Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influencing Factors of the Adoption of Agricultural Irrigation Technologies and the Economic Returns: A Case Study in Chaiyaphum Province, Thailand

This empirical research investigates the factors influencing the adoption of three irrigation technologies using a probit statistical model: water wheel (WW), water pump (WP), and weir (WR) irrigation technologies as well as their economic returns per unit of rice cultivated area. The influencing factors were categorized into demographic, socioeconomic, topographical, institutional, and attitudinal factor groups by 207 rice-growers in the Chaiyaphum province in northeastern Thailand. The results revealed that the land holding size, farm income, and water use association (WUA) membership factors were highly positively associated with the WW adoption. Meanwhile, age, farm income, skills training, and WUA membership were negatively correlated with the WP adoption. Nevertheless, proximity to a water source and upstream farmland location were positively correlated with the WP adoption. The WR adoption was positively associated with age but negatively correlated with the land holding size, upstream farmland location, and group participation factors. The cost–benefit analysis indicated that the WW irrigation scheme generated the highest economic return with the benefit-to-cost ratio schemes. The findings suggest that the WW irrigation technology would be deployed in the water management of other agricultural areas in the region to overcome the unfavorable geography and alleviate the local farmers’ disadvantageous economic conditions.
How to Maximize the Radius of a Wire-Array$Z$-Pinch for the 100-ns to 1-$muhboxs$Implosion Time Scales

The Centre d'Etudes de Gramat is now studying long implosion time (about 1 mus) plasma radiation sources. Z-pinches are routinely used by other laboratories in the 100-ns regime with the well-known experimental result, in which an about 2-cm initial radius should not be exceeded to preserve the quality of the implosion for a single array. In a many hundreds of nanoseconds implosion time scale, the question is raised if a bigger radius could be shot. This paper discusses a theoretical approach, which shows that a 7-cm radius is acceptable in the 1-mus regime. It is based on an analysis of magneto-Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities of the accelerating sheath in the r-z plane. It will be demonstrated that all the spatial features of the implosion are determined by the magnetic skin depth, and so essentially depend on the square root of the implosion time. Experiments were carried out with SPHINX generator at the 4-MA level with 800-ns implosion time and confirmed these results
Crystal structure of the Escherichia coli Tas protein, an NADP(H)‐dependent aldo‐keto reductase

Galina Obmolova, Alexey Teplyakov, Pavel P. Khil, Andrew J. Howard, R. Daniel Camerini-Otero, and Gary L. Gilliland* Center for Advanced Research in Biotechnology, University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Rockville, Maryland Genetics and Biochemistry Branch, NIDDK, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland Center for Synchrotron Radiation Research and Instrumentation, Biological, Chemical and Physical Sciences Department, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Illinois
Coupling between spontaneous pupillary fluctuations and brain activity relates to inattentiveness

Autonomic activity in neurological and psychiatric disorders is often dysregulated, particularly in the context of attentional behaviors. This suggests that interplay between the autonomic nervous system and aspects of the central nervous system subserving attention may be disrupted in these conditions. Better understanding these interactions and their relationship with individual variation in attentional behaviors could facilitate development of mechanistic biomarkers. We identified brain regions defined by trait‐sensitive central–autonomic coupling as a first step in this process. As spontaneous neural activity measured during the resting state is sensitive to phenotypic variability, unconfounded by task performance, we examined whether spontaneous fluctuations in brain activity and an autonomic measure, pupil diameter, were coupled during the resting state, and whether that coupling predicted individual differences in attentional behavior. By employing concurrent pupillometry and fMRI during the resting state, we observed positive coupling in regions comprising cingulo‐opercular, default mode, and fronto‐parietal networks, as well as negative coupling with visual and sensorimotor regions. Individuals less prone to distractibility in everyday behavior demonstrated stronger positive coupling in cingulo‐opercular regions often associated with sympathetic activity. Overall, our results suggest that individuals less prone to distractibility have tighter intrinsic coordination between specific brain areas and autonomic systems, which may enable adaptive autonomic shifts in response to salient environmental cues. These results suggest that incorporating autonomic indices in resting‐state studies should be useful in the search for biomarkers for neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Changes in hospital competitive strategy: a new medical arms race?

