Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Update on Tropisms Plant Gravitropism . Unraveling the Ups and Downs of a Complex Process 1

Wind and heavy rain can have a devastating effect on crop production if they occur late during the life cycle of the plants. They often flatten the crop on the ground, leaving seed and other harvestable products at the mercy of soil moisture and pathogens and inaccessible to mechanical harvesting machinery. However, farmers will not worry much if a storm of similar strength hits a crop earlier in its cycle. They know that younger plants are able to straighten up and resume upward growth. This example illustrates the significance of tropism, or the ability of plant organs to direct their growth along a path that is dictated by their surrounding environment. In nature, plant organs can use a variety of environmental cues to guide their growth, including gravity, touch, light, gradients in temperature, humidity, ions, chemicals, and oxygen. In the example illustrated above, the stems of younger crops were able to perceive a change in their orientation within the gravity field. The corresponding information was then translated into a complex growth response called gravitropism that allowed them to straighten up and to eventually resume growth at a defined angle from the gravity vector, the gravitational set point angle (GSPA). The GSPA associated with specific plant organs is a function of the identity of the species and organ under consideration, its developmental phase, the physiological status of the plant, and a variety of environmental parameters to which the plant has been exposed. A plant organ is capable of detecting any deviation from its assigned GSPA and responds to the corresponding stimulus (gravitropic stimulus) by developing differential cellular elongation on opposite flanks, resulting in tip curvature and subsequent realignment with the GSPA (Firn and Digby, 1997). Gravitropism has been observed and analyzed in a variety of plant organs, including roots, hypocotyls, and inflorescence stems of dicots; roots, coleoptiles, and pulvini of monocots; and rhizoids and protonemata of algae and moss. It also has been observed and studied in fungal fruiting bodies. In 1999, an Update discussing the status of our understanding of gravitropism in roots of higher plants was published (Chen et al., 1999). Since then, there have been several developments in the field that have provided new insights on the different issues related to gravitropism in multiple plant systems. These breakthroughs are discussed in this Update.
Vitamina C: una estrategia didáctica polifuncional

El presente trabajo tiene como objetivo contextualizar contenidos curriculares de quimica: incursionando en el area de bioquimica, como elementos basicos de la formacion en quimica del estudiante; proporcionando informacion general sobre las propiedades de la vitamina C que permitan al estudiante, como ciudadano, tener libertad de eleccion frente a la vasta publicidad que se ofrece, entre otros, en los medios masivos de comunicacion; aplicando su cultura cientifica a situaciones de la vida cotidiana y, por lo tanto, valorando la importancia de la educacion cientifica para poder ser capaz de conocer mejor lo que consume y poder opinar en forma critica sobre ello. Se presentan tecnicas sencillas para investigar la presencia de vitamina C en alimentos de uso comun. Se discuten distintas estrategias de presentacion y tratamiento del tema en los distintos niveles escolares con objetivos diferentes y se analizan cambios en la metodologia de trabajo en el aula. Este trabajo fue presentado bajo la modalidad de taller en el XV Congreso Nacional e Internacional de Profesores de Quimica y los resultados y conclusiones a las que se arribaron fueron ampliamente satisfactorias, ya que permitieron una revalorizacion de la tarea educativa buscando un curriculo mas abierto donde el estudiante se sienta participe de su proceso de aprendizaje y encuentre contenidos cientificos utiles para su vida.
TiO2-Based Q-Switched Ytterbium-Doped Fiber Laser

A <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$Q$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-switched ytterbium-doped fiber laser (YDFL) using Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO<sub>2</sub>) as a saturable absorber (SA) is proposed and demonstrated. <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$Q$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-switched pulses with a center wavelength of 1035.5 nm are obtained at a threshold pump power of 137.6 mW. The generated pulses have a maximum repetition rate and minimum pulse width of 86.7 kHz and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$4.3~\mu \text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, respectively, as well as a corresponding pulse energy and average output power of 1.7 nJ and 0.15 mW, respectively. The proposed YDFL demonstrates the viability of TiO<sub>2</sub> nanoparticles as an SA for producing <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$Q$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-switching pulses in the <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$1.0~\mu \text{m}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> region.
Small fingerprint scanners used in mobile devices: the impact on biometric performance

