Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Assessment of invasion of Ageratina adenophora in the plantation forest of Nepal

1 Forest Research and Training Centre, Pokhara, Gandaki Province, Nepal. *Email: raj_malla@yahoo.com 2 Forest Research and Training Centre, Kathmandu, Nepal 3 International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, Lalitpur, Nepal Large-scale plantations of pine species were done in the bare hills of the Middle Mountain region of Nepal during the early 1980s. There is a growing concern on the sustainability of the planted pine forests in the country due to the presence of invasive alien plant species (IAPS). Invasive alien plant species are considered as one of the drivers of forest degradation and deforestation. Ageratina adenophora is one of the problematic IAPS found in the planted pine forests throughout the country. In this study, we employed different treatments to control the invasion of A. adenophora in the planted pine (Pinus patula) forest. The research design included four different treatments, viz., (i) control, (ii) stem felling, (iii) floor clearance, and (iv) stem felling cum floor clearance in one block (Block I), which was replicated in another block (Block II). The data were collected using circular sample plots with 2m radius. The ANOVA and TukeyHSD Tests were applied during the analysis process so as to determine the effects of treatments on invasion of A. adenophora. The "floor clearance treatment" was found to be significantly effective to reduce the presence of A. adenophora in the planted pine forest. On the contrary, the "opening of forest cover treatment" was found to be conducive to this invasive species to invade the area. The "stem felling cum floor clearance treatment" could be an effective strategy to control invasion of A. adenophora in planted forest, but as it demands a high cost, it is likely to be appropriate for small forest areas where promotion of regeneration is of high priority.
Chemotaxis Model for Drug Delivery Using Turing’s Instability and Non-Linear Diffusion

This paper is devoted to the study of the chemotaxis model for drug delivery purposes. The pattern formation for a volume-filling with nonlinear diffusive terms is investigated. The proposed mathematical model is governed by a reaction–diffusion system modeling the interaction between the cell density and the concentration of the chemoattractant. We investigate the pattern formation for the model using Turing’s principle and linear stability analysis. An asymptotic expansion is used to linearize the nonlinear diffusive terms. Next, we introduce an implicit finite volume scheme; it is presented on a triangular mesh satisfying the orthogonality condition. Finally, numerical results showing the formation of the spatial pattern for the chemotaxis model are presented and analyzed. The results demonstrate promising progress in understanding the process of controlling and designing targeted drug delivery.
Traffic Flow Management of Autonomous Vehicles Using Platooning and Collision Avoidance Strategies

Connected Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) promise innovative solutions for traffic flow management, especially for congestion mitigation. Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communication depends on wireless technology where vehicles can communicate with each other about obstacles and make cooperative strategies to avoid these obstacles. Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) also helps vehicles to make use of infrastructural components to navigate through different paths. This paper proposes an approach based on swarm intelligence for the formation and evolution of platoons to maintain traffic flow during congestion and collision avoidance practices using V2V and V2I communications. In this paper, we present a two level approach to improve traffic flow of AVs. At the first level, we reduce the congestion by forming platoons and study how platooning helps vehicles deal with congestion or obstacles in uncertain situations. We performed experiments based on different challenging scenarios during the platoon’s formation and evolution. At the second level, we incorporate a collision avoidance mechanism using V2V and V2I infrastructures. We used SUMO, Omnet++ with veins for simulations. The results show significant improvement in performance in maintaining traffic flow.
In Situ TEM on the Reversibility of Nanosized Sn Anodes during the Electrochemical Reaction

Excellent reversibility is crucial for the storage capacity and the cycle life of anode materials in high-performance lithium ion batteries, which has not been observed in alloy-type materials such as Si or Ge. In situ transmission electron microscopy reveals a sequential phase transformation in individual Sn nanowires during Li insertion, which is in a reverse order during Li extraction. Both the bright field image and the electron diffraction show a two-step reversible crystalline–crystalline phase transformation. It is noted that the crystalline tin has a more open lattice to readily accommodate Li up to the Li2Sn5 phase while retaining the crystallinity, which distinguishes Sn from its metalloid counterparts. The connected interstices along [001] inside lattice form a helix pipe for fast Li diffusion, indicating the openness of the Sn lattice. The ab initio simulations reveal facile Li diffusion along [001] with a low migration barrier of 0.014 eV. No phase boundary is visible in this step. In the sec.
Effect of grazing management strategies on the yield and nutritional value of Marandu grass in the semiarid of Brazil