OBJECTIVE To describe changes in hospitals' competitive strategies, specifically the relative emphasis placed on strategies for competing along price and nonprice (i.e., service, amenities, perceived quality) dimensions, and the reasons for any observed shifts. METHODS This study uses data gathered through the Community Tracking Study site visits, a longitudinal study of a nationally representative sample of 12 U.S. communities. Research teams visited each of these communities every two years since 1996 and conducted between 50 to 90 semistructured interviews. Additional information on hospital competition and strategy was gathered from secondary data. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We found that hospitals' strategic emphasis changed significantly between 1996-1997 and 2000-2001. In the mid-1990s, hospitals primarily competed on price through "wholesale" strategies (i.e., providing services attractive to managed care plans). By 2000-2001, nonprice competition was becoming increasingly important and hospitals were reviving "retail" strategies (i.e., providing services attractive to individual physicians and the patients they serve). Three major factors explain this shift in hospital strategy: less than anticipated selective contracting and capitated payment; the freeing up of hospital resources previously devoted to horizontal and vertical integration strategies; and, the emergence and growth of new competitors. CONCLUSION Renewed emphasis on nonprice competition and retail strategies, and the service mimicking and one-upmanship that result, suggest that a new medical arms race is emerging. However, there are important differences between the medical arms race today and the one that occurred in the 1970s and early 1980s: the hospital market is more concentrated and price competition remains relatively important. The development of a new medical arms race has significant research and policy implications.
Design of Unknown Input Functional Observers for Delayed Singular Systems with State Variable Time Delay

In this paper, we propose a new time-domain design of an Unknown Input functional Observer (UIFO) for delayed singular systems with known and unknown inputs. The order of this observer is equal to the dimension of the vector to be estimated. Constant and variable delays act on the known input vectors and a variable state delay is also taken into account. The proposed approach is based on the unbiasedness of the estimation error and Lyapunov-Krasovskii stability theorem. The observer optimal gain satisfies a sufficient condition of the observer stability dependent on the state delay. This condition is expressed in term of Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs) formulation. The proposed approach is tested on a numerical example. Key–Words: LMI, observer, stability, singular system, unknown input, variable time delay.
A geological history of reflecting optics

Optical reflectors in animals are diverse and ancient. The first image-forming eye appeared around 543 million years ago. This introduced vision as a selection pressure in the evolution of animals, and consequently the evolution of adapted optical devices. The earliest known optical reflectors—diffraction gratings—are 515 Myr old. The subsequent fossil record preserves multilayer reflectors, including liquid crystals and mirrors, ‘white’ and ‘blue’ scattering structures, antireflective surfaces and the very latest addition to optical physics—photonic crystals. The aim of this article is to reveal the diversity of reflecting optics in nature, introducing the first appearance of some reflector types as they appear in the fossil record as it stands (which includes many new records) and backdating others in geological time through evolutionary analyses. This article also reveals the commercial potential for these optical devices, in terms of lessons from their nano-level designs and the possible emulation of their engineering processes—molecular self-assembly.
The adaptability of tendon to loading differs in men and women

The reason why women sustain more soft tissue injury than men during physical activity is unknown. Connective tissue properties and extracellular matrix adaptability in human tendon were investigated in models that addressed biochemical, physiological and biomechanical aspects of tendon connective tissue in response to mechanical loading. Habitual training resulted in a larger patellar tendon in men but not in women. Following an acute bout of exercise, men had an elevated tendon collagen synthesis rate and this effect was less pronounced or absent in women. Moreover, levels of circulating oestrogen affected the acute exercise‐related increase in collagen synthesis. Finally, the mechanical strength of isolated tendon collagen fascicles in men surpassed that of women. Thus, compared to men, women have (i) an attenuated tendon hypertrophy response to habitual training; (ii) a lower tendon collagen synthesis rate following acute exercise; (iii) a rate of tendon collagen synthesis which is further attenuated with elevated estradiol levels; and (iv) a lower mechanical strength of their tendons. These data indicate that tendons in women have a lower rate of new connective tissue formation, respond less to mechanical loading, and have a lower mechanical strength, which may leave the tissue more susceptible to injury.
MATHEMATICAL MODELLING OF A BIOLOGICAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PROCESS . CASE STUDY : THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT STATION OF ROMÂNOFIR S . A . TRADING CO .-T Ă LMACIU

Monitorizarea şi controlul sistemelor din staţia de epurare a apelor uzate ROMÂNOFIR S.A. Trading Co. se bazează pe o structură ierarhică muti-agent distribuită. În timpul operării normale a staţiei de epurare a apelor uzate unităţile de monitorizare şi control decid, pe baza unui set de parametri colectaţi de controlere, cu care parametri vor trebuie să funcţioneze în scopul de a majora performanţele de epurare dorite în condiţiile date. În scopul de a regla controlerele PID s-a elaborat un model matematic a procesului biologic. Modelul matematic creat se bazează pe patru ecuaţii de masă fundamentale care conduc la dezvoltarea procesului prin separarea efectelor. Rezultatele experimentale ţi determinările analitice din laborator ale parametrilor biologice de funcţionare au fost utilizaţi pentru calibrarea modelului şi pentru ajustarea anumitor coeficienţi ai modelului.
Examination of genetic variants influencing lipid traits in pediatric populations

