Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sixteen new polymorphic microsatellite markers isolated for red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) and related species

We developed and tested 16 new polymorphic microsatellite markers for the red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa): four dinucleotide, two trinucleotide, eight tetranucleotide and two pentanucleotide repeat loci. The number of alleles per locus ranged from two to 21, observed heterozygosity was from 0.03 to 1.00 and expected heterozygosity was comprised between 0.18 and 0.91. Cross-specific amplification in others members of the Phasianidae family highlighted the potential usefulness of these molecular markers for the study of related species.
Empirical Mathematical Model of Microprocessor Sensitivity and Early Prediction to Proton and Neutron Radiation-Induced Soft Errors

A mathematical model is described to predict microprocessor fault tolerance under radiation. The model is empirically trained by combining data from simulated fault-injection campaigns and radiation experiments, both with protons (at the National Center of Accelerators (CNA) facilities, Seville, Spain) and neutrons [at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) Weapons Neutron Research Facility at Los Alamos, USA]. The sensitivity to soft errors of different blocks of commercial processors is identified to estimate the reliability of a set of programs that had previously been optimized, hardened, or both. The results showed a standard error under 0.1, in the case of the Advanced RISC Machines (ARM) processor, and 0.12, in the case of the MSP430 microcontroller.
Does male-biased predation lead to male scarcity in viviparous fish?

Male predation risk due to ornaments seldom reduces female mating opportunities because males escape costs through alternative mating strategies and/or females cease to select for highly ornamented males. Males of the Amarillo fish Girardinichthys multiradiatus (Goodeidae) have large sexually selected fins that impair attack-avoidance manoeuvres. This fish was used to seek evidence that intersexual selection for handicapping traits can result in a deficit of acceptable mating partners. Also it was examined whether, under male scarcity, females remain choosy to the point of missing mating opportunities, and that they can exert effective control over matings, which is a pre-condition of effective female choice. It was found that snakes prey disproportionately on males, that it leads to female-biased sex ratios, and that highly ornamented males are more scarce after predation than males with small ornaments. Females can avoid being fertilized by unattractive males, and that missing one reproductive period can lead to infertility. Thus it appears that females have promoted the exaggeration of a male trait that increases predation risk, remain choosy even when acceptable males are scarce, and pay a large cost when missing mating opportunities. A prediction from these results is that females enjoy substantial fitness benefits from mating with highly ornamented males, which override the occasional fatal costs of refusing to mate with sub–optimal males. One potential consequence of female selectivity and control over matings when males are scarce may be a reduced capability to colonize new habitats.
Non-stereotype-based threat in gender-imbalanced work groups: Mismatched self-construal erodes self-esteem and promotes performance-avoidance goals

The present studies investigated whether the gender composition of a group represents a sufficient situational cue for creating a mismatch between situationally accessible and ideal self-views. A longitudinal study of 333 employees revealed that being in the numerical minority implied a mismatch with ideal self-views among those who de-emphasized independence in their chronic self-construal, whereas being in the numerical majority constituted a mismatch with ideal self-views among those who emphasized independence. Both types of employees suffered a drop in self-esteem and adopted maladaptive motivational states, namely performance-avoidance goals. The observed deleterious effect of mismatched self-construal on goal pursuit was fully mediated by a perceived lack of acceptance (low social self-esteem). We replicated these findings in a laboratory study with 268 unacquainted individuals who collaborated in small groups on a non-gender-typed group task.
Optimal Performance Targets

I study a class of contracts that is becoming ever more common among executives, in which the manager earns a discrete bonus if his performance clears an explicit threshold. These performance targets provide the firm with an additional instrument to resolve its moral hazard and adverse selection problems with its manager. The performance target can achieve first best under risk neutrality, with a target precisely equal to the desired effort that the firm seeks to induce. The optimal bonus increases in risk. If the manager is risk averse, the firm will shade the optimal target below equilibrium effort to provide a form of insurance to the manager, outside of the standard reduction in the bonus. When the manager has private information on his ability, the optimal bonus and target both increase in ability, to discourage misreporting of his private information. I’d like to acknowledge the helpful comments of Prasart Jongjaroenkamol, Volker Laux, Pierre Liang, Adrienne Rhodes, Florin Sabac, Jack Stecher, and seminar participants at the University of Alberta, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Texas at Austin, and Texas A&M University. Anna Dai and Mehmet Kara provided excellent research assistance.
Screening for Drought Tolerance: Evaluation of Seed Germination and Seedling Growth for Drought Resistance in Legume Plants

