Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Three invasive insects alter Cycas micronesica leaf chemistry and predict changes in biogeochemical cycling

ABSTRACT Leaf litter chemical traits were measured for Cycas micronesica plants in Guam following leaf herbivory by the scale Aulacaspis yasumatsui, the butterfly Chilades pandava caterpillar, or the leaf miner Erechthias sp. to determine the influence of the non-native pests on litter quality. Scale herbivory increased litter phenols above those of undamaged leaves but did not influence lignin or cellulose concentrations. Butterfly caterpillar herbivory increased litter phenols above and decreased litter lignin below those of undamaged leaves, but did not influence cellulose concentrations. Leaf miner herbivory increased litter lignin concentrations above those of undamaged leaves, but did not influence phenols or cellulose concentrations. Herbivory influenced 8 of 12 essential elements that were quantified. Herbivory by all 3 insects increased nitrogen and potassium litter concentrations and decreased calcium and iron litter concentrations when compared with undamaged litter. The responses were idiosyncratic among herbivores for the remaining essential elements. Stoichiometry among the chemical constituents indicated that herbivory increased litter quality and predicted more rapid biogeochemical cycling in Guam's ecosystems as a result of these 3 non-native insect invasions.
Valid Competency Assessment in Higher Education

The aim of the 15 collaborative projects conducted during the new funding phase of the German research program Modeling and Measuring Competencies in Higher Education—Validation and Methodological Innovations (KoKoHs) is to make a significant contribution to advancing the field of modeling and valid measurement of competencies acquired in higher education. The KoKoHs research teams assess generic competencies and domain-specific competencies in teacher education, social and economic sciences, and medicine based on findings from and using competency models and assessment instruments developed during the first KoKoHs funding phase. Further, they enhance, validate, and test measurement approaches for use in higher education in Germany. Results and findings are transferred at various levels to national and international research, higher education practice, and education policy.
Complexity-regularized denoising of Poisson-corrupted data

We apply the complexity-regularization principle to Poisson imaging. We formulate a natural distortion measure in the image space, and present a connection between complexity-regularized estimation and rate-distortion theory. For computational tractability, we apply constrained coders such as JPEG or SPIHT to solve the optimization problem approximately. Also, we design a simple predictive coder which lends itself well to our optimization problem.
Pixel-based Minnaert correction method for reducing topographic effects on a landsat 7 ETM+ image

The topographic effect on land surface reflectance is an important factor affecting quantitative analysis of remotely sensed data in mountainous regions. Different approaches have been developed to reduce topographical effects. Of the many methods, the Minnaert correction method is most frequently used for topographic correction, but a single global Minnaert value used in previous research cannot effectively reduce topographic effects on the remotely sensed data, especially in the areas with steep slopes. This paper explores the method to develop a pixel-based Minnaert coefficient image based on the established relationship between Minnaert coefficients and topographic slopes. A texture measure based on homogeneity is used to eva-luate the topographic correction result. This study has demonstrated promising in
Spirituality and Aging in the Bachelor of Social Work Curriculum: Infusion and Elective Methods

This article presents ideas for infusing spirituality and aging into all curricular areas. It also reports on the development, process, and evaluative results of an elective course entitled, “Spirituality and Aging. ” Spirituality and aging directly and personally affect every student, whether the student is young or older, religious or nonreligious. Because spirituality and religion address in diverse ways the age-related issues of dependence, mortality, and meaning of life, aging becomes a complementary topic. Combining a currently popular topic like spirituality with one that is still avoided because of ageism, gerontophobia, and the American orientation toward youth influenced the creation of an elective course that registered significant numbers, satisfied the students (mean satisfaction 4.93 of 5), and encouraged students to consider the positive aspects of aging.
A Survey on Efficient Solution for User Revocation of Shared Data in the Cloud