Abstract Previous large-scale genome-wide association studies in adult populations have implicated ∽100 loci in determining high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, or triglyceride levels. However, whether these loci also contribute to variations of lipid traits in pediatric populations remain unknown. Here we assayed a population of Philadelphia children by high-density single nucleotide polymorphism arrays, and performed association analysis on lipid traits ascertained from lipid measurements stored in electronic medical records. We examined previously reported lipid trait associations, and found that most of them show identical direction of association in our pediatric cohorts, including genome-wide significant association on cholesteryl ester transfer protein with HDL-C levels (rs3764261, P = 2.1 × 10−8) and other significant associations on oxysterol-binding protein-like protein 7, low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 4 and low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1. Additionally, we identified suggestive association on low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1B with HDL-C levels (rs17736712, P = 2.1 × 10−7), but this signal is not supported by previous meta-analysis on adult cohorts. Finally, we examined rare copy number variants and identified deletions encompassing tetratricopeptide repeat domain 39B in two children with extreme lipid measures. Our results highlight the commonalities and differences of genetic components in determining lipid traits in pediatric versus adult populations. Furthermore, our study demonstrates the unique utility of automated information retrieval from electronic medical records in facilitating the identification of genotype-phenotype associations.
Response of C fibre nociceptors in the anaesthetized monkey to heat stimuli: estimates of receptor depth and threshold.

1. Responses to ramped or stepped temperature stimuli were obtained from fifty‐three cutaneous C fibre mechano‐heat nociceptors (CMHs) in the hairy skin of the pentobarbitone‐morphine anaesthetized monkey. A three‐layer heat transfer model was developed to describe the temperature distribution within the skin and to estimate receptor depth and heat threshold. 2. Surface heat threshold, defined as the surface temperature when the first action potential occurs, increased as: (a) the rate of temperature rise for the ramped stimuli increased from 0.095 to 5.8 degrees C s‐1; (b) the duration of stepped heat stimuli decreased from 30 to 1 s; and (c) the base temperature of stepped heat stimuli decreased from 38 to 35 degrees C. These results suggest that the heat threshold for CMHs is determined by the temperature at the depth of the receptor. 3. Receptor depth estimates from responses to ramped stimuli ranged from 20 to 570 microns with a mean of 201 microns. The estimated mean receptor heat threshold was 40.4 +/‐ 2.2 degrees C (+/‐ S.D.). No correlation was observed between depth and thermal or mechanical threshold. The average receptor depth and threshold, estimated from the responses to stepped heat stimuli, were 150 microns and 40.2 degrees C, respectively. 4. We conclude that: (a) the receptor endings of CMHs occur in the epidermis and dermis; (b) temperature at the level of the receptor determines threshold; (c) temperature at the receptor ending is much lower than skin surface temperature at threshold; and (d) the tight distribution of receptor heat thresholds suggests a uniform transducer mechanism for heat in CMHs.
DNA-binding specificities of plant transcription factors and their potential to define target genes

Significance We described the high-throughput identification of DNA-binding specificities of 63 plant transcription factors (TFs) and their relevance as cis-regulatory elements in vivo. Almost half of the TFs recognized secondary motifs partially or completely differing from their corresponding primary ones. Analysis of coregulated genes, transcriptomic data, and chromatin hypersensitive regions revealed the biological relevance of more than 80% of the binding sites identified. Our combined analysis allows the prediction of the function of a particular TF as activator or repressor through a particular DNA sequence. The data support the correlation between cis-regulatory elements in vivo and the sequence determined in vitro. Moreover, it provides a framework to explore regulatory networks in plants and contributes to decipher the transcriptional regulatory code. Transcription factors (TFs) regulate gene expression through binding to cis-regulatory specific sequences in the promoters of their target genes. In contrast to the genetic code, the transcriptional regulatory code is far from being deciphered and is determined by sequence specificity of TFs, combinatorial cooperation between TFs and chromatin competence. Here we addressed one of these determinants by characterizing the target sequence specificity of 63 plant TFs representing 25 families, using protein-binding microarrays. Remarkably, almost half of these TFs recognized secondary motifs, which in some cases were completely unrelated to the primary element. Analyses of coregulated genes and transcriptomic data from TFs mutants showed the functional significance of over 80% of all identified sequences and of at least one target sequence per TF. Moreover, combining the target sequence information with coexpression analysis we could predict the function of a TF as activator or repressor through a particular DNA sequence. Our data support the correlation between cis-regulatory elements and the sequence determined in vitro using the protein-binding microarray and provides a framework to explore regulatory networks in plants.
Characterization of Atmospheric Turbulence Effects Over 149 km Propagation Path Using Multi-Wavelength Laser Beacons