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of two grazing management strategies on structural, productive and nutritional parameters of Marandu grass (Urochloa brizantha cv. Marandu). A completely randomized block design with two pasture management strategies and eight replications (blocks) was used. The grazing management strategies were: (1) low intensity rotational grazing (LI), with a pre-grazing sward height of 40 cm and a post-grazing sward height of 24 cm, i.e., a defoliation intensity of 50%; (2) High intensity rotational grazing (HI), with a pre-grazing sward height of 40 cm and a post-grazing sward height of 10 cm (±70% defoliation intensity). Pastures were sampled before and after grazing for estimation of forage mass, forage accumulation rate, structural characteristics, nutritional value and dry matter intake.The LI strategy resulted in higher dry matter production than HI before (18.33%) and after grazing (49.06%), increasing pre-grazing forage density by 13.21% (P < 0.05). The production of potentially digestible dry matter was highest (P < 0.05) in LI strategy (21.3% before and 39.6% after grazing, respectively). Higher post-grazing green forage mass (45%) increased the residual crude protein in LI. The LI management strategy increased forage mass production and can be used in Marandu grass pastures.
Vincristine, Irinotecan, and Temozolomide in Patients With Relapsed/Refractory Neuroblastoma

Purpose The combination of irinotecan, temozolomide and vincristine has been proposed as an effective salvage regimen for some pediatric malignancies. Thus, we sought to evaluate this combination for patients with relapsed and refractory neuroblastoma (NB). Patients and Methods In this retrospective study, forty-six patients with relapsed or refractory NB were treated with the combination of vincristine (1.5 mg/m2 i.v. day 1), irinotecan (50 mg/m2/day i.v. days 1–5) and temozolomide (100 mg/m2/day p.o. days 1–5) (VIT) during the period 2011–2019. All toxicities were documented. Results A total of 251 cycles (median 6 cycles/patient) were administered. A complete response (CR) was achieved in 5 patients, partial response (PR) in 27 patients, stable disease (SD) in 8 patients, and progression disease (PD) in 6 patients, with an overall objective response rate (CR+PR) of 69.6%. Eighteen patients developed diarrhea with Grade 3 or less. Grade 1-2 hematologic toxicity occurred in 10 patients. Grade 3-4 hematologic toxicity developed in 32 patients. VIT was an effective regimen for different metastatic sites. UGT1A*28 genotyping performed in 7 patients revealed wild type. Diarrhea occurred in 4 of them. Conclusion The shorter, 5-day VIT regimen is an active and well-tolerated salvage regimen in relapse/refractory NB.
Changes in the relationship between spring precipitation in southern China and tropical Pacific-South Indian Ocean SST

The present study explores the changed relationship between the interannual variations in spring (April-May) precipitation over southern China (SPSC) and sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the tropical Pacific and South Indian Ocean during the 1960-2017 period. Observational analysis shows that the relation between SPSC and the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) was significant before the mid-1980s (P1) and after the early 2000s (P3) but insignificant from the mid-1980s to the early 2000s (P2). In P2, positive anomalous SPSC was significantly correlated with negative anomalous SST in the South Indian Ocean. During this period, an anomalous anticyclone and intensified southwesterly winds tended to appear over tropical India accompanied by a negative anomalous South Indian Ocean SST, which caused anomalous low-level convergence over the western Pacific. As a result, the western Pacific subtropical high (WPSH) tended to weaken and retreat eastward. This resulted in anomalous moisture convergence in southern China, favoring enhanced SPSC. Further analysis shows that the negative South Indian Ocean SST anomalies tended to induce anomalous cross-equatorial vertical circulation where the South Indian Ocean and southern China are controlled by descent and ascent air flow. The ascent motion may also contribute to positive anomalous SPSC. The observed contribution of the South Indian Ocean SST anomalies to the SPSC variation is confirmed by numerical experiments using an atmospheric model. The intensified variance of SST in the South Indian Ocean and the eastward shift of the ENSO-related circulation anomalies over the western tropical Pacific may partly account for the changes in the SST-SPSC relationship.
Quantized Cooperative Spectrum Sensing in Bandwidth-Constrained Cognitive V2X Based on Deep Learning

