Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The impact of reactive mass vaccination campaigns on measles outbreaks in the Katanga region, Democratic Republic of Congo

The Katanga region in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been struck by repeated epidemics of measles, with large outbreaks occurring in 2010–13 and 2015. In many of the affected health zones, reactive mass vaccination campaigns were conducted in response to the outbreaks. Here, we attempted to determine how effective the vaccination campaigns in 2015 were in curtailing the ongoing outbreak. We further sought to establish whether the risk of large measles outbreaks in different health zones could have been determined in advance to help prioritise areas for vaccination campaign and speed up the response. In doing so, we first attempted to identify factors that could have been used in 2015 to predict in which health zones the greatest outbreaks would occur. Administrative vaccination coverage was not a good predictor of the size of outbreaks in different health zones. Vaccination coverage derived from surveys, on the other hand, appeared to give more reliable estimates of health zones of low vaccination coverage and, consequently, large outbreaks. On a coarser geographical scale, the provinces most affected in 2015 could be predicted from the outbreak sizes in 2010–13. This, combined with the fact that the vast majority of reported cases were in under-5 year olds, would suggest that there are systematic issues of undervaccination. If this was to continue, outbreaks would be expected to continue to occur in the affected health zones at regular intervals, mostly concentrated in under-5 year olds. We further used a model of measles transmission to estimate the impact of the vaccination campaigns, by first fitting a model to the data including the campaigns and then re-running this without vaccination. We estimated the reactive campaigns to have reduced the size of the overall outbreak by approximately 21,000 (IQR: 16,000–27,000; 95% CI: 8300–38,000) cases. There was considerable heterogeneity in the impact of campaigns, with campaigns started earlier after the start of an outbreak being more impactful. Taken together, these findings suggest that while a strong routine vaccination regime remains the most effective means of measles control, it might be possible to improve the effectiveness of reactive campaigns by considering predictive factors to trigger a more targeted vaccination response.
WATER FRONT ADVANCE UNDER VARIABLE BORDER WIDTH AND INITIAL SOIL MOISTURE CONTENTS UNDER WHEAT (Triticum aestuivium L.) CROP – I: HYDRAULICS AND IRRIGATION EFFICIENCIES

Border irrigation experiments were conducted on wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) crop at Water Technology Centre, Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) New Delhi in winter season (October-April) of 2013-2014 to study the border hydraulics (cutoff ratio, border width and stream discharge), irrigation efficiencies, grain and biomass yields for 4 border sizes (2, 3, 4 and 5 m widths) to economize the water use. Optimizing the border width under varying soil moisture contents prior to irrigation was attempted. The border of length 25 m required 30.2 minutes (min) to 78.1 min for irrigation for a fixed cutoff length of 15 m. The water front advance time up to cutoff length was 10 min and 27.3 min for border widths varying from 2 to 5 m; respectively corresponding to the selected stream discharge of 1.5 l/s. The water front advance time was inversely proportional to the initial soil moisture contents. The travel time to cutoff point of 15 m for three soil moisture contents namely q 1:14.2, q 2:16.5 and q 3:17.2%; varied from 10.0-11.7 min for the border size (width) of 2.0 m, 14.0-15.6 min for the border size of 3 m; 20.0-23.4 min for the border size of 4 m whereas, it took 24.5- 27.3 min for 5 m border size. The best border size was identified as 4 m without any yield penalty. The effect of the stream discharge was not pronounced based on yields. Due to uniform cutoff ratio there was no significant difference in the amount of water use. Hence, the border size of 4 m was rated the best.
Sustainable Solutions for Oyster Shell Waste Recycling in Thailand and the Philippines

This paper studies the utilization and management of the waste mollusk shell. The two major export countries of mollusk shell are the Southeast Asia’s Thailand and the Philippines. First, the aquaculture of oysters and bivalve shells has been studied as background understanding. The effect of the global climate change on farming and the consequences of farming on the nearby environment and neighborhoods have also been discussed. The utilization technologies on the waste shell are available on a small scale and not industrialized. This study offers an enabling context under which a suitable method can take action to solve the overflow waste shell problem, and at the same time, provide sustainable management.
Farmers’ Assessment of the Effectiveness of Extension Communication Methods Used in Ogbomoso Agricultural Zone of Oyo-State, Nigeria

This study assessed the effectiveness of extension communication methods used in disseminating information to farmers in Ogbomoso Agricultural zone of Oyo State. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 120 respondents. Data were analysed using frequency, percentage, standard deviation, mean, median and mode statistics. The findings show that the extension communication methods used for farmers were farm visit (89.2%) and home visit (78.5%), contact farmers (73.3%) and method demonstration (51.7%). Contact farmers, farm visits and home visit were the most frequently used communication strategies by extension agencies while farm visit (x=1.57) was the most preferred extension method to receive information and technologies and respondents perceived the extension communication methods used to be moderately effective. The study recommends that extension officers should consider the use of communication methods preferred by the farmers to communicate information to them. Keyword : Extension service, communication methods, perceived effectiveness
Failed appointments. Who misses them, why they are missed, and what can be done.

