Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Narrowband Vegetation Indices for Estimating Boreal Forest Leaf Area Index

The green photosynthesizing leaf area of a canopy is an important characteristic of the status of the vegetation in terms of its health and production potential. At stand level, the amount of leaf area in a canopy is represented by a variable called the leaf area index (LAI), which is one of the key biophysical parameters in the global monitoring and mapping of vegetation by satellite remote sensing (Morisette et al., 2006). In this paper we adopt the, by now widely accepted, definition of LAI as the hemi-surface or half of the total surface area of all leaves or needles in the vegetation canopy divided by the horizontal ground area below the canopy. The definition is in line with the original definition of LAI, formulated for flat and (assumedly) infinitely thin leaves (Watson, 1947), as the one-sided leaf area per unit ground area. For coniferous canopies, the question arose on how to define the “one-sided” area of non-flat needles. While projected needle area formerly often has been used erroneously as a synonym to one-sided flat leaf area, it is now commonly accepted that the hemi-surface needle area represents the logical counterpart to the one-sided area of flat leaves (e.g. Chen & Black, 1992; Stenberg, 2006).
The effect of reciprocal-space sampling and basis set quality on the calculated conductance of a molecular junction

We perform density functional theory and non-equilibrium Green's function calculations of the conductance of a gold wire and a 1,4-phenylenedimethanethiol (XYL) molecule adsorbed between Au(111) electrodes using the TranSIESTA software package. The effect of varying different computational parameters is investigated. We find that the conductance is more sensitive to the reciprocal-space sampling grid than the quality of the basis set employed. The conductance can vary up to a factor of five as a result of the choice of computational parameters. We report a set of computational parameters that yields a well-converged conductance value.
Crassostrea virginica shells record local variation in wastewater inputs to a coastal estuary

We measured δ 15 N values in the acid-insoluble organic portion of shells from Cras- sostrea virginica transplanted at increasing distance from a major wastewater treatment plant in Mobile Bay, Alabama. To determine whether δ 15 N in shell material recorded local spatial variation in wastewater influence, we compared δ 15 N in newly deposited oyster shell to δ 15 N values in waste- water effluent and in suspended particulate matter in receiving waters. We compared δ 15 N values in shell to δ 15 N in adductor muscle and whole tissues to determine the isotopic relationships between shell and soft tissues for this previously untested species. δ 15 N values in oyster shell reflected differ- ences in wastewater influence relative to distance from the wastewater treatment plant within 38 d of transplanting. δ 15 N values in shell were enriched by 2.4‰ compared to available foods, consistent with a trophic shift from food source to consumer. δ 15 N values in shell also were significantly corre- lated with δ 15 N values in soft tissues, but were enriched by 1.9‰ compared to whole tissues and 0.8‰ compared to adductor muscle. Overall, δ 15 N values in oyster shell were a better proxy for adductor muscle than whole tissues. If applied with care, oyster shells provide an ecologically and commer- cially meaningful wastewater detection tool that may be effective over relatively short spatial and temporal scales. δ 15 N values in shell material may be particularly useful to enable anthropogenic source tracing and refine food web reconstructions in areas with remnant shells where oysters or other bivalves have been severely depleted or already lost.
Magnetic Fields in Molecular Clouds

Magnetic fields are believed to play an important role in the evolution of molecular clouds, from their large scale structure to dense cores, protostellar envelopes, and protoplanetary disks. How important is unclear, and whether magnetic fields are the dominant force driving star formation at any scale is also unclear. In this review we examine the observational data which address these questions, with particular emphasis on high angular resolution observations. Unfortunately the data do not clarify the situation. It is clear that the fields are important, but to what degree we don't yet know. Observations to date have been limited by the sensitivity of available telescopes and instrumentation. In the future ALMA and the SKA in particular should provide great advances in observational studies of magnetic fields, and we discuss which observations are most desirable when they become available.
Current Status and Future Scope for Nanomaterials in Drug Delivery

