and primary source. To ensure optimal performance and stability, a sophisticated smoothening band charge controller has been developed. This controller enables seamless transitions between fast and slow charging modes, effectively curbing noncritical voltage fluctuations beyond permissible thresholds. In order to demonstrate the superior efficacy of the smoothening band charge controller, a comprehensive comparative study was conducted, analyzing its performance against rapid transition controllers. The results highlight the remarkable advantages of the smoothening band approach, further solidifying its significance in future smart charging systems. To validate the proposed system, rigorous testing was carried out using the state-of-the-art OPAL-RT 4510 real-time simulator. The successful validation marks a pivotal step toward the widespread adoption of this innovative and environmentally conscious approach in the power industry.
Postseismic deformation associated with the 1992 M ω=7.3 Landers earthquake, southern California

Following the 1992 Mω=7.3 Landers earthquake, a linear array of 10 geodetic monuments at roughly 5-km spacing was established across the Emerson fault segment of the Landers rupture. The array trends perpendicular to the local strike of the fault segment and extends about 30 km on either side of it. The array was surveyed by Global Positioning System 0.034, 0.048, 0.381, 1.27, 1.88, 2.60, and 3.42 years after the Landers earthquake to measure both the spatial and temporal character of the postearthquake relaxation. The temporal behavior is described roughly by a short-term (decay time 84±23 days) exponential relaxation superimposed upon an apparently linear trend. Because the linear trend represents motions much more rapid than the observed preseismic motions, we attribute that trend to a slower (decay time greater than 5 years) postseismic relaxation, the curvature of which cannot be resolved in the short run (3.4 years) of postseismic data. About 100 mm of right-lateral displacement and 50 mm of fault-normal displacement accumulated across the geodetic array in the 3.4-year interval covered by the postseismic surveys. Those displacements are attributed to postseismic, right-lateral slip in the depth interval 10 to 30 km on the downward extension of the rupture trace. The right-lateral slip amounted to about 1 m directly beneath the geodetic array, and the fault-normal displacement is apparently primarily a consequence of the curvature of the rupture. These conclusions are based upon dislocation models fit to the observed deformation. However, no dislocation model was found with rms residuals as small as the expected observational error.