Biometrics has burst into mobile technology. Fingerprint scanners are being embedded in smartphones and tablets supplying these devices with the security and usability provided by biometric authentication mechanisms. However, performance results obtained by biometric systems cannot be extrapolated to mobile devices. The conditions change, especially at capture process, due to the reduced sensing area of the scanners used. The impact of small fingerprint scanners on the quality and biometric performance of the system is studied. A database using three different fingerprint scanners has been collected and reduced-size images (i.e. 12 × 12 mm 2 , 10 × 10 mm 2 and 8 × 8 mm 2 ) have been modelled by cropping the original ones. Performance testing has been conducted using one public and one commercial algorithm, and considering two application scenarios. One scenario in which enrolment and authentication are executed using the same small sensor included in the mobile device (i.e. cropped image against cropped image) and a second scenario in which enrolment is executed using an external larger sensor and authentication is done using the mobile device sensor (i.e. full image against cropped image). Results show the gradual worsening of quality and error rates as the size of the fingerprint scanner is reduced revealing a significant difference between the application scenarios analysed.
Licensed-assisted access for LTE in unlicensed spectrum: A MAC protocol design

Licensed-assisted access (LAA), which conveys control signal via licensed anchor carrier and data information via both licensed and unlicensed bands, is a promising solution to enhance the throughput of wireless communications. In view of the potential impact on the incumbent services in the unlicensed band, how to design the medium access control (MAC) protocol for LAA system to make fair and friendly coexistence with its neighboring incumbent users is one of the most critical and challenging issues. In this paper, a LAA using LTE (LAA-LTE) system in the WiFi unlicensed spectrum is investigated. The listen-before-talk (LBT) protocol is designed for the LAA-LTE system. By quantifying the WiFi throughput in the coexisting system, allowable LTE transmission time is determined by considering different targets of WiFi service protection. Then, the LTE transmission time is optimized for maximizing the overall normalized channel rate contributed by both LAA-LTE and WiFi system, with the protection to the WiFi system. Our work offers guidelines of designing the LAA-LTE system, paving the way to a controllable, not only harmonious, coexistence of LAA-LTE and WiFi systems in the unlicensed spectrum.
Voluntary Attention in Peripheral Vision and its Effects on Acuity and Differential Thresholds

The three experiments described in this paper were intended to show whether voluntary attention to a particular part of the peripheral visual field had any effect on the accuracy of the subject's perception. Test objects near to threshold value (for acuity or for changes in luminance) were used. The experiments were also designed to study the possible distracting effect of other stimuli presented simultaneously in different parts of the field. In Experiment 1 the subject could be given foreknowledge of the position in which an acuity test object would appear. In Experiment 2 the signal of where to attend was given simultaneously with the exposure of an acuity test object. In Experiment 3 differential thresholds for luminance were investigated by methods similar to those used in Experiment 2. It was found in all these cases that the instructions to attend to a particular part of the peripheral field had no significant effect on perception unless there were simultaneously exposed “competing” stimuli in other parts of the field. The results support the view that, in peripheral vision, attention acts selectively on the immediate memory trace only when there is a complex pattern of stimulation.
Security Vulnerabilities Tests Generation from SysML and Event-B Models for EMV Cards

The Model Based Testing (MBT) is an original approach where test cases are automatically generated from the specifications of the system under tests. These specifications take the form of a behavioral model allowing the test generator to determine, on the one hand, the possible and relevant execution contexts. On the other hand, to predict the effects of these executions on the system. This paper proposes new methodology to generate vulnerability test cases based on SysML model of Europay-Mastercard and Visa (EMV) specifications. Our main aim is to ensure that not only the features described by the EMV specifications are met, but also that there is no vulnerability in the system. To meet these two objectives, we automatically generated concrete tests basing on SysML models. Indeed, this paper highlights the importance of modeling EMV specifications. We opted for the choice of SysML modeling language due to its ability to model Embedded Systems through several types of diagrams. In our work we used state machine diagram to generate vulnerability test cases for a secure and robust system.
Comprehensive analysis of protein-protein interactions between Arabidopsis MAPKs and MAPK kinases helps define potential MAPK signalling modules

The Arabidopsis genome encodes a 20-member gene family of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MPKs) but biological roles have only been identified for a small subset of these crucial signalling components. In particular, it is unclear how the MPKs may be organized into functional modules within the cell. To gain insight into their potential relationships, we used the yeast two-hybrid system to conduct a directed protein-protein interaction screen between all the Arabidopsis MPKs and their upstream activators (MAPK kinases; MKK). Novel interactions were also tested in vitro for enzyme-substrate functionality, using recombinant proteins. The resulting data confirm a number of earlier reported MKK-MPK relationships, but also reveal a more extensive pattern of interactions that should help to guide future analyses of MAPK signalling in plants.
MODELO PARA SIMULACIÓN DE PROCESOS DE REMOCIÓN EN MASA DESAGREGADOS. COMPARACIÓN CON EL MÉTODO DE TALUD INFINITO A MODEL FOR A DISRUPTED MASS MOVEMENT PROCESS SIMULATION. A COMPARISON AGAINST THE INFINITE SLOPE METHOD