A cloud service provider (CSP) provides data storage and sharing services. Using these services users can easily modify and share data as a group. To ensure integrity of such shared data, this data need to be verified publicly. Users in the group can modify the data. After modification he/ she add signatures on modified block. Due to this Different blocks in shared data are generally signed by different users. Once one of the group members revoked from the group, the blocks which were previously signed by that revoked member must be re-signed by an existing group member for data security. For resigning that data we propose an efficient public verification mechanism for checking the shared data integrity and user revocation situation. In our technique we introduce the concept of proxy re-signatures, which is done by cloud to resign blocks on behalf of existing users during user revocation. A public verifier is always keep a close watch on data without knowing the exact content of data. As a contribution we proposed a module that preserves logs and maintain it so that we can keep close watch on entire data as well as activities or modifications performed by the shared user. Using this system we can also reinstate one last copy of particular file before
Hepatoprotective Effects of Antrodia cinnamomea: The Modulation of Oxidative Stress Signaling in a Mouse Model of Alcohol-Induced Acute Liver Injury

In the present study, the components of A. cinnamomea (AC) mycelia were systematically analyzed. Subsequently, its hepatoprotective effects and the underlying mechanisms were explored using a mouse model of acute alcohol-induced liver injury. AC contained 25 types of fatty acid, 16 types of amino acid, 3 types of nucleotide, and 8 types of mineral. The hepatoprotective effects were observed after 2 weeks of AC treatment at doses of 75 mg/kg, 225 mg/kg, and 675 mg/kg in the mouse model. These effects were indicated by the changes in the levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, several oxidation-related factors, and inflammatory cytokines in serum and/or liver samples. AC reduced the incidence rate of necrosis, inflammatory infiltration, fatty droplets formation, and cell apoptosis in liver detecting via histological and TUNEL assay. In addition, AC reduced the expression of cleaved caspase-3, -8, and -9 and the levels of phosphor-protein kinase B (Akt) and phosphor-nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) in the liver samples. Collectively, AC-mediated hepatoprotective effects in a mouse model of acute alcohol-induced liver injury are the result of reduction in oxidative stress. This may be associated with Akt/NF-κB signaling. These results provide valuable evidence to support the use of A. cinnamomea as a functional food and/or medicine.
Factors Influencing Subjective Orthodontic Treatment Need and Culture-related Differences among Chinese Natives and Foreign Inhabitants

AimThe aim of this survey was to compare Chinese natives and foreign inhabitants in Chengdu, China, with respect to: (1) attitudes towards dental appearance, (2) subjective orthodontic treatment need, and (3) the main factors influencing orthodontic treatment need.MethodologyA total of 522 subjects, including 227 foreign inhabitants and 295 Chinese natives in Chengdu participated in the survey. A simple random sampling method was adopted and a face‐to‐face interview was conducted at some public sites using a questionnaire. Data was entered by two persons synchronously using Epidata 3.0, and SPSS 13.0 was used to analyze these data.Results89. 0% of foreign inhabitants were satisfied with their teeth compared to only 46.8% of Chinese natives. Females were more dissatisfied with their teeth than males. Chinese natives put improving appearance as the top priority (55.9%) for seeking orthodontic treatment; however, in foreign inhabitants, the main reason for seeking treatment was to improve masticatory function (44.1%), followed by ”to be pretty“ (35.2%). The importance of well‐aligned teeth and self‐perception of psycho‐social impact of malocclusion were the same two main factors influencing subjective orthodontic treatment need (P<0.05) in foreign inhabitants and Chinese natives. Subjective orthodontic treatment need between the two target groups was significantly different (P<0.05). Conclusion(1) It was very common that Chinese natives were dissatisfied with their dental appearance, and their subjective orthodontic treatment needs were high. (2) There were some differences in orthodontic treatment motives between the two target groups. (3) There were differences in subjective orthodontic treatment needs between foreign inhabitants and Chinese natives. However, the prominent influential factors were almost the same. There may be benefit to understanding subjective orthodontic needs of different races.
Glomerular nucleus of the weakly electric fish, Gymnotus sp.: Cytoarchitecture, histochemistry, and fiber connections—Insights from neuroanatomy to evolution and behavior