Experiments were performed to evaluate seed germination and seedling growth in simulated drought as screening techniques for drought tolerance rating. Several laboratory screening tests were evaluated for ability to estimate drought resistance in 18 cultivars of legume plants (field bean, soybean, field pea, lupine). Drought was simulated by a water solution of mannitol of chemical water potential ψ = -0.3 and -0.6 MPa. Both solutions significantly affected seed germination (final germination and promptness index) and seedling growth parameters (seedling height, dry matter of shoot and root as well as leaf injury by drought and high temperature). The tested cultivars could be grouped as drought resistant and drought susceptible plants. Drought tolerance ratings of legume plants in the laboratory tests were, on the whole, consistent with the ratings based on estimation of direct effects of soil drought on seed yield in field experiments. Measurements of electroconductivity of leaf diffusate to evaluate invisible injury caused by drought or high tempetarure were found to be an adequate criterion for drought tolerance rating. It is concluded that tolerance to drought stress in growing seedlings can be screened for by using mannitol containing nutrient solution. According to the results collected in this research, varieties differences in seed germination, seedling growth and leaf injury affected by drought or heat temperature were evident, however, not all treatments appeared to be equally useful for screening of legume species cultivars.
Pyramid ALKNet for Semantic Parsing of Building Facade Image

The semantic parsing of building facade images is a fundamental yet challenging task in urban scene understanding. Existing works sought to tackle this task by using facade grammars or convolutional neural networks (CNNs). The former can hardly generate parsing results coherent with real images while the latter often fails to capture relationships among facade elements. In this letter, we propose a pyramid atrous large kernel (ALK) network (ALKNet) for the semantic segmentation of facade images. The pyramid ALKNet captures long-range dependencies among building elements by using ALK modules in multiscale feature maps. It makes full use of the regular structures of facades to aggregate useful nonlocal context information and thereby is capable of dealing with challenging image regions caused by occlusions, ambiguities, and so on. Experiments on both rectified and unrectified facade data sets show that ALKNet has better performances than those of state-of-the-art methods.
Mind-wandering during long-distance running and mood change. The role of working memory capacity and temporal orientation of thoughts

ABSTRACT Long-distance run training, a prolonged, cognitively undemanding activity that usually takes place in a familiar setting, creates conditions conducive of mind-wandering, i.e., thinking about something else than the current task or environment. The aim of the study was to explore some possible determinants and consequences of mind-wandering during the runner’s training. Fifty three amateur runners aged 18–54 took a 40-minute outdoor run at a comfortable pace. Immediately before and just after the run, they completed UMACL, a three-dimensional mood questionnaire. After the post-run measurement of mood, participants filled out a retrospective questionnaire concerning thoughts they had had during the training. In a separate session, working memory capacity (WMC) and individual tendencies in mind-wandering of participants were assessed. Participants’ mood significantly improved between the pre-run and post-run assessment on all three dimensions captured by UMACL: hedonic tone was more positive, energetic arousal was larger, and tense arousal was smaller after the run than before it. This positive shift in mood was more pronounced in runners who declared more frequent thinking about the future during the run. The frequency of such thoughts was positively associated with the runners’ WMC and the propensity to engage in positive and prospective mind-wandering. Also, WMC correlated positively with mind-wandering in general, negatively with the frequency of thoughts about aversive aspects of the training, and positively with the frequency of thoughts about pleasant experiences associated with the run. In all, these findings suggest that mind-wandering and WMC may be important factors in the psychology of long-distance running.
Workers’ health and safety in the heat: current practice in Australian workplaces

Abstract Working in high temperatures without adequate precautions can have serious health and safety consequences, but effective policies and practices can minimize the hazards. The risks are multifactorial and related to the work, workplace, and individual worker. To better understand current practices in Australian workplaces, we surveyed workers (n = 387) about their experiences in hot conditions and suggestions to minimize risks of illness or injury. These were compared to suggestions from work health and safety representatives (n = 81) and professionals (n = 147). We used open-ended survey questions and analyzed responses using a qualitative content analysis. Many workers reported adverse health experiences from the heat, ranging from mild to severe. Common suggestions to protect health and safety during hot weather were: improved basic protections (including shade, rest breaks), heat-appropriate personal protective equipment, better work planning, and greater management awareness and support. A broader understanding of workers’ and stakeholders’ perspectives could lead to better hot weather policies for Australian workplaces.
First-principles investigation of two-dimensional topological insulators BiX (X=H, F, O)