(VLPs) constructed from the virus are used to deliver therapeutic genes to human fetal glial cells. Another technique Cell-docking involves attachment of antibodies to the surface of brain natriuretic peptide (BNPs). Coupling reaction between murine polyoma-virus and antitumor antibody B3 yielded polyoma VLPs with 30 to 40 antibody fragments bound to the surface, allowing the modified VLPs to bind to the breast carcinoma cells with high efficiencies [72
APPLICATION OF ANT-COLONY ALGORITHM TO THE ISSUE OF IMPROVING RECTIFIED VOLTAGE PARAMETERS IN ELECTRIC TRAM TRACTION Summary

In this paper, the problem related to transformation of ac voltage into DC voltage used in tram supply is considered. A variable component is always present in rectified voltage. Pulsation of rectified voltage is influenced by different factors. In a 12pulse system, where two secondary transformer windings are used (one delta-connected and the other star-connected), an additional factor increasing the pulsation is the unbalance of the output voltages at these windings. Tap changer may be used and its setting is optimized here by applying the ant-colony algorithm. Different supply voltage variants have been considered. It is demonstrated that pulsation may be reduced by even 25%.
SDC13 infrared dark clouds: longitudinally collapsing filaments?

Formation of stars is now believed to be tightly linked to the dynamical evolution of interstellar filaments in which they form. In this paper we analyze the density structure and kinematics of a small network of infrared dark filaments, SDC13, observed in both dust continuum and molecular line emission with the IRAM 30 m telescope. These observations reveal the presence of 18 compact sources amongst which the two most massive, MM1 and MM2, are located at the intersection point of the parsec-long filaments. The dense gas velocity and velocity dispersion observed along these filaments show smooth, strongly correlated, gradients. We discuss the origin of the SDC13 velocity field in the context of filament longitudinal collapse. We show that the collapse timescale of the SDC13 filaments (from 1 Myr to 4 Myr depending on the model parameters) is consistent with the presence of Class I sources in them, and argue that, on top of bringing more material to the centre of the system, collapse could generate additional kinematic support against local fragmentation, helping the formation of starless super-Jeans cores.
Arbuscular mycorrhizal colonisation of roots of grass species differing in invasiveness

Recent research indicates that the soil microbial community, particularly arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), can influence plant invasion in several ways. We tested if 1) invasive species are colonised by AMF to a lower degree than resident native species, and 2) AMF colonisation of native plants is lower in a community inhabited by an invasive species than in an uninvaded resident community. The two tests were run in semiarid temperate grasslands on grass (Poaceae) species, and the frequency and intensity of mycorrhizal colonisation, and the proportion of arbuscules and vesicles in plant roots have been measured. In the first test, grasses representing three classes of invasiveness were included: invasive species, resident species becoming abundant upon disturbance, and non-invasive native species. Each class contained one C3 and one C4 species. The AMF colonisation of the invasive Calamagrostis epigejos and Cynodon dactylon was consistently lower than that of the non-invasive native Chrysopogon gryllus and Bromus inermis, and contained fewer arbuscules than the post-disturbance dominant resident grasses Bothriochloa ischaemum andBrachypodiumpinnatum. The C3 and C4 grasses behaved alike despite their displaced phenologies in these habitats. The second test compared AMF colonisation for sand grassland dominant grasses Festuca vaginata and Stipa borysthenica in stands invaded by either C. epigejos or C. dactylon, and in the uninvaded natural community. Resident grasses showed lower degree of AMF colonisation in the invaded stand compared to the uninvaded natural community with F. vaginata responding so to both invaders, while S. borysthenica responding to C. dactylon only. These results indicate that invasive grasses supposedly less reliant on AMF symbionts have the capacity of altering the soil mycorrhizal community in such a way that resident native species can establish a considerably reduced extent of the beneficial AMF associations, hence their growth, reproduction and ultimately abundance may decline. Accumulating evidence suggests that such indirect influences of invasive alien plants on resident native species mediated by AMF or other members of the soil biota is probably more the rule than the exception.
John Craig Venter (1946- )

John Craig Venter helped map the genomes of humans [3], fruit flies, and other organisms in the US in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and he helped develop an organism with a synthetic genome [4]. In February 2001, Venter and his team published a human genome [4] sequence after using a technique known as Expressed Sequence Tags, or ESTs. Venter worked to bridge commercial investment with scientific research. Venter founded a number of private companies, including the for-profit Celera Genomics, headquartered in Alameda, California, as well as research institutes, such as the not-for-profit J. Craig Venter Institute, located in Rockville, Maryland, and La Jolla, California.
Inducing multiple Fano resonant modes in split concentric nanoring resonator dimers for ultraprecise sensing