RESUMEN Como una forma alternativa a los metodos convencionales para analizar la estabilidad de taludes, este articulo implementa un procedimiento para modelar los flujos de material desagregado que parten de la mecanica de medios continuos (perspectiva Euleriana), propuesta por Iverson y Delinger [1]. Esta metodologia supone el comportamiento de una mezcla de fluido newtoniano y solido cuya interaccion friccional se representa por la ley de friccion de Coulomb. La ecuacion de momentum es simplificada de tal forma que permite generar una solucion analitica, a la cual se le hizo un analisis de sensibilidad. Los resultados del analisis de sensibilidad muestran que los parametros que mas influyen en el modelo son: el angulo de talud, el angulo de friccion del lecho y la fraccion de presion de poros, que a su vez, determinan la estabilidad del talud. Como ventaja adicional a los metodos usuales de estabilidad de taludes basados en equilibrio limite, el metodo implementado ademas de tener en cuenta el modo de deformacion en campo, entrega el factor de seguridad, y lo mas importante, calcula la velocidad de la masa deslizada y la distancia que recorre. Los resultados se pueden utilizar como insumo parcial para evaluar tanto la amenaza probabilistica como la vulnerabilidad de infraestructura afectada por flujo de material desagregado.
Enhanced analysis of purine and pyrimidine bases by the use of double‐strand polyaniline coatings in micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography

A double‐strand polymeric complex, which suppresses electroosmotic flow relative to fused‐silica, is described. The polymeric complex contains a strand polyaniline (PAN) with the second strand containing polyacrylic acid (PAA) and methacrylate (MA) groups. The complex is referred to as PAN:P(AAMA). This polymeric complex has pH‐controlled electroactive and hydrophobic characteristics and can be easily coated onto fused‐silica. Enhanced separations of theophylline, theobromine, caffeine and adenine, thymine, uracil and cytosine were obtained by the use of the coated capillary in the micellar electrokinetic capillary electrophoresis (MEKC) system. The purine and pyrimdine bases were separated on the coated capillary with a 20 mM, pH 7 phosphate buffer which contains 0.05 M sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) as an additive.
Vision Based Road Sign Detection and Recognition

: Traffic regulation is an important concept in the modern society. For maintaining safety in the flow of traffic, government all over the world have taken steps to develop certain rules, known as traffic rules. Some of the traffic rules are directly displayed on roads in terms of traffic signs. Traffic signs are those that use a visual/symbolic language about the road ahead that can be interpreted by drivers for making driving safe and convenient. This paper proposes an autonomous traffic sign detection, which would detect, recognize and interpret the meaning of the traffic signs for the driver and will provide a great help in reducing the road accidents and the deaths caused by it. The system mainly has two phases, 1) Sign detection, 2) Recognition. In detection phase a two stage algorithm is performed (i) detection through color image segmentation using HSV color space on color-images (ii) Validation of the obtained region of interest taking advantage of the shape properties of the road signs. In recognition phase the regions of interest are finally represented using HOG descriptors and are fed into trained Support Vector Machines (SVMs) in order to be classified and finally the driver is alerted by providing voice indication of the recognized sign.
Adaptive Anycast: A New Anycast Protocol for Performance Improvement in Delay Tolerant Networks

Delay/disruption tolerant networks (DTNs) are characterized by frequent and long duration partitions and end-to-end connectivity may never be present between the source and the destination at the message origination time. Any cast is an important service used for many applications in DTN such as information exchange in hazards/crisis situation, recourse discovery etc. In this paper we study anycasting for a specific type of DTN, where the mobile nodes arc sparsely distributed, communicating via low radio range, experience frequent and long duration partition and end-to-end path may not be present at the time of message generation. We also propose a Receiver Based Forwarding (RBF) scheme for anycasting in DTN, which considers the path length as well as the number of receivers in forwarding the any cast bundle to the next hop. NS simulation results show that the RBP performs better than the normal forwarding (NF) in term of data delivery ratio, average end-to-end delay and overall data efficiency because the probability of available receivers increases.
Does visitation dictate animal welfare in captivity? – A case study of tigers and leopards from National Zoological Park, New Delhi

Zoological Parks serve a salient purpose of entertaining many visitors by housing various exclusive animal species. Big cats like tigers and leopard are among the most visited species in zoos globally. We investigated the behavioral response of the zoo-housed big cats to visitor densities and noise. We also aimed to understand the relationship between stereotypy, animal history, feeding schedules, and enclose design. The behavior of eight big cats housed in the National Zoological Park, New Delhi, was monitored using the focal sampling technique during the May and June 2019 to construct the ethograms. We also recorded the visitor density, ambient noise, for the same duration. Both species were found devoting a significant amount (>50%) of time in displaying inactive behaviors. Tigers and leopards performed stereotypic behaviors for 22% and 28% of their time, respectively. Pearson chi-square analysis revealed a significant variation of stereotypy in association with biological (age, sex, and rearing history) and captive (enclosure design) variables. Big cats’ stereotypic behaviors were found significantly influenced by the high visitor density. However, ambient noise did not impact the stereotypy of both the felid species. Visitors form an integral part of zoos, and their detrimental impact diminishes the well-being of captive animals. This study revealed that tigers and leopards in NZP display a high proportion of inactive and stereotypic behaviors. Thus, we suggest zoo authorities adopt more enclosure enrichment initiatives.
A low overhead multi-hop time-sync protocol for wireless sensor networks