In order to exploit the nontrivial topological phase of matter for realizing room temperature transport applications, two-dimensional (2D) topological insulators (TIs) with large bulk band gaps are necessary. Based on first-principles calculations, the electronic and topological properties of 2D large gap TIs BiX (X = H, F, O) have been thoroughly investigated. We confirmed their nontrivial topological nature by calculating topological invariant Z2 (using Fu-Kane method) and observed odd number pairs of topologically protected gapless edge states from band structures of their zigzag nanoribbons. The strong spin–orbit coupling effect arising from heavy bismuth atoms not only affects the electronic structures, but also obviously influences the structural parameters such as lattice constant, bond length and buckling height. The key role of orbital filtering effect of X atoms in the electronic and topological properties has been illustrated by employing atomic-orbital-resolved band structures. Furthermore, we proposed a large band gap substrate, hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), in a BiF/h-BN heterostructure, in which the h-BN substrate preserves the nontrivial topological behavior of BiF. To the best of our knowledge, BiF/h-BN with the gap of 1.041 eV has the largest band gap among all previously studied TI/substrate heterostructures. These findings make this structure a promising platform for high temperature low-dissipation spintronic nanodevices.
The first-principles study of the adsorption of NH3, NO, and NO2 gas molecules on InSe-like phosphorus carbide

The adsorption of environmental gas molecules, i.e., NH3, NO, and NO2 on the γ-PC surface has been studied using first-principles calculations. The lowest-energy configurations of these molecules on the γ-PC surface were found and the adsorption energies were calculated. The NH3, NO, and NO2 molecules were found to be physisorbed on the γ-PC surface. The analysis of the charge transfer between the molecules and the surface predicted NH3 and NO as donors to γ-PC, while NO2 acted as an acceptor to γ-PC. Remarkable changes in the band structure of γ-PC were found upon the adsorption of NO2 on its surface. In addition, significant modulations in the work function of γ-PC were observed after the adsorption of NH3 and NO.
Modelling speech motor programming and apraxia of speech in the DIVA/GODIVA neurocomputational framework

ABSTRACT Background: The Directions Into Velocities of Articulators (DIVA) model and its partner, the Gradient Order DIVA (GODIVA) model, provide neurobiologically grounded, computational accounts of speech motor control and motor sequencing, with applications for the study and treatment of neurological motor speech disorders. Aims: In this review, we provide an overview of the DIVA and GODIVA models and how they explain the interface between phonological and motor planning systems to build on previous models and provide a mechanistic accounting of apraxia of speech (AOS), a disorder of speech motor programming. Main Contribution: Combined, the DIVA and GODIVA models account for both the segmental and suprasegmental features that define AOS via damage to (i) a speech sound map, hypothesized to reside in the left ventral premotor cortex, (ii) a phonological content buffer hypothesized to reside in the left posterior inferior frontal sulcus, and/or (iii) the axonal projections between these regions. This account is in line with a large body of behavioural work, and it unifies several prior theoretical accounts of AOS. Conclusions: The DIVA and GODIVA models provide an integrated framework for the generation and testing of both behavioural and neuroimaging hypotheses about the underlying neural mechanisms responsible for motor programming in typical speakers and in speakers with AOS.
Review of Self-Injection-Locked Radar Systems for Noncontact Detection of Vital Signs

In recent decades, wireless healthcare detection has been demonstrated to be an efficient method for monitoring the health condition of targets; it has involved the detection of motion and vital sign signals with minimal discomfort. Self-injection-locked (SIL) radar systems exhibit several useful advantages over conventional continuous-wave (CW) radar systems in healthcare applications, including a low system complexity, high sensitivity, and high clutter immunity. Several approaches to detecting vital sign signals and locations using SIL radar systems have been proposed. This paper summarizes developments in vital sign detection and localization. Finally, some results of detecting animals using SIL radar systems are presented.
A new marine biogenic emission: methane sulfonamide (MSAM), dimethyl sulfide (DMS), and dimethyl sulfone (DMSO2) measured in air over the Arabian Sea

Abstract. We present the first ambient measurements of a new marine emission methane sulfonamide (MSAM: CH5NO2S ), along with dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl sulfone ( DMSO2 ) over the Arabian Sea. Two shipborne transects (W → E, E → W) were made during the AQABA (Air Quality and Climate Change in the Arabian Basin) measurement campaign. Molar mixing ratios in picomole of species per mole of air (throughout this paper abbreviated as ppt) of DMS were in the range of 300–500 ppt during the first traverse of the Arabian Sea (first leg) and 100–300 ppt on the second leg. On the first leg DMSO2 was always below 40 ppt and MSAM was close to the limit of detection. During the second leg DMSO2 was between 40 and 120 ppt and MSAM was mostly in the range of 20–50 ppt with maximum values of 60 ppt. An analysis of HYSPLIT back trajectories combined with calculations of the exposure of these trajectories to underlying chlorophyll in the surface water revealed that most MSAM originates from the Somalia upwelling region, known for its high biological activity. MSAM emissions can be as high as one-third of DMS emissions over the upwelling region. This new marine emission is of particular interest as it contains both sulfur and nitrogen, making it potentially relevant to marine nutrient cycling and marine atmospheric particle formation.
MatchRec: A User-item Matching Method for Sequential Recommendation