: Failure to keep appointments is disruptive to the health care delivery system in several ways. Rates of missed appointments in a variety of practice settings demonstrate a significant problem. The patient most likely to fail to keep a given appointment is one who is young, comes from a low socioeconomic group, has a large, unstable family, and has previously broken appointments. In addition, this patient will most likely have no significant ongoing relationship with a single physician, may have been referred from an emergency room, will have been scheduled for his or her appointment at a distant time, may well have forgotten about the appointment or thought it was scheduled for another time, and will feel little sense of urgency about keeping the appointment. Several effective methods to reduce appointment-breaking behavior are discussed. Mailed appointment reminders are both effective and cost-efficient. Improved communication between patient and physician combined with personal interest and attention an produce a positive effect on the appointment-keeping behavior of a patient. Finally, the pragmatic details of appointment scheduling can be altered to reduce the disruptive effect of the missed appointment by such methods as predictive overbooking based on individual patient characteristics, use of the modified wave scheduling technique, and elimination of the automatic reappointing of patients who have previously broken appointments.
Low Electron Temperatures Observed at Mars by MAVEN on Dayside Crustal Magnetic Field Lines

The ionospheric electron temperature is important for determining the neutral/photochemical escape rate from the Martian atmosphere via the dissociative recombination of O2+. The Langmuir Probe and Waves instrument onboard MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) measures electron temperatures in the ionosphere. The current paper studies electron temperatures in the dayside for two regions where (1) crustal magnetic fields are dominant and (2) draped magnetic fields are dominant. Overall, the electron temperature is lower in the crustal‐field regions, namely, the strong magnetic field region, which is due to a transport of cold electrons along magnetic field lines from the lower to upper atmosphere. The electron temperature is also greater for high solar extreme ultraviolet conditions, which is associated with the local extreme ultraviolet energy deposition. The current models underestimate the electron temperature above 250‐km altitude in the crustal‐field region. Electron heat conduction associated with a photoelectron transport in the crustal‐field regions is altered due to kinetic effects, such the magnetic mirror and/or ambipolar electric field because the electron mean free path exceeds the relevant length scale for electron temperature. The mirror force can affect the electron and heat transport between low altitudes, where the neutral density and related electron cooling rates are the greatest, and high altitudes, while the ambipolar electric field decelerates the electron's upward motion. These effects have not been included in current models of the electron energetics, and consideration of such effects on the electron temperature in the crustal‐field region should be considered for future numerical simulations.
Assessing Principles of Good Governance: The Case of Lake Wausau, Wisconsin

This paper describes how in-depth interviews and content analysis of water-related policies and plans were used to assess good governance principles (transparency, effectiveness, equity, accountability, and appropriate scale) for Lake Wausau in central Wisconsin. The purpose of the research was to support and inform development of a lake management plan. One of the key findings was that the existing system of water governance lacked transparency. In addition, responsibility for and benefits from potential improved lake conditions were distributed unevenly and inequitably among stakeholders. Local and county plans were vague and lacked strong language (e.g., “should” vs. “must” comply) to indicate which actions were required. Both barriers to and opportunities for creating a more effective system were identified. This paper offers suggestions for improving the governance system, discusses the limits of local watershed planning for overcoming watershed management issues, and provides suggestions for anyone wishing to undertake governance analyses to support water resources management.
Performance evaluation of dryer units used in diesel emission measurement systems

Performance Evaluation of Dryer Units Used in Diesel Emission Measurement Systems Muhammad Nadeem Laeeq The gas dryer unit in an emission measurement system plays an important role in emission testing by removing the moisture out of the gas stream and thus reducing the dew point of the sample stream to a level which is required by the gaseous emission analyzers. Water vapor in the exhaust gas occupies considerable volume at high engine loads. In case of non-dispersive infrared (NDIR) and chemiluminescent analyzers, erroneous reporting of exhaust mass emissions could result in the presence of exhaust stream moisture due to interference effects. In addition to NDIR interference issues, an inaccurate determination of the volume displaced by water in the exhaust stream could report erroneous emission data. The current work evaluated the performance of six different types of chiller units employed in different emission measurement systems at West Virginia University. To estimate the performance of different chiller units, ambient air, dry zero air and humidified air were run through the chiller/dryer units. The pre and post chiller responses were recorded by measuring dew point temperature, dry bulb temperature and the relative humidity. Two types of hygrometers, an EdgeTech DewPrime II and Ohmic AMM 15, were utilized in the study. A performance comparison of the chiller/dryer units was accomplished by comparing the post chiller dew point, dry bulb and the relative humidity recorded for each chiller unit selected for this study. The results of this study show that all chiller units, except SEMTECH-D, when tested with dry zero air added some moisture to dry zero air, resulting in higher post chiller dew point temperatures than their pre chiller values. All chillers ran with humidified air resulted post chiller dew point temperatures ranging from 35 to 44 °F, showing a close agreement to their designed specifications and requirements.
Fusion of hyperspectral and depth data using morphological image processing for pixel-based classification