The present study provides a detailed description of morphological and hodological aspects of the glomerular nucleus in the weakly electric fish Gymnotus sp. , and explores the evolutionary and functional implications flowing from this analysis. The glomerular nucleus of Gymnotus shows numerous morphological similarities with the glomerular nucleus of percomorph fish, although cytoarchitectonically simpler. In addition, congruence of the histochemical acetylcholinesterase (AChE) distribution with cytoarchitectonic data suggests that the glomerular nucleus, together with the ventromedial cell group of the medial subdivision of the preglomerular complex (PGm‐vmc) rostrally, and the subglomerular nucleus (as identified by Maler et al. [1991] J Chem Neuroanat 4:1–38) caudally, may form a distinct longitudinally organized glomerular complex. Our results show that an important source of sensory afferents to the glomerular nucleus originates in the pretectal and electrosensorius nuclei. The glomerular nucleus in turn projects to the hypothalamus (inferior lobe and anterior hypothalamus), to the anterior tuberal nucleus, and to the medial region of the preglomerular nucleus (PGm). These data suggest that visual and electrosensory information reach the glomerular nucleus and are relayed to the hypothalamus and, via PGm, to the pallium. Such connections are similar to those of the glomerular nucleus in percomorphs and the posterior pretectal nucleus in osteoglossomorph, esocids, and salmonids, where they comprise one component of a visual processing pathway. In Gymnotiform fish, however, the pretectal region that projects to the glomerular nucleus is dominated by electrosensory input (visual input is minor), which is consistent with the dominant role of electroreception in these fish. J. Comp. Neurol. 519:1658–1676, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Knowledge sharing and the idea of public domain

New technologies change the ways in which information and knowledge are used and created. This has economic impacts that have led to extensive discussions on the need to revise and adapt intellectual property rights in the knowledge society. Access to information and knowledge has also political consequences, as societal development and the possibilities to participate in development crucially depend on it. This paper revisits the theoretical justifications for intellectual property rights, discusses their empirical validity in the knowledge society, the challenge of balancing exclusive rights and societal needs, and points out that knowledge creation and innovation may require new ideas about public domain.
The fishing footprint of a tourism-based economy: displacing seafood consumption from local to distant waters in the Balearic Islands

Since the Balearics are one of the key tourism destinations in Europe, the tourism industry has entailed a radical transformation of coastal life on the islands. In the 1960s and 1970s, fish captures increased enormously due to the expansion of consumption derived from tourism, and through technological improvements. There has been a change in target species from cheap fish consumed by local people towards expensive species consumed by tourists. However, since the 1980s a combination of factors including the adoption of the EU Common Fisheries Policy, the globalization of trade, and overfishing of some target species has led to a drastic fall in fishing sector jobs, catch reductions, and an increase in cheap imports. This article analyses the transformation of Balearic fisheries combining ecological economics (EE) and political ecology (PE) approaches. Material flow accounting (MFA) and the ecological footprint (EF) are applied in order to conceptualize the biophysical dimension of fisheries in relation to the historical dynamics of capital in the archipelago. Between 1940 and 2012, total fish catches doubled the official landings, while nonreported or hidden catches were underestimated. In the neoliberal period (1990-2012), fish catches decreased and seafood consumption was satisfied mainly through imports, five times the local captures. Thus, the metabolism of fish consumption in the Balearics illustrates the logics of capital and its metabolism in advanced capitalist regions, characterized by the displacement of socio-ecological conflicts to distant waters. Keywords: Balearic Islands; tourism; fisheries; material flow accounting; ecological footprint.
Bacterial Phylogenetic Reconstruction from Whole Genomes Is Robust to Recombination but Demographic Inference Is Not