Abstract : We describe preliminary results of a set of laser beam propagation experiments performed over a long (149 km) near-horizontal propagation path between Mauna Loa (Hawaii Island) and Haleakala (Island of Maui) mountains in February 2010. The distinctive feature of the experimental campaign referred to here as the Coherent Multi-Beam Atmospheric Transceiver (COMBAT) experiments is that the measurements of the atmospheric-turbulence induced laser beam intensity scintillations at the receiver telescope aperture were obtained simultaneously using three laser sources (laser beacons) with different wavelengths. The presented experimental results on intensity scintillation characteristics reveal complexity of the observed phenomena that cannot be fully explained based on the existing atmospheric turbulence models.
LigaSure vs clamp-and-tie technique to achieve hemostasis in total thyroidectomy for benign multinodular goiter: a prospective randomized study.

HYPOTHESIS Occurrence of adverse effects and advantages of the LigaSure diathermy system (or LigaSure vessel sealing system) in total thyroidectomy have not been tested in prospective randomized studies comparing its use with that of the time-saving clamp-and-tie technique to ligate and divide thyroid vessels. The effectiveness of LigaSure in achieving vessel division and hemostasis remains dependent on vessel diameter, and the risk of damage to adjacent structures cannot be completely excluded. We tested the hypothesis that use of LigaSure compared with the clamp-and-tie technique can significantly and conveniently reduce operative time without increasing postoperative complications in patients undergoing total thyroidectomy for benign multinodular goiter. DESIGN Prospective randomized study. SETTING Regional hospital. PATIENTS Two hundred consecutive patients with benign multinodular goiter undergoing total thyroidectomy performed by 1 of 3 surgeons. INTERVENTIONS According to a randomized sequence, total thyroidectomy was performed in 100 patients using LigaSure and in 100 patients using the clamp-and-tie technique. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES End points of the study included the comparative evaluation of postoperative complications, need for parathyroid gland autotransplantation, operative time, and time to hospital discharge. Preoperative, postoperative (24 hours), and 6-week follow-up serum Ca(++) levels are also reported and compared. RESULTS The postoperative complication rate was 35% overall, including all transient postoperative disturbances. The incidence of cervical hematomas was 2%, but 3 patients (1.5%), 1 in the LigaSure group and 2 in the clamp-and-tie group, required repeat operations because of respiratory tract obstruction. The incidence of permanent complications was 2.5% overall, including 3 patients (1.5%) with permanent hypocalcemia and 2 patients (1%) with permanent recurrent nerve lesions. No statistical difference in the incidence of complications was found between the 2 study groups. Similarly, no difference was found in mean hospitalization time and need for parathyroid gland autotransplantation. Preoperative, postoperative, and 6-week follow-up mean serum Ca(++) levels were not statistically different in the 2 study groups and in the subset of patients undergoing parathyroid gland autotransplantation. Mean operative time was significantly shorter in the LigaSure group, although the mean difference between the 2 study groups was minimal (7.4 minutes). Concomitantly, there was an additional cost of 45euro (US $57.40) per operation using LigaSure. CONCLUSION The use of LigaSure is equally as safe and effective at vessel division and homeostasis as the clamp-and-tie technique, with a statistically significant (although minimal) decrease in mean operative time. Because of this minimal decrease in operative time, use of LigaSure would allow more patients to undergo total thyroidectomy each year, which would eventually help to offset its higher cost.
Downregulation of hepatitis B surface antigen expression in human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines by HD‐03, a polyherbal formulation

Hepatitis B virus is associated with chronic or acute liver diseases and with hepatocellular carcinoma. In the present study, we examined the activity of HD‐03, a polyherbal formulation, on two hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) expressing human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines, PLC/PRF/5 and HepG2/A2. We observed that HD‐03 downregulates HBsAg expression from these cell lines. Our studies have also shown that this effect is neither due to cytotoxicity on the cell lines nor due to blockade of the release of the antigen from the cells nor due to binding of the substance with the antigen. The possible mode of its antiviral activity is explained. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.