We report on finite-difference time domain analysis of silicon split concentric ring resonator dimers (SCRRDs) with nanoscale dimensions deposited on a dielectric substrate to design all-dielectric polarization-dependent metamaterial (MM) structures. Investigating the optical response of an SCRRD on a quartz (SiO2) substrate, we verified that it can be considered as a meta-atom to design a MM. The proposed structure is able to support double sharp Fano resonances in the visible spectrum under transverse electric polarization excitation. Immersing the all-dielectric MM in various chemical liquids with different refractive indices and calculating the transmission spectra, we estimated the sensitivity of the presented MM as 497 nm/RIU and the corresponding figure of merit as 118.5. This study could help designing ultra-sensitive, low-cost and efficient bio-chemical sensors based on all-dielectric components.
Facilitation of Lordosis Behaviour is Differentially Mediated by 5-Ht 2 Receptor Agents in Diazepam- Tolerant Female Rats

Diazepam-tolerant but ovariectomized rats were primed with 50 µg oestradiol benzoate and 500 µg progesterone to induce a lordosis quotient of moderate intensity. Enhancing of lordosis was induced by treating with 5-HT 2A/2C receptor agonist, DOI. The effect of the 5-HT 2C receptor antagonist, ketanserin and the 5-HT 2A receptor antagonist, ritanserin, on lordosis behaviour were investigated in ovariectomized but steroids-primed diazepam- tolerant rats. Both ketanserin and ritanserin inhibited lordosis behaviour. A potent protective effect of DOI was noted following antagonists ketanserin and ritanserin treatment. DOI attenuated the lordosis inhibiting effect of ritanserin- injected to diazepam-tolerant rats. These data show that diazepam-tolerance as such did not cause significant change in the lordosis profile. Behavioural profile as a consequence of ritanserin and DOI treatment further reinforce the prior inference that facilitation of female lordosis behaviour is differentially mediated by 5-HT 2 receptor agents and tolerance to anxiolytic does not alter the lordosis profile, significantly.
Magnon valves based on YIG/NiO/YIG all-insulating magnon junctions

As an alternative angular momentum carrier, magnons or spin waves can be utilized to encode information and breed magnon-based circuits with ultralow power consumption and non-Boolean data processing capability. In order to construct such a circuit, it is indispensable to design some electronic components with both long magnon decay and coherence length and effective control over magnon transport. Here we show that an all-insulating magnon junctions composed by a magnetic insulator (MI1)/antiferromagnetic insulator (AFI)/magnetic insulator (MI2) sandwich (Y3Fe5O12/NiO/Y3Fe5O12) can completely turn a thermogradient-induced magnon current on or off as the two Y3Fe5O12 layers are aligned parallel or anti-parallel. The magnon decay length in NiO is about 3.5~4.5 nm between 100 K and 200 K for thermally activated magnons. The insulating magnon valve (magnon junction), as a basic building block, possibly shed light on the naissance of efficient magnon-based circuits, including non-Boolean logic, memory, diode, transistors, magnon waveguide and switches with sizable on-off ratios.
A cross-sectional survey of interprofessional education across 13 healthcare professions in Japan

Background: With the rapid aging of the population, collaboration among the various medical professions throughout the country is becoming increasingly indispensable in Japan. To promote collaboration in medical care, it is necessary to introduce the concept of collaboration to students at an early stage of their professional education. Despite this need, there are no core medical, healthcare and welfare education curricula in Japan that include interprofessional education (IPE). Therefore, the status of IPE in Japanese schools of medicine and other healthcare-related services is unclear. Methods: We sent 3,430 questionnaires to 13 schools of medicine and related healthcare providers: doctors, nurses, physical therapists, registered dieticians, dentists, dental hygienists, social workers, pharmacists, occupational therapists, clinical psychologists, medical administrators, certified care workers, and speech therapists. The items addressed implementation rate of IPE, teaching methods and grading methods. Results: Of the 3,430 surveys distributed, 572 completed surveys were returned (response rate 17%). Of the completed surveys, 493 qualified as valid, resulting in a final response rate of 14%. Only 19% (n = 93) of the analysed medical educational institutions included IPE instruction in their curricula. Conclusion: While many educational institutions were conducting IPE, there were important inter-institutional differences with respect to attitudes towards IPE, teaching methods, and evaluation methods. This study was unprecedented in scale, and provides important basic information for the future development of IPE in Japan.
Investigating Multiple Domains of Household Livelihood Security: Insights from Urban Slums in Bangladesh