ABSTRACT Phylogenetic inference in bacterial genomics is fundamental to understanding problems such as population history, antimicrobial resistance, and transmission dynamics. The field has been plagued by an apparent state of contradiction since the distorting effects of recombination on phylogeny were discovered more than a decade ago. Researchers persist with detailed phylogenetic analyses while simultaneously acknowledging that recombination seriously misleads inference of population dynamics and selection. Here we resolve this paradox by showing that phylogenetic tree topologies based on whole genomes robustly reconstruct the clonal frame topology but that branch lengths are badly skewed. Surprisingly, removing recombining sites can exacerbate branch length distortion caused by recombination. IMPORTANCE Phylogenetic tree reconstruction is a popular approach for understanding the relatedness of bacteria in a population from differences in their genome sequences. However, bacteria frequently exchange regions of their genomes by a process called homologous recombination, which violates a fundamental assumption of phylogenetic methods. Since many researchers continue to use phylogenetics for recombining bacteria, it is important to understand how recombination affects the conclusions drawn from these analyses. We find that whole-genome sequences afford great accuracy in reconstructing evolutionary relationships despite concerns surrounding the presence of recombination, but the branch lengths of the phylogenetic tree are indeed badly distorted. Surprisingly, methods to reduce the impact of recombination on branch lengths can exacerbate the problem. Phylogenetic tree reconstruction is a popular approach for understanding the relatedness of bacteria in a population from differences in their genome sequences. However, bacteria frequently exchange regions of their genomes by a process called homologous recombination, which violates a fundamental assumption of phylogenetic methods. Since many researchers continue to use phylogenetics for recombining bacteria, it is important to understand how recombination affects the conclusions drawn from these analyses. We find that whole-genome sequences afford great accuracy in reconstructing evolutionary relationships despite concerns surrounding the presence of recombination, but the branch lengths of the phylogenetic tree are indeed badly distorted. Surprisingly, methods to reduce the impact of recombination on branch lengths can exacerbate the problem.
The social cost of contestable benefits

A major contribution of the public-choice school is the recognition by Gordon Tullock that contestable rents give rise to social losses because unproductive resource use. The contestable rents usually are politically assigned privileges. Contestable rents can also be found outside of government decisions. We describe the example of academia. The primary empirical question concerns the magnitude of the social loss from contesting rents. Direct measurement is impeded by lack of data and indeed denial that rent seeking took place. Contest models provide guidance regarding social losses. The social losses diminished because rent seeking in high-income democracies usually takes place by groups seeking collective objectives. Also accountability in democracies requires that rents be assigned in indirect ways that increase inefficiency in other respects. The proposal that rent seeking exists can have an ideological dimension. Une contribution majeure de l’ecole de choix public est la reconnaissance par Gordon Tullock que les privileges contestables entrainent des pertes sociales a cause de l’utilisation de ressources improductives. Les privileges contestables sont habituellement des privileges attribues politiquement. Des privileges contestables peuvent egalement etre trouves en dehors des decisions du gouvernement. Nous decrivons l’exemple du milieu universitaire. La principale question empirique concerne l’ampleur de la perte sociale des privileges contestataires. La mesure directe est entravee par le manque de donnees et meme le refus que la recherche de privileges ait eu lieu. Les modeles de concours fournissent des conseils concernant les pertes sociales. Les pertes sociales ont diminue parce que la recherche de privileges dans les democraties a revenu eleve est generalement effectuee par des groupes qui ont des objectifs collectifs. En outre, la responsabilite dans les democraties exige que les privileges soient attribues de maniere indirecte, ce qui augmentent l’inefficacite. La proposition selon laquelle la recherche de privileges existe peut avoir une dimension ideologique.
BUDAYA TRI HITA KARANA DALAM MODEL UTAUT

