Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Upslope development of a tidal marsh as a function of upland land use

To thrive in a time of rapid sea‐level rise, tidal marshes will need to migrate upslope into adjacent uplands. Yet little is known about the mechanics of this process, especially in urbanized estuaries, where the adjacent upland is likely to be a mowed lawn rather than a wooded natural area. We studied marsh migration in a Long Island Sound salt marsh using detailed hydrologic, edaphic, and biotic sampling along marsh‐to‐upland transects in both wooded and lawn environments. We found that the overall pace of marsh development was largely unaffected by whether the upland being invaded was lawn or wooded, but the marsh‐edge plant communities that developed in these two environments were quite different, and some indicators (soil salinity, foraminifera) appeared to migrate more easily into lawns. In addition, we found that different aspects of marsh structure and function migrated at different rates: Wetland vegetation appeared to be a leading indicator of marsh migration, while soil characteristics such as redox potential and surface salinity developed later in the process. We defined a ‘hydrologic migration zone’, consisting of elevations that experience tidal inundation with frequencies ranging from 20% to 0.5% of high tides. This hydrologically defined zone – which extended to an elevation higher than the highest astronomical tide datum – captured the biotic and edaphic marsh‐upland ecotone. Tidal inundation at the upper border of this migration zone is highly variable over time and may be rising more rapidly than mean sea level. Our results indicate that land management practices at the upland periphery of tidal marshes can facilitate or impede ecosystem migration in response to rising sea level. These findings are applicable to large areas of tidal marsh along the U.S. Atlantic coast and in other urbanized coastal settings.
Comparative pharmacokinetic study of four major components after oral administration of pure compounds, herbs and Si–Ni–San to rats

Abstract 1. The pharmacokinetic differences of paeoniflorin, naringin, naringenin and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) following oral administration of pure compounds, single herbs and Si–Ni–San (SNS) decoction to rats were studied. Blood samples were analyzed with a validated UPLC–MS/MS method. Student's t-test was used for the statistical comparison. 2. The Cmax and AUC0–∞ were 1470 ± 434 ng/mL and 4663 ± 916 ng h/mL for paeoniflorin, 64.29 ± 59.21 ng/mL and 311.8 ± 131.8 ng h/mL for naringin, 244.2 ± 138.8 ng/mL and 4761 ± 3167 ng h/mL for naringenin, and 1183 ± 294 ng/mL and 38 994 ± 14 377 ng h/mL for GA after oral administration of paeoniflorin, naringin and glycyrrhizic acid. The Cmax and AUC0–∞ were 812.6 ± 259.6 ng/mL and 2489 ± 817 ng h/mL for paeoniflorin, 344.3 ± 234.9 ng/mL and 1479 ± 531 ng h/mL for naringin, 981.9 ± 465.4 ng/mL and 12 284 ± 6378 ng h/mL for naringenin, and 3164 ± 742 ng/mL and 78 817 ± 16 707 ng h/mL for GA after oral administration of SNS decoction. 3. There were significant differences between the pharmacokinetic behavior after oral administration of SNS decoction compared with pure components or herbs. The results indicated that some components in the other herbs of SNS had a pharmacokinetic interaction with paeoniflorin, naringin, naringenin and GA.
Improving the forecasts of European regional banks' profitability with machine learning algorithms

Regional banks as savings and cooperative banks are widespread in continental Europe. In the aftermath of the financial crisis, however, they had problems keeping their profitability which is an important quantitative indicator for the health of a bank and the banking sector overall. We use a large data set of bank-level balance sheet items and regional economic variables to forecast protability for about 2,000 regional banks. Machine learning algorithms are able to beat traditional estimators as ordinary least squares as well as autoregressive models in forecasting performance.
GeneticStudio: a suite of programs for spatial analysis of genetic‐marker data