Time synchronization is a fundamental service for both design and application of wireless sensor networks (WSN). This paper concerns more on the aspect of overhead caused by time synchronization and presents a low overhead multi-hop time synchronization protocol (LOTS). In single hop domain, only one-way synchronization beacon is transmitted. MAC layer time stamping and linear regression methods are used to improve the accuracy of the synchronization between pair of nodes. Single hop synchronization spreads hop by hop from the time master node to the whole network. A synchronized node counts the beacons it heard to calculate a wireless connectivity metric. Only the node whose connectivity metric is higher than a certain threshold can broad synchronization beacon. Therefore the overhead and chances of packets collision are reduced. Simulation results show that our idea is effective when nodes are deployed, densely. In addition, we argue that the possibility of synchronization error blowing up with hop distance is very small. This point is verified by experimenting on real sensor networks.
ShcA promotes chondrocyte hypertrophic commitment and osteoarthritis in mice through RunX2 nuclear translocation and YAP1 inactivation

Chondrocyte hypertrophic differentiation, a key process in endochondral ossification (EO), is also a feature of osteoarthritis leading to articular cartilage destruction. ShcA (Src homology and Collagen A) is an adaptor protein that binds to the cytoplasmic tail of receptor tyrosine kinases. We found that deletion of ShcA in chondrocytes of mice inhibits hypertrophic differentiation, alters the EO process, and leads to dwarfism. ShcA promotes ERK1/2 activation, nuclear translocation of the master transcription factor for chondrocyte hypertrophy, RunX2, while maintaining the Runx2 inhibitor YAP1 in its cytosolic inactive form. This leads to hypertrophic commitment and expression of markers of hypertrophy, such as Collagen X. In addition, ShcA deletion in chondrocytes protects from age-related osteoarthritis development in mice. Our results reveal that ShcA integrates multiple stimuli which affect the intracellular signaling processes leading to the hypertrophic commitment of chondrocytes and osteoarthritis.
Theory and applications of adaptive constant-Q distributions

A new class of signal adaptive time-frequency representations called the adaptive constant-Q distribution (AQD) is introduced. The AQD exploits a priori knowledge about a signal's instantaneous frequency and bandwidth to perform signal-dependent smoothing of the Wigner distribution. The objective is to achieve a good tradeoff between reducing the variance and preserving the resolution by means of time-frequency dependent smoothing (specifically for use in medical Doppler ultrasound). A numerical, alias-free implementation of the AQD is presented. Deterministic, multicomponent signals as well as synthetic Doppler ultrasound signals were analyzed with the AQD. The performance of the AQD was compared with the power spectrogram, the exponential distribution, and the adaptive optimum kernel representation as well as with theory. The error was consistently lowest for the AQD. In conclusion, a new signal adaptive class of time-frequency distributions has been developed, and its potential in nonstationary signal analysis has been demonstrated.
MULTIPLICITY OF THE GALACTIC SENIOR CITIZENS: A HIGH-RESOLUTION SEARCH FOR COOL SUBDWARF COMPANIONS

Cool subdwarfs are the oldest members of the low-mass stellar population. Mostly present in the galactic halo, subdwarfs are characterized by their low-metallicity. Measuring their binary fraction and comparing it to solar-metallicity stars could give key insights into the star formation process early in the Milky Way’s history. However, because of their low luminosity and relative rarity in the solar neighborhood, binarity surveys of cool subdwarfs have suffered from small sample sizes and incompleteness. Previous surveys have suggested that the binary fraction of red subdwarfs is much lower than for their main-sequence cousins. Using the highly efficient Robo-AO system, we present the largest high-resolution survey of subdwarfs, sensitive to angular separations ( &rgr; ≥ ? > 0.″ 15) and contrast ratios ( Δ m i ≤ ? > 6) invisible in past surveys. Of 344 target cool subdwarfs, 43 are in multiple systems, 19 of which are newly discovered, for a binary fraction of 12.5 ± 1.9%. We also discovered seven triple star systems for a triplet fraction of 2.0 ± 0.8%. Comparisons to similar surveys of solar-metallicity dwarf stars gives a ∼3σ disparity in luminosity between companion stars, with subdwarfs displaying a shortage of low-contrast companions. We also observe a lack of close subdwarf companions in comparison to similar-mass dwarf multiple systems.