Abstrak : Budaya Tri Hita Karana d alam Model UTAUT . Penelitian ini menggali definisi dan indikator pertanyaan yang mewakili budaya Tri Hita Karana (THK) dalam model Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan studi literatur (untuk menggali definisi) dan uji lapangan (untuk memvalidasi). Penelitian ini menemukan Faktor Sosial Budaya (FSB) sebagai indikator baru dalam model UTAUT. FSB didefinisikan sebagai persepsi individu mengenai sesuatu yang dianggap penting (pengadopsian, pemanfaatan, dan penggunaan Sistem Informasi Akuntansi). FSB dipengaruhi oleh orang penting yang ada di sekitar, pemikiran individu, dan tingkat spiritualitas . Abstract: Tri Hita Karana Culture in UTAUT Model. This study explore s the definitions and indicators of questions that represent Tri Hita Karana (THK) culture in Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model. This study uses literature study (to dig definition) and field test (to validate). This study finds Social Factor Culture (FSB) as a new indicator in UTAUT model. FSB is defined as perceptions of individuals that is considered important (adoption, utilization, and use of Accounting Information Systems). FSB is influenced by the important people around, individual thinking, and the level of spirituality.
Idiosyncratic Income Risk Estimated From IRS Administrative Wage Data

The importance of idiosyncratic labor income risk for individuals’ economic choices and, hence, for allocations and welfare is hard to overstate. The literature that relies on incomplete markets/heterogeneous agent models is not only vast, but is also continuing to expand at a rapid pace. Not surprisingly, a crucial ingredient in this research is the precise nature of income risk that researchers feed into their models. This demand for reliable information has led to the development of an active empirical literature that estimates stochastic processes for individual (labor) earnings, going back to the early seminal contributions by Lillard and Willis (1978), MaCurdy (1982), and Abowd and Card (1989), and more recent contributions by Meghir and Pistaferri (2004), Heathcote, Storesletten, and Violante (2008), Guvenen (2009), and Altonji, Smith, and Vidangos (2010). Although these studies have made important contributions to our understanding of idiosyncratic income risk, an important shortcoming is that they rely on very noisy survey data, with small sample sizes—most commonly, the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). The goal of this paper is to shed new light on income risk by using—for the first time—a panel dataset on labor earnings obtained from administrative records that has three key advantages: (i) very large sample size with a long average time span (7 to 20 times the size of PSID samples used in the existing literature), (ii) minimal measurement error, (iii) no top-coding.1 First, as I elaborate in the data description below, the smallest sample we use has about 188,000 observations on approximately 19,000 individuals (compared to 10,000 to 35,000 observations on 500 to 2000 individuals, in most existing work). Furthermore, what is also critical is that more than half of all individuals in our sample (ie., 10,000+ individuals) are observed for 15 years or more, which is about 10 times larger than the number of individuals observed for the same duration in PSID. As discussed in Guvenen (2009), a long time dimension is essential for constructing higherorder autocovariances, which are critical for identification between alternative income processes. Unfortunately, due to attrition, in most survey data sets few individuals are observed for 15 to 20 years, which has been an important obstacle for precise empirical identification in existing work.
Master-Slave Parallel Vector-Evaluated Genetic Algorithm for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle's path planning

The demand of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to monitor natural disasters extends its use to multiple civil missions. While the use of remotely control UAV reduces the human casualties' rates in hazardous environments, it is reported that most of UAV accidents are caused by human factor errors. In order to automate UAVs, several approaches to path planning for UAVs, mainly based on Genetic Algorithm (GA), have been proposed. However, none of the proposed paradigms optimally solve the path planning problem with contrasting objectives. We are proposing a Master-Slave Parallel Vector-Evaluated Genetic Algorithm (MSPVEGA) to solve the path planning problem. MSPVEGA takes advantage of the advanced computational capabilities to process multiple GAs concurrently. In our present experimental set-up, the MSPVEGA gives optimal results for UAV.