The analysis of genetic marker data is increasingly being conducted in the context of the spatial arrangement of strata (e.g. populations) necessitating a more flexible set of analysis tools. GeneticStudio consists of four interacting programs: (i) Geno a spreadsheet‐like interface for the analysis of spatially explicit marker‐based genetic variation; (ii) Graph software for the analysis of Population Graph and network topologies, (iii) Manteller, a general purpose for matrix analysis program; and (iv) SNPFinder, a program for identifying single nucleotide polymorphisms. The GeneticStudio suite is available as source code as well as binaries for OSX and Windows and is distributed under the GNU General Public License.
Measuring and Managing Catastrophe Risk

This paper gives a basic introduction to the standard framework behind catastrophe modeling and explores the output of catastrophe modeling via modernized “pin maps” and loss likelihood curves. This paper also briefly discusses some of the uses of catastrophe modeling in addition to traditional probable maximum loss estimation and comments on the use of modeling for reinsurers. This article is intended to be “food for thought” and hopes to stimulate new catastrophe modeling ideas and enhancements. Biography: Ronald T. Kozlowski is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society, a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries, and a Consulting Actuary in the Hartford office of Tillinghast. Mr. Kozlowski holds a Bachelors degree in Actuarial Science from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. Among Mr Kozlowski’s many assignments and responsibilities is the development of TOPCAT, Tillinghast’s property catastrophe model. Stuart B. Mathewson is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society, a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries, a Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter and a Consulting Actuary in the Chicago office of Tillinghast. Mr. Mathewson holds a Bachelors degree in Fire Protection Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology. Mr. Mathewson has spoken extensively at actuarial and other insurance group meetings on catastrophic loss modeling and heads the development of TOPCAT.
Superoxide dismutase from Helicobacter pylori suppresses the production of pro‐inflammatory cytokines during in vivo infection

Helicobacter pylori has undergone considerable adaptation to allow chronic persistence within the gastric environment. While H. pylori‐associated diseases are driven by an excessive inflammation, severe gastritis is detrimental to colonization by this pathogen. Hence, H. pylori has developed strategies to minimize the severity of gastritis it triggers in its host. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) is well known for its role in protecting against oxidative attack; less recognized is its ability to inhibit immunity, shown for SOD from mammalian sources and those of some bacterial species. This study examined whether H. pylori SOD (HpSOD) has the ability to inhibit the host immune response to these bacteria.
Compact broadband waveguide diplexer for satellite applications

High-performance diplexers are frequently used in satellite systems to isolate the high-power wideband transmission band from the sensitive reception frequency range. A compact broadband waveguide diplexer to cover the Ku transmission and reception bands is proposed in this paper. The overall bandwidth of the diplexer is up to 50 %. The diplexer is composed of an E-plane T-junction which branches to a very compact Ku-band high-power low-pass filter and a band-pass filter based on inductive irises. The low-pass filter is based on λ/4-step-shaped bandstop elements separated by very short (ideally of zero-length) waveguide sections and provides the suppression of all higher-order modes. The size of the low-pass filter is dramatically reduced compared to a classical waffle-iron filter or a corrugated filter of narrowed width for the same frequency specifications. The band-pass filter has been also designed to minimize the overall footprint. The final diplexer has been manufactured by milling and the frequency response has been measured. A very good agreement between the measurements and simulations taking into account rounded corners effects has been obtained, demonstrating that this novel approach fulfills stringent specifications with a very compact implementation.
Idiosyncratic Risk and Asset Pricing: Study at Companies Listed on Indonesia Stock Exchange