ABSTRACT In this article, the authors construct indices of Household Livelihood Security (HLS) domains, namely, economic, food, health, and education securities and empowerment with data from 1,120 poor households in two urban settlements of Bangladesh. The authors then jointly identify domain-specific socioeconomic determinants employing a multivariate Tobit model. A quintile analysis of domains shows high levels of inequalities among these poor households. The HLS domains are significantly positively correlated, and a host of factors significantly influence individual HLS domain. Interventions targeted at improving education, provision of business training and building of land asset are suggested to improve livelihood security.
The Determinants of Price Rigidity in the UK: Analysis of the CPI and PPI Microdata and Application to Macrodata Modelling

This paper investigates price rigidity in UK consumer and producer markets, by estimating the hazard functions of price changes in microdata which are then used in macrodata modelling. We explore the mechanism of price setting using survival analysis in order to see what factors drive the observed price rigidity. We find significant effects of macroeconomic variables such as inflation and output, which should be purged off before calibrating any macroeconomic models. The microdata findings are then used to estimate and simulate a heterogeneous price setting model (generalised Calvo and Taylor), which improves the performance in matching macrodata persistence.
Condensation and Evaporation of H , O on Ice Surfaces

(19) Basche, Th. ; Sauter, B. ; Brauchle, C. Eer. Eumenges. Phys. Chem. 1989, 93, 1055-1058. (20) Leheny, A. R. ; T w o , N. J.; Drake, J. M. J . Chem. Phys., in press. (21) Klafter, J.; Blumen, A. Chem. Phys. Lett. 1985, 119, 377-382. (22) Klafter, J.; Blumen, A. J. Lumin. 1985, 34, 77-82. (23) Drake, J. M. ; Klafter, J.; Levitz, P. Science 1991, 251, 1574-1579. (24) Forster, T. Discuss. Faraday SOC. 1959, 27, 7-17. (25) Tsai, T. E. ; Griscom, D. L. Phys. Rev. Lett. 1991, 67, 2517. (26) Leheny, A. R. ; Turro, N. J.; Drake, J. M. Manuscript in preparation. (27) Drake, J. M. ; Levitz, P.; Klafter, J. Isr. J . Chem. 1991, 31, 135-146. (28) Jackson, W. B. ; Amer, N. M. ; Boccara, A. C. ; Fournier, D. Appl. Opt.
Information Acquisition by Price-Setters and Monetary Policy ∗

In this paper we examine a model where firms decide on the intensity of information acquisition about shocks. We analyze how the monetary policy framework impacts on the aggregate amount of information collected by firms. We show that it is socially beneficial to delegate monetary policy to a conservative central bank even if there are no incentives to push output above its long-run level. Transparency of central banks about economic shocks has ambiguous effects on welfare. If an extreme level of opacity is feasible, it represents the social optimum. Otherwise full transparency may be a second-best solution.
Post-treatment of a submerged anaerobic membrane bioreactor ( SAnMBR ) effluent by an activated sludge system