The output of the network in a deep learning (DL) based single-user signal detector, which is a normalized 2 × 1 class score vector, needs to be transmitted to the fusion center (FC) by occupying a large amount of the communication channel (CCH) bandwidth in the cooperative spectrum sensing (CSS). Obviously, in cognitive radio for vehicle to everything (CR-V2X), it is particularly important to propose a method that makes full use of the bandwidth-constrained CCH to obtain the optimal detection performance. In this paper, we firstly propose a novel single-user spectrum sensing method based on modified-ResNeXt in CR-V2X. The simulation results show that our proposed method performs better than two advanced DL based spectrum sensing methods with shorter inference time. We then introduce a quantization-based cooperative spectrum sensing (QBCSS) algorithm based on DL in CR-V2X, and the impact of the number of reported bits on the sensing results is also discussed. Through the experimental results, we conclude that the QBCSS algorithm reaches the optimal detection performance when the number of bits for quantizing local sensing data is 4. Finally, according to the conclusion, a bandwidth-constrained QBCSS scheme based on DL is proposed to make full use of the CCH with limited capacity to achieve the optimal detection performance.
Effect of vaccination on the apparent prevalence of bovine brucellosis in the state of Tocantins, Brazil

A cross-sectional study on the epidemiological situation of bovine brucellosis was carried out in the state of Tocantins to evaluate the effectiveness of its vaccination program. The state was divided into five regions, and a predetermined number of farms was randomly selected in each one. Females aged 24 months or older were randomly selected in each farm and diagnosed with brucellosis by serial serology (AAT and 2-ME). A total of 6,846 animals from 756 farms were examined. The prevalence of seropositive herds in the state was 6.42% [CI95%: 4.76-8.62], and the prevalence of seropositive animals was 2.21% [CI95%: 1.05-4.01]. The prevalence of seropositive herds was homogeneously distributed among regions. The 2002/2003 study estimated the prevalence of seropositive herds in the state to be 21.22% [CI95%: 19.33-23.11]. In conclusion, the vaccination program implemented in Tocantins, reaching vaccination coverage above 70% as of 2010, significantly reduced the prevalence of seropositive herds. Thus, continuing the vaccination program in the state is recommended, preferably increasing the quality of the processes involved, from commercialization to inoculation in animals, since immunization remains the most effective means to reduce the prevalence of brucellosis. In addition, animal replacement remains a major risk factor for bovine brucellosis in Tocantins since 20022003; therefore, the state must implement a strong health education program explaining to farmers the importance of testing animals for brucellosis before introducing them into their herds.
Pulsed LED Light: Exploring the Balance between Energy Use and Nutraceutical Properties in Indoor-Grown Lettuce

In indoor vertical farms, energy consumption represents a bottleneck for both a system’s affordability and environmental footprint. Although switching frequency (sf) represents a crucial factor in determining the efficacy of light emitting diodes (LED) lighting systems in converting electricity into light, the impact of sf is still underexplored. The aim of this work was to investigate the effect of LEDs sf on the productive and qualitative responses of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), also considering the resource use efficiency. Plants were grown for 14 days under red and blue LEDs (215 μmol m−2 s−1 and 16/8 h light/dark, with a red:blue ratio of 3) characterized by two different sf for the blue diode, namely high sf (850 kHz) and low sf (293 kHz). A fluorescent light (same light intensity and photoperiod) was included. LED sf did not alter plant morphological parameters, including fresh or dry biomass, leaf number, leaf area, or water use efficiency. A low sf increased the energy use efficiency (EUE) by 40% as compared to high sf. The latter enhanced the leaf antioxidant capacity, as a consequence of increased concentrations of caftaric and chicoric acids, isoquercetin, and luteolin, consistent with the upregulation of a few genes related to the biosynthetic pathway of phenolic compounds (4C3H and DFR). The study highlights that different sf may significantly affect the EUE as well as crop nutritional properties.
Mass balance of nutrients for the swine finishing phase: Effects of dietary manipulation on nutrient retention, nutrient excretion, and gaseous emissions