This study aims to investigate the Accrual Principles in Accounting that contained in the Company's Financial Statements. The accrual principle is reflected in the Balance Sheet and Income Statement. Accrual measurements in the Balance Sheet are measured using Persistence Current Operating Accrual, Persistence Non-Current Operating Accrual, Persistence Financial Accrual. Accruals in income statement are measured using the Accrual anomaly Modified Jones Model. Accrual measurements are used as information used by investors as in predicting idiosyncratic risk and asset pricing. The idiosyncratic risk reflects the specific information about the company and it will fluctuate according to the information itself. To measure the idiosyncratic risk in this study five factors of Fama-French Model (Fama & French, 2014) were used. This model is the development of three factors model (Fama & French, 1996)). The five-factor model Fama French is performed by conducting a stock return portfolio of the sample company and regressing the excess return using five factors. Asset Pricing Measurement uses the Dividend Discounted Model to predict stock prices. The samples used in this study are all manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. The Manufacturing Company is selected with consideration for the accrual measurement of accounts receivable, inventory, investment and liabilities. The sample was chosen by purposive random sampling method. The number of samples generated by this method is 154 companies with full reports for 2010-2015. Using the SEM AMOS Ver. 24 and Sobel Test Path Analysis, the results show that Current Operating Accrual has a negative and significant relationship to idiosyncratic risk and asset pricing. The Financial Accrual variable has no relationship with idiosyncratic risk and asset pricing. For variable Non-Current Operating Accrual and Accrual Anomaly have positive and significant relation. By using Sobel Test, the test result shows that idiosyncratic risk has mediation effect in Persistence Current Operating Accrual, Non-Current Operating Accrual and Accrual Anomaly relationship to Asset Pricing. This indicates that investors in Indonesia capital market are trading investors considering idiosyncratic risk in decision making.
An enterprise-friendly book recommendation system for very sparse data

Recommendation systems designed using biclustering handle the existing duality between users and items, which is not observed in other popular approaches. However, biclustering is generally limited by sparsity in the data and usually requires huge computational powers. In this paper, we propose a ready-for-enterprise book recommendation system using the biclustering algorithm. Our proposed algorithm consists of a hybrid approach containing an initial cluster phase which is taken as input for a biclustering phase. We show that our approach not only proves to be scalable dealing with large amounts of sparsity but also produces results with error values comparable to other state-of-the-art approaches, thereby making it enterprise-friendly.
Board Leadership Structure and Firm Performance: Evidence from Listed Companies in Sri Lanka

Corporate Governance as a mechanism helps to align management's goals with those of the stakeholders that are to increase firm performance. The aim of this study is to identify the relationship between board leadership structure and firm performance of listed companies in Sri Lanka during the period of 2014-2016. The data was collected from the secondary data sources and board leadership structure is measured by CEO duality. The sample of this study consists of 100 firms listed in Colombo Stock Exchange based on market capitalization. For the purpose of data analysis, Pearson’s correlation analysis and independent sample t-test were used to examine the hypotheses of this study. The findings reveal that board leadership structure is positively correlated with firm performance in terms of Tobin’s Q and there is no significant difference in firm performance between CEO duality firms & non-duality firms.
Enhancement of learning behaviour by a potent nitric oxide‐guanylate cyclase activator YC‐1

Memory is one of the most fundamental mental processes, and various approaches have been used to understand the mechanisms underlying this process. Nitric oxide (NO), cGMP and protein kinase G (PKG) are involved in the modulation of synaptic plasticity in various brain regions. YC‐1, which is a benzylindazole derivative, greatly potentiated the response of soluble guanylate cyclase to NO (up to several hundreds fold). We have previously shown that YC‐1 markedly enhances long‐term potentiation in hippocampal and amygdala slices via NO‐cGMP‐PKG‐dependent pathway. We here further investigated whether YC‐1 promotes learning behaviour in Morris water maze and avoidance tests. It was found that YC‐1 shortened the escape latency in the task of water maze, increased and decreased the retention scores in passive and active avoidance task, respectively. Administration of YC‐1 30 min after foot‐shock stimulation did not significantly affect retention scores in response to passive avoidance test. Administration of scopolamine, a muscarinic antagonist, markedly impaired the memory acquisition. Pretreatment of YC‐1 inhibited the scopolamine‐induced learning deficit. The enhancement of learning behaviour by YC‐1 was antagonized by intracerebroventricular injection of NOS inhibitor L‐NAME and PKG inhibitors of KT5823 and Rp‐8‐Br‐PET‐cGMPS, indicating that NO‐cGMP‐PKG pathway is also involved in the learning enhancement action of YC‐1. YC‐1 is thus a good drug candidate for the improvement of learning and memory.
Studies on Dracunculus medinensis (Linnaeus) III. Structure of the Phasmids in the First-Stage Larva