The availability of multi-sensor data from the same field of view has increased drastically with recent developments in sensor technologies. There are many image processing algorithms to extract different features of objects from sensors, but no singlesensor technology is sufficient to provide dependable classification. Extracting features from multiple sources with morphological operations gives rise to problems like the curse of dimensionality, which degrades the performance of the classifier and considerably increases the computational time. In order to overcome this problem, in this project the features are fused in a lower dimensional space, while as much information as possible about the features of the pixels is preserved. In this way, the classification performance of the given system can be enhanced.
Partial and Full Substitution of Chemical Fertilizer by Organic Fertilizer in Presence of Bio Fertilizer and Seaweed Extract and Its Influences on Productivity and Quality of Head Lettuce Plants

This study was undertaken during the two winter seasons (2014/2015 and 2015/2016) in a private Farm at Kafr Elsohbi Village, Shiben Elqanter, Qalubia Governorate, Egypt, to evaluate the partial and full substitution of mineral nitrogen fertilizer by organic fertilizer in presence of bio fertilizer, foliar spray with different concentrations of seaweed extract (Algreen) and their combinations on vegetative growth parameter, chemical composition, total yield and quality of head for lettuce plants (Lactuca sativa var. capitata) cv. Great lakes, grown under sandy loam soil condition during the winter season. Obtained results showed that the tallest plant and the highest number of leaves/plant were recorded by the combination between 100% mineral fertilizer treatment (T1) and seaweed extract at 3ml/l-sprayed plants, whereas the largest head diameter and the heaviest fresh and dry weights/plant and total yield/fed. were achieved by the combination between 200% organic fertilizer (T5) and seaweed extract at 3ml/l, followed by the combined treatment between T1 and seaweed extract at 3ml/l . T1 treatment statistically induced the highest values of leaf N, P, K and total carbohydrates content, followed by the treatment of T5, particularly those received seaweed extract at 3ml/l. additionally, the highest values of leaf total sugars contents were gained by the treatment of 100% organic fertilizer (T4) and 200% organic fertilizer (T5), particularly those received seaweed extract at 3ml/l. Furthermore, the treatments of T4 and T5 statistically decreased leaf nitrate content, especially those sprayed with seaweed extract at 3ml/l when compared with the treatment of T1, particularly those received no seaweed extract which induced the highest values of leaf nitrate content in the two seasons.
Estimation of the 3D correlation structure of an alluvial aquifer from surface‐based multi‐frequency ground‐penetrating radar reflection data

Knowledge about the stochastic nature of heterogeneity in subsurface hydraulic properties is critical for aquifer characterization and the corresponding prediction of groundwater flow and contaminant transport. Whereas the vertical correlation structure of the heterogeneity is often well constrained by borehole information, the lateral correlation structure is generally unknown because the spacing between boreholes is too large to allow for its meaningful inference. There is, however, evidence to suggest that information on the lateral correlation structure may be extracted from the correlation statistics of the subsurface reflectivity structure imaged by surface‐based ground‐penetrating radar measurements. To date, case studies involving this approach have been limited to 2D profiles acquired at a single antenna centre frequency in areas with limited complementary information. As a result, the practical reliability of this methodology has been difficult to assess. Here, we extend previous work to 3D and consider reflection ground‐penetrating radar data acquired using two antenna centre frequencies at the extensively explored and well‐constrained Boise Hydrogeophysical Research Site. We find that the results obtained using the two ground‐penetrating radar frequencies are consistent with each other, as well as with information from a number of other studies at the Boise Hydrogeophysical Research Site. In addition, contrary to previous 2D work, our results indicate that the surface‐based reflection ground‐penetrating radar data are not only sensitive to the aspect ratio of the underlying heterogeneity, but also, albeit to a lesser extent, to the so‐called Hurst number, which is a key parameter characterizing the local variability of the fine‐scale structure.
The Difference Between Isolated Flux Transfer Events and Flux Transfer Event Cascades