s A total of 48 Yorkshire barrows (34.5 kg BW) was used to determine the effect of reducing dietary CP and P on DM, N, and P excretion during the finishing period. Pigs were blocked by BW and allotted randomly to two dietary treatments. Pigs were housed in 4 identical rooms (12 pigs/room, 2 rooms/trt) in an environmentally-controlled building, with a shallow pit, pull-plug system. The control was a fortified corn-soybean meal-based diet (18, 16, and 14% CP; 0.50, 0.45, and 0.40% P for Phases 1, 2, and 3, respectively). The experimental diet was a low nutrient excretion (LNE) diet similar to the control with the exception that CP was reduced by 2% units, P by 0.1% units, and Lys HCl was added. Diets were formulated on a true digestible Lys basis (0.84, 0.71, and 0.57%). Pig weight, feed intake, pit volume, and pH were recorded weekly. Feed and slurry samples were collected for DM, N, P, Ca, K, Mg, Na, S, Fe, Zn, Cu, and Mn analysis. Slurry DM, pH, and NH4-N concentration were not affected (P > 0.10)
Cold Pools Observed by Uncrewed Surface Vehicles in the Central and Eastern Tropical Pacific

New in situ observations collected by Saildrones, a novel uncrewed surface vehicle (USV), are used to investigate atmospheric cold pools during three 6‐month missions to the central and eastern (∼140°W–125°W) tropical Pacific. Cold pool fronts in the atmospheric boundary layer are identified by a −1.5°C air temperature drop occurring in 10 min or less. While cold pool events were observed in the central Pacific as far north as 30°N and within the equatorial band, the majority of observed cold pools occurred within the convective, low‐wind shear environment of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. Composite time series analysis of measurements during the 382 cold pool events reveals new insights on high‐frequency variations in air temperature, wind speed, humidity, pressure, and sea surface temperature and salinity associated with cold pool fronts. The results highlight the unique capabilities of Saildrone USVs to resolve small spatial and temporal scales of variability over observationally sparse ocean regions.
Accelerated Concrete Carbonation and Resulting Rebar Corrosion Under a High Temperature Condition in Nuclear Power Plants

To assess the durability of concrete structures at nuclear power plants in Japan, plant life management technical evaluation is performed in accordance with the guidelines of the Architectural Institute of Japan for the maintenance and management of structures in nuclear facilities. Concrete carbonation is one of the degradation factors covered in the guidelines, and sampling is performed to confirm the progression of carbonation and predict future progression. Electricity providers in Japan perform sampling at locations constituting environments (temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide concentration) where carbonation progresses relatively fast to confirm that carbonation has not reached the rebars and to predict progression. In this study, accelerated carbonation tests were performed at high temperature, which is believed to accelerate carbonation, considering the parameters of relative humidity. Progression of carbonation and its impact on rebar corrosion were examined. The results showed that progression of carbonation in high-temperature environments can be predicted with a margin of safety using the Architectural Institute of Japan’s durability prediction equation. Moreover, because the humidity environments where carbonation progresses and the temperature environments where rebar corrosion progresses do not correspond with each other, rebars are typically unlikely to corrode even if carbonation has reached the rebars, provided they are not subjected to extreme wet-dry cycles.
Landscape of homologous recombination-related (HRR) genes mutations in colon cancer.