The phasmids of the first-stage larva of Dracunculus medinensis were paired, each consisting of a single cell with a lumen connected to the exterior by a closable duct. The cell consisted of an outer region filled with mitochondria and an inner region consisting of endoplasmic reticulum bordering the lumen, whose inner surfaces was supported by a fibrillar framework. There were a pair of cilia projecting into the lumen of each cell and two nerve bundles at the base in direct continuity with a branch of the lateral nerve. The lumen of the phasmidial cell contained acid mucopolysaccharides and esterases.
Activity and specificity of TRV-mediated gene editing in plants

Plant trait engineering requires efficient targeted genome-editing technologies. Clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats (CRISPRs)/ CRISPR associated (Cas) type II system is used for targeted genome-editing applications across eukaryotic species including plants. Delivery of genome engineering reagents and recovery of mutants remain challenging tasks for in planta applications. Recently, we reported the development of Tobacco rattle virus (TRV)-mediated genome editing in Nicotiana benthamiana. TRV infects the growing points and possesses small genome size; which facilitate cloning, multiplexing, and agroinfections. Here, we report on the persistent activity and specificity of the TRV-mediated CRISPR/Cas9 system for targeted modification of the Nicotiana benthamiana genome. Our data reveal the persistence of the TRV- mediated Cas9 activity for up to 30 d post-agroinefection. Further, our data indicate that TRV-mediated genome editing exhibited no off-target activities at potential off-targets indicating the precision of the system for plant genome engineering. Taken together, our data establish the feasibility and exciting possibilities of using virus-mediated CRISPR/Cas9 for targeted engineering of plant genomes.
A BIOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF POPULATIONS OF POA ANNUA L.

Poa annua occurs in Europe as a variable species adapted to a diversity of habitats. Tutin (1957) described four true-breeding "races" in England, which differed in morphological characters, germination and rate of development. He considered that these "races" almost certainly represented distinct genotypes and that P. annua was an inbreeding species, although the possibility of occasional outbreeding could not be excluded. In Europe, Timm (1965) distinguished on the basis of measurements of leaf, panicle, root and regeneration three growth types of P. annua. A procumbent form of perennial habit, described as subspecies reptans, could be divided into two varieties; typica, a very vigorous type common in Germany, and pauciflora, a less vigorous type from northern Europe and the mountains of southern Europe. An erect bunch type found mainly in the Mediterranean region was described as subspecies erecta. P. annua is a colonizing species since it grows mainly in disturbed areas, such as cultivated gardens, roadsides and pastures, and has spread from its center of origin in Europe throughout temperate regions of the world. Harper (1965) suggested that the success or failure of colonizing species is most critically determined during germination and seedling establishment, hence these characteristics are worthy of special consideration. Factors relating to reproductive potential are also important; rapid and prolific reproduction being a characteristic of colonizing species (Ehrendorfer, 1965). Another consideration in the colonizing success of P. annua must be its variability, which can be related to the plasticity of or recombination within the genotype. The range of phenotypic variation within and
Efficacy of mesenchymal stem cells in healing of meniscus tear

Background: The meniscus is a semilunar fibro-cartilaginous tissue performing various function including knee joint stability, shock absorption, load distribution, joint lubrication, and joint congruity. Menisectomy often leads to articular cartilage degeneration and ends up in osteoarthritis of knee. Authors described use of mesenchymal stem cells for evaluation of healing of meniscus tear. Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of mesenchymal stem cells in healing of meniscal tear. Study design: Prospective, randomised, case-control double blinded study. Methods: A total number of 30 patients with meniscus tear of knee, were selected on the basis of predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria after informed written consent. Both cases and controls were 15 in numbers. No case were lost to followup. MRI was done twice pre and post intervention. In case group autologus bone marrow was aspirated, cultured and injected percutaneously under ultrasound guidance. Whereas in control group normal saline was injected as placebo. All patients received standard physiotherapy. Objective assessment was done by functional scoring systems (WOMAC, KOOS, VAS SCORE) Results: There was significant reduction in pain scores (VAS scores) in case group (p=.001) as compared to control group (p=.166). There was improvement in functional outcome scores such as WOMAC in case group (P=.001) as compared to control group (p=.419) and Global KOOS score in case group (p=.001) compared to control group (p=.910). Significant improvement was noted in MRI signals in case group as compared to control group (p=.013) depicting healing of meniscal tears with injection of mesenchymal stem cells. Conclusions: Mesenchymal stem cells injection is efficacious for healing of meniscal tear which reduces pain, helps in integration of torn meniscus and improves functional outcome.
A Review in Cloud Computing Security using Steganography