This flux transfer event (FTE) study is based on 984 FTEs originally identified by Wang et al. (2005, https://doi:10.1029/2005JA011150) in Cluster data. Due to Cluster's orbit, the FTE list exclusively contains events detected at the high‐latitude dayside magnetopause and low‐latitude flanks. The focus of this study is on FTE separation time. The results show that FTEs appearing in cascades are mainly located at the northern dusk and southern dawn magnetopause, while isolated FTEs are equally spread over the region covered by Cluster. This difference may be explained by the different interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions during which the subsets occur. For isolated FTEs, average IMF By is close to zero. During such conditions, FTEs are expected to form at arbitrary longitudes along an equatorial merging line. After formation, they propagate northward and southward, causing an equal distribution at higher latitudes. In contrast, FTE cascades typically occur during weakly southward IMF with a negative By component. Their asymmetric distribution at higher latitudes is consistent with both the component and the antiparallel merging model for nonzero By. In both scenarios, newly formed FTEs are expected to move to the northern dusk and southern dawn regions, as observed. Many FTE cascades appearing during northward IMF are located close to the low‐latitude flanks, confirming previous reports. We discovered that such FTEs appear during large IMF values. Another new result is that 16% of all isolated FTEs appear during small IMF cone angles, suggesting that these may form as a result of magnetosheath jets impacting on the magnetopause.
MOLECULAR MECHANISMS BY WHICH c- ABL AND ARG MEDIATE MELANOMA INVASION AND METASTASIS

OF DISSERTATION MOLECULAR MECHANISMS BY WHICH C-ABL AND ARG MEDIATE MELANOMA INVASION AND METASTASIS Metastasis is one of the main causes of death in cancer patients. Metastatic melanoma is a death sentence, as chemotherapeutic agents have a 5% success rate or do not extend survival beyond 10 months. The lack of effective chemotherapeutic agents for treating metastatic melanoma indicates a dire need to identify new drug targets and develop new therapies. Our lab has previously shown that the kinase activity of Abelson family of non-receptor tyrosine kinases (c-Abl and Arg) is elevated in invasive breast cancer cell lines as compared to non-invasive cell lines. Previous studies from our lab have shown that Abl kinases are convergent point of ErbB2 and Src Kinases in melanoma cells and Abl kinases promote invasion by an undefined mechanism. Although Abl kinases promote invasion, it is not known whether they are important for metastastic potential. For the first time, we report that Abl kinases promote melanoma cell proliferation, survival, matrigel-invasion and single-cell 3D invasion. To investigate the mechanism by which Abl kinases promote invasion, we found out that active c-Abl transcriptionally upregulates MMP-1, and using rescue approaches we show that c-Abl promotes invasion via a STAT3MMP-1 pathway. In contrast, active Arg drives invasion in a STAT3-independent manner, and upregulates the expression of MMP-3 and MT1-MMP, in addition to MMP-1. We also found that Abl kinases promote invasion via lysosomal degradation of a metastasis suppressor, NM23-H1 by activating lysosomal cathepsins B and L, which directly cleave and degrade NM23-H1. Furthermore, c-Abl and Arg are activated in primary melanomas and cAbl/Arg activity is inversely correlated with NM23-H1 expression both in primary melanoma and human melanoma cells. We also demonstrate, for the first time that active Abl kinases promote metastasis in vivo, as inhibition of c-Abl/Arg with nilotinib, dramatically inhibits lung colonization/metastasis in a mouse model using two different melanoma cell lines. In summary, we identify Abl kinases as critical, novel, drug targets in metastatic melanoma, and our data indicate that nilotinib may be useful in preventing metastasis in a select group of patients, harboring active Abl kinases.
Improving sustainable use of genetic resources in biodiversity archives

Tissue sample databases housed in biodiversity archives represent a vast trove of genetic resources, and these tissues are often destructively subsampled and provided to researchers for DNA extractions and subsequent sequencing. While obtaining a sufficient quantity of DNA for downstream applications is vital for these researchers, it is also important to preserve tissue resources for future use given that the original material is destructively and consumptively sampled with each use. It is therefore necessary to develop standardized tissue subsampling and loaning procedures to ensure that tissues are being used efficiently. In this study, we specifically focus on the efficiency of DNA extraction methods by using anuran liver and muscle tissues maintained at a biodiversity archive. We conducted a series of experiments to test whether current practices involving coarse visual assessments of tissue size are effective, how tissue mass correlates with DNA yield and concentration, and whether the amount of DNA recovered is correlated with sample age. We found that tissue samples between 2 and 8 mg resulted in the most efficient extractions, with tissues at the lower end of this range providing more DNA per unit mass and tissues at the higher end of this range providing more total DNA. Additionally, we found no correlation between tissue age and DNA yield. Because we find that even very small tissue subsamples tend to yield far more DNA than is required by researchers for modern sequencing applications (including whole genome shotgun sequencing), we recommend that biodiversity archives consider dramatically improving sustainable use of their archived material by providing researchers with set quantities of extracted DNA rather than with the subsampled tissues themselves.