e15525 Background: Homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) might serve as a biomarker of immunotherapy and chemotherapy response. In addtion, HRD is associated with sensitivity to PARP inhibitor (PARPi) therapy. The HRD phenotype has been defined as the presence of a non-silent somatic mutation in homologous recombination-related (HRR) genes. Here, we focused on mutational landscape of HRR genes and the relationship between HRR-related genes and clinical outcomes in colon cancer. Methods: We prospectively sequenced 784 Chinese patients with colon cancer using next-generation sequencing techniques with 808 cancer-related genes. 290 patients with somatic mutation from the TCGA project were included. The 15 HRR genes were selected on clinical evidence of sensitivity to PARP inhibitors and immunotherapy. TCGA datasets were performed to identify the correlations between HRR gene mutations and clinical outcomes. Results: In the Chinese cohort, 11.5% (90/784) patients exhibited deleterious somatic mutation in HRR genes, including ATM (3.3%), BRCA2 (2.4%), CDK12 (2.4%), BRCA1 (1.0%), BRIP1 (1.0%), CHEK2 (0.5%), BARD1 (0.4%), RAD54L (0.4%), PALB2 (0.3%), and RAD51B (0.3%). In TCGA cohort, 28.6% (83/290) patients had at least one deleterious somatic mutation in HRR genes, including ATM (14.8%), BRCA2 (9.0%), CDK12 (7.9%), BRIP1 (3.8%), BRCA1 (3.4%), FANCL (3.1%), CHEK2 (2.4%), PALB2 (2.1%), PPP2R2A (2.1%), RAD54L (2.1%), CHEK1 (1.7%), BARD1 (1.4%), RAD51C (1.4%), RAD51B (1.0%), and RAD51D (0.3%). Overall, the mutational frequency of HRR genes in the Chinese cohort was lower than that in the TCGA cohort (p < 0.001). In the TCGA cohort, colon patients with HRR-mut had significantly higher tumor mutational burden and incidence of microsatellite instability high and enhanced immune activity than patients with HRR-wt. Furthermore, In the MSK-IMPACT cohort treated by immune checkpoint inhibitor, patients with HRR-mut had significantly better OS (p = 0.009) and increased immune activities, such as infiltration of cytotoxic cells (p < 0.05) and exhausted CD8+ T cells (p < 0.01), and increased the IFN-γ scores (p < 0.05) than patients with HRR-wt. Conclusions: Our data suggest that detection of somatic mutations in HRR genes might contribute to identify patients who might benefit from immune checkpoint blockade therapy and PARP inhibitors. In addition, the molecular features of HRR provide new opportunities to predict the tumor response to multiple treatments. Exploring other biomarkers of HRD to predict the response to PARPi and immunotherapeutic in colon cancer is necessary.
Comparison of Forecasting Performance of ARIMA LSTM and HYBRID Models for The Sales Volume Budget of a Manufacturing Enterprise

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are a universal call for action to protect the planet, end poverty and inequality in the world. Government and philanthropy resources are not sufficient to achieve these goals and financial resources from capital markets must be directed to them. Impact investments are “investments made with the intention to generate positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return” and can act as a catalyzer to canalize the needed capital to achieve SDG targets by 2030. This paper investigates this emerging financial paradigm, impact investment. History of impact investment and how it differs from socially responsible investment is presented. Several countries have taken initiatives to develop a regulatory framework to support social enterprise financing. Major actors in the impact investment market are private investors, institutional investors, private foundations, banks, development finance institutions, and nongovernmental organizations. Innovative financial structures are developed among these actors along the risk-return spectrum. Impact investing will thrive if ecosystem actors work against the barriers and use the opportunities well. More academic research and training programs are needed to contribute to the development of the impact investment field.
Human Dignity and Power: Worker Struggles against Precarity in U.S. Agribusiness

While precarious employment expands, instances of workers improving employment standards motivate examination of the dynamics of advancing decent work. This article analyzes cases of workers shifting from precarious toward decent work in U.S. agribusiness. Building on bargaining-power theory from industrial relations and human development theory from sociological philosophy, it finds that workers build power resources sequentially and by demanding human dignity. The cases reveal a framework of power building by workers facing precarious work in which progress is catalyzed by the recognition of workers’ capacity to participate in the rules to which they are subjected. The framework suggests an explication for precarious employment’s growth and decline.