Cloud Computing is a flexible, cost-efficient, and authentic platform for providing business or consumer IT enabled services on the Internet. However, Cloud computing represents an added level of risk factors because important and essential services are often outsourced to a third party connected to cloud network, which makes it even harder to maintain the level of data security. Steganography is the technique of hiding or encapsulating information in digital media in order to prevent the existence of information. The digital media with hidden information within are called stego media and the data without hidden information are called cover media. Steganography can be used for hiding both the legal as well as illegal information. For example, civilians can use it for maintaining privacy while the government may use it for the security reasons of the country. In this paper we have discussed about the various techniques by which we can enhance the cloud service in relation to security and data privacy.
Hepatic Function during Repeated TACE Procedures and Prognosis after Introducing Sorafenib in Patients with Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Multicenter Analysis

Background/Aim: We evaluated the relationship of hepatic function with repeated transarterial catheter chemoembolization (TACE) and prognosis after sorafenib treatment in various patient cohorts. Methods: Study 1 comprised of 212 Barcelona clinic liver cancer stage-B (BCLC-B) HCC patients classified as Child-Pugh A (CP-A) and who had received repeated TACE treatments (r-TACE) (naïve:recurrence = 66:146). Study 2 comprised of 435 patients with unresectable HCC classified as CP-A in who sorafenib was introduced (naïve:recurrence = 37:398; CP score 5:6 = 282:153; macro-vessel invasion [MVI]+: extrahepatic metastasis [EHM]+ both negative = 124:226:143). Changes in hepatic function along with CP and albumin-bilirubin (ALBI) score/grade during r-TACE in Study 1, and prognosis after introducing sorafenib in Study 2 were evaluated. Results: Hepatic function worsened to CP-B in 9-14% with each TACE procedure, while 18-21% had a change of classification from ALBI-1 to ALBI-2. When the prognosis of patients with the best CP score of 5 was analyzed, those with ALBI-1 (n = 154) had a better outcome than those with ALBI-2 (n = 128) (MST 17.5 vs. 9.9 months; p = 0.01), while ALBI-1 (n = 43) patients also showed a better outcome than ALBI-2 (n = 34) patients with a CP score of 5 without MVI/EHM (MST: 17.5 vs. 10.0 months; p = 0.029). The Akaike's Information criterion for ALBI-grade (MST: grade 1 vs. 2 = 16.9 vs. 10.4 months; p = 0.001) was also better than that for CP (MST: score 5 vs. 6 = 14.4 vs. 10.5 months; p = 0.003) (3195.6 vs. 3197.5) in all 435 patients. Conclusion: The rate of patients with downgraded hepatic function during r-TACE, especially with regard to ALBI-grade, was not low. ALBI-grade was shown to be a better hepatic function assessment tool than CP in patients receiving sorafenib treatment. Strict judgment of TACE-refractory status in patients with unresectable HCC is needed to improve prognosis before downgrading the hepatic function.
Optimizing Bangladeshi solar home system efficiency using two-position mount

Photovoltaic modules that track the sun produce more energy than fixed modules. Dual or single axis tracking systems increase energy production but also increase complexity and cost, and are therefore uncommon in rural Bangladesh. However, adjusting the panel's position two time a year can notably increase energy production. Herein is discussed theoretical potential increased energy production using a two-position frame as compared to a fixed PV module.