An activated sludge pilot plant has been operated to investigate the removal of nitrogen, phosphorus, sulphide and dissolved methane from the effluent of a submerged anaerobic membrane bioreactor (SAnMBR). Ammonia, phosphate, dissolved methane and sulphide concentrations in the SAnMBR effluent were 55 mg NH4-N·L -1 , 7 mg PO4-P·L -1 , 43 mg DQO·L -1 , and sulfide 105 mg S 2·L -1 respectively. The treatment of the effluent from SAnMBR is conducted in activated sludge pilot plant (800 L), which combines anaerobic, anoxic and aerobic zones. The solids retention time (SRT) was between 25 and 15 days and the hydraulic retention time (HRT) was 13 and 26 h. The results show a nitrification inhibition caused by the presence of sulphide which can be controlled optimizing the HRT. When the nitrification is well established, removal rates of N and P of 56% and 45%, respectively, are reached. The sulphide present in the influent is completely oxidized to sulphate in the effluent. This oxidation contributes to the denitrification process. Moreover, it was observed the presence of methanotrophic bacteria on the system using the FISH technique.
A multiwavelength photometric census of AGN and star formation activity in the brightest cluster galaxies of X-ray selected clusters

Despite their reputation as being 'red and dead', the unique environment inhabited by brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) can often lead to a self-regulated feedback cycle between radiatively cooling intracluster gas and star formation and active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity in the BCG. However the prevalence of 'active' BCGs, and details of the feedback involved, are still uncertain. We have performed an optical, UV and mid-IR photometric analysis of the BCGs in 981 clusters at 0.03 <z <0.5, selected from the ROSAT All Sky Survey. Using Pan-STARRS PS1 3π, GALEX and WISE survey data we look for BCGs with photometric colours which deviate from that of the bulk population of passive BCGs - indicative of AGN and/or star formation activity within the BCG. We find that whilst the majority of BCGs are consistent with being passive, at least 14 per cent of our BCGs show a significant colour offset from passivity in at least one colour index. And, where available, supplementary spectroscopy reveals the majority of these particular BCGs showstrong optical emission lines. On comparing BCG 'activity' with the X-ray luminosity of the host cluster, we find that BCGs showing a colour offset are preferentially found in the more X-ray luminous clusters, indicative of the connection between BCG 'activity' and the intracluster medium.
Analyzing the Antecedents and Consequences of Brand Love with a Case Study on Apple Cell phone Users

Today facing with unstable nature of consumers’ needs makes it crucial for companies attract and maintain loyal customers to their brands. Therefore due to the importance of brand love in attaining this goal the aim of this study was to analyze the antecedents and consequences of brand love from the viewpoint of Apple cellphone users in Isfahan. To achieve this goal an innovative model was developed and the impact of product involvement and self-brand congruity as the antecedents of brand love were investigated and then the influence of brand love on continuance and affective commitment as its consequences were examined. In order to examine the main hypothesis Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and Amos graphic have been used. The results imply that product involvement and self-brand congruity affect brand love and users’ brand love influence their continuance and affective commitment.
Assessment of the genetic diversity and population structure in temperate japonica rice germplasm used in breeding in Chile, with SSR markers

CHILEAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH 76(1) JANUARY-MARCH 2016 7 7 Rice Breeding Program (RBP) of the Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIA) at Chillán, Chile, has a rice (Oryza sativa L.) germplasm collection that consists of 1200 accessions, mainly temperate japonica rice accessions, well adapted to the local conditions. Most of the new introduced accessions adapt very poorly to Chilean agroecological conditions because of requirements of long days and cold tolerance. The objectives of this study were to use microsatellites to evaluate level of polymorphism of a representative sample of this collection and determine its genetic diversity and relationships with cultivated germplasm from different geographical origin. A total of 249 genotypes were analyzed with 30 selected polymorphic microsatellites. Total number of alleles scored across 249 genotypes was 183 with an overall mean of 6.1 alleles per locus, ranging 2-14. The mean major allele (most common) frequency was 0.61 and mean minor allele frequency was 0.028. The overall mean gene diversity across 30 SSR loci was 0.52. Mean heterozygosity was 0.01, and mean polymorphism information content (PIC) value was 0.47. The accessions were organized by structure analysis into three main groups and revealed a fairly consistent genetic relationship with dendrogram and Principal Coordinates Analysis (PCoA). The temperate japonica accessions can be further subdivided into three subpopulations where long and short Chilean varieties were grouped into different clusters. The three populations showed different level of admixture, admixture probably due to previous breeding work through years. Results indicate that polymorphism levels of Chilean rice temperate japonica collection has similar magnitude as temperate japonica germplasm reported in the literature.