Sequential recommendation is based on the sequence of items that users interact with to predict the items that users will interact with next time. The existing methods usually consider the hidden sequential patterns in the user’s action sequence, but modeling candidate item features is ignored. To solve this problem, in this paper, we use the two-tower network structure to model the user’s action sequence and candidate item features respectively, then recommend items to users according to the matching score of user interest and item attribute. Specifically, we use self-attention mechanism to mine the information in the user’s action sequence, and use Factorization machines to automatically construct the cross features of item. We named this method MatchRec. The experiments on the public datasets demonstrated that MatchRec has a significant improvement in recommendation accuracy compared with that of various baseline methods.
Prospects of using electroencephalographic signatures of the chronoregulatory processes for meaningful, parsimonious and quantitative description of the sleep–wake sub-states

The two traditional terminological systems for description of sleep–wake phenomena are based on criteria for visual scoring of sleep and on measuring EEG power densities in conventional frequency bands. There are serious limitations concerning the use of these terminologies for distinguishing different sleep–wake sub-states and transitions between them. Polysomnographic recordings obtained throughout all-night sleep (n = 14) and during 24-hour multiple sleep latency test (n = 32) were analyzed to demonstrate the possibilities (1) to uncover the universal three principal component structure of wake and sleep EEG spectra, (2) to predict such wake–sleep parameters as sleepiness, sleep latency, amount of any sleep stage, etc. from the three principal component scores, and (3) to link the magnitudes and time courses of these scores with the levels and kinetics of sleep–wake regulatory processes. This demonstration could lead to the development of a theoretically based terminological system allowing meaningful, parsimonious and quantitative description of sub-states along the sleep–wake continuum.
Rare and endangered species in communities of the Adenostylion alliariae alliance in the Carpathian Mountains

Rare and endangered species in communities of the Adenostylion alliariae alliance in the Carpathian Mountains The Adenostylion alliariae alliance (Mulgedio-Aconitetea class) comprises plant communities which grow optimally in the subalpine zone of the European mountain ranges. The flora of these communities consists of more than four hundred taxa of vascular plants. Some of the diagnostic species are valuable and rare, either in the Carpathians as a whole or in the countries in which the Carpathians lie. In the flora of the plant communities studied, five taxa are indexed in the Polish Red Book of Endangered Plant Species, thirteen taxa are endemic to the Carpathians, and fourteen represent the eastern biogeographical element in the Polish flora. Two taxa are listed in the Annex II of the Habitats Directive.
Classifying probabilities of acute toxicity in marine sediments with empirically derived sediment quality guidelines

Matching, marine sediment chemistry, and toxicity data(n = 1,513), compiled from three studies conducted in the United States, were analyzed to determine both the frequency of acute toxicity to amphipods and average percentage survival in laboratory bioassays within ranges in toxicant concentrations. We determined that the probability of observing acute toxicity was relatively low (<10%) and that average control‐adjusted survival equaled or exceeded 92% in samples in which sediment quality guidelines were not exceeded. Both the incidence of toxicity increased and average survival decreased as chemical concentrations increased relative to the guidelines. In sediments with highest contaminant concentrations, 73 to 83% of the samples were highly toxic, and average control‐adjusted amphipod survival was 37 to 46%. Results of this study confirm that the relationships between sediment chemical concentrations and toxicity reported in a previous study were robust. Further, they indicate that numerical guidelines for saltwater sediments can be used to estimate the probability of observing toxic effects in acute amphipod tests.
Social Support as a Mediator in the Relationship between Job Insecurity and Psychological Well-being among Employees in Public and Private Sectors

Job insecurity influences employees’ effectiveness at work as they face uncertainty about their future. The objective of this study therefore, is to examine the relationship between job insecurity, social support and, psychological well-being. In addition, this study also investigates the role of social support in mediating the relationship between job insecurity and psychological well-being. A total of 1188 respondents from both public and private sectors consisting of 571 males and 617 females were involved in this study. A set of questionnaire was used to collect data and this questionnaire included the adapted Job Insecurity Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and Psychological Well-being Scale. Results showed that there was a significant and negative correlation between job insecurity and psychological well-being, a significant and negative correlation between job insecurity and social support, and a positive and significant correlation between social support and psychological well-being. Regression analysis on the other hand, found that social support significantly mediated the relationship of job insecurity on psychological well-being. The findings indicated the importance of social support in buffering the effect of job insecurity which in turn will influence psychological well-being.