Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Immunoassays Using Artificial Nanopores

Artificial nanopores can be loosely defined as materials possessing one or more nanometersize pores (1-100 nm in diameter). This recent class of nanostructures is generating great interest in the scientific community as a platform for biomolecular analysis. The first fabrication of an artificial nanopore with true nanometer control dates to 2001 (Li et al., 2001) but the application of nanopores for biological studies started 10 years earlier. Following a rapid review of the highlights of 20 years of nanopore science, we explore the advancement of nanofabrication techniques that allowed the creation of individual nanopores, nanopore arrays, and nanoporous materials. Although most of the methods currently used to fabricate nanopores require expensive equipment and highly-skilled technicians, we focus here upon those technologies that allow the fabrication of nanopores at the bench and discuss signal transduction mechanisms that allow nanopores to be used as biosensors. In particular, we review the creative application of nanopipettes, artificial nanopores that can be easily fabricated from inexpensive glass capillaries, as a biosensing platform and discuss their potential for immunosensing.
Intrauterine Subclinical Inflammation Sensitizes Hypoxic Ischemia- Induced Injury in the Immature Rat Brain and the Mechanisms

Objective: To investigate whether intrauterine subclinical infection sensitizes HI-induced brain injury in the immature rat, the changes and significance of Histone deacetylases (HDACs) in brain injury, and the effects of erythropoietin on White Matter injury. Methods: Pregnant SD rats at gestation day 15 were injected LPS (0.3 mg/kg) or sterile saline (N.S) intraperitoneally, continue to rise until delivery. Rat pups on postnatal (P) days 5 were randomly assigned into 4 groups: control group, LPS, HI, LPS+HI group. Intervention groups included LPS+HI+N.S group and LPS+HI+EPO group. Brain tissues were observed on the time point of 6 h, 24 h and 7d after 40-minHI. The expression of TNF-α and HDACs in the brain homogenate were measured by ELISA. The level of MBP and MAP-2 were detected by immunohistochemistry staining. The expression of MAP-2 mRNA and HDAC1 mRNA were detected by real time PCR. Results: The expression of TNF-a, HDACs and HDAC1 mRNA from high to low were LPS+HI, LPS/HI, control group, but MBP was the lowest, there were significant differences between LPS+HI group and the other three groups (P 0.05). The expression of MBP in LPS+HI+EPO was higher than LPS+HI+N.S, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). There exist necrosis areas in the cortex of LPS+HI group in MAP-2 immunohistochemistry staining, but not in other three groups. Compared with the other three groups, the expression of MAP-2 mRNA in LPS +HI group decreased 6h after HI, and gradually rise, the differences were statistically significant. Conclusions: Intrauterine subclinical inflammation sensitizes HI-Induced injury in the immature rat brain, and lead to epigenetic changes. EPO plays a protective role to white matter after brain damage.
Identifying significant contributors to milk production in the absence of the Herd Size Effect

Prior to the commencement of deregulation from 1 July 2000, the Australian Dairy Research and Development Corporation conducted a large-scale telephone survey of 1826 Australian dairy farms to examine the current on-farm management practices in relation to milk production and farm and farmer demographics. The questionnaire results from the 214 dairy farms in the sub-tropical region of South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales were analysed (Zamykal et al. 2007) to uncover those significant inputs that affect milk production.
Microfinite Element Modeling for Evaluating Polymer Scaffolds Architecture and their Mechanical Properties from microComputed Tomography

Angel Alberich-Bayarri1, Manuel Salmeron Sanchez2 M. Angeles Perez3 and David Moratal2 1 Department of Radiology, Hospital Quiron Valencia, Valencia, Spain. 2 Center for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering, Universitat Politecnica de Valencia, Valencia, Spain. 3 Group of Structural Mechanics and Materials Modeling, Instituto de Investigacion en Ingenieria de Aragon, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain.
Abundance, survival and temporary emigration of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) off Useless Loop in the western gulf of Shark Bay, Western Australia

Capture–recapture models were used to provide estimates of abundance, apparent survival and temporary emigration of Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) in a 226-km2 study area off Useless Loop in the western gulf of Shark Bay, Western Australia. Photo-identification data were collected during boat-based surveys in Austral autumn to early spring (April–September) from 2007 to 2011. Abundance estimates varied from 115 (s.e. 5.2, 95% CI 105–126) individuals in 2008 to 208 (s.e. 17.3, 95% CI 177–245) individuals in 2010. The variability in abundance estimates is likely to be a reflection of how individuals used the study area, rather than fluctuations in true population size. The best fitting capture–recapture model suggested a random temporary emigration pattern and, when coupled with relatively high temporary emigration rates (0.33 (s.e. 0.07) – 0.66 (s.e. 0.05)) indicated that the study area did not cover the entire ranges of the photo-identified dolphins. Apparent survival rate is a product of true survival and permanent emigration and was estimated annually at 0.95 (s.e. 0.02). Since permanent emigration from the study area is unlikely, true survival was estimated to be close to 0.95. This study provides a robust baseline for future comparisons of dolphin demographics, which may be of importance should climate change or increasing anthropogenic activity affect this population.
Chapter 4 Automated Face Recognition : Challenges and Solutions

Automated face recognition (AFR) aims to identify people in images or videos using pattern recognition techniques. Automated face recognition is widely used in applica‐ tions ranging from social media to advanced authentication systems. Whilst techniques for face recognition are well established, the automatic recognition of faces captured by digital cameras in unconstrained, real‐world environment is still very challenging, since it involves important variations in both acquisition conditions as well as in facial expressions and in pose changes. Thus, this chapter introduces the topic of computer automated face recognition in light of the main challenges in that research field and the developed solutions and applications based on image processing and artificial intelligence methods.
THE ROOTS OF REDS: A RATIONALE FOR THE SUPPORT OF EDUCATORS AFFECTED BY THE HIV AND AIDS PANDEMIC

The nature of educators’ work has changed dramatically, in part because of the challenges of the HIV and AIDS pandemic. Despite these multiple and relentless challenges which educators contend with, and despite numerous calls for educator empowerment to cope with HIV -related challenges, little has been done up until now to support educators. By reviewing current literature, this article outlines the HIV-altered professional reality of South African educators and makes the argument that affected educators need support to cope. In conclusion, the support programme, Resilient Educators (REds), is introduced as one possible means of educator support.
The impact of human activities in the Gutaiului Mountains, Romania

The examination of pollen and charcoal from the Gutâiului Mountains in northwestern Romania and the archaeological evidence from surroundings provides some information on how past human activities have changed the vegetation in this region. The first evidence of potential human influence upon the woodlands is manifested by fire clearance recorded at approximately 7900 cal. yr BP coinciding with the Early Neolithic. The charcoal peaks at ca. 5750, 3300, 2700, 1500, 1000 cal. yr BP, and during the last 300 years are associated with episodes of decline of main woodland constituents (Ulmus, Tilia, Fraxinus, and Corylus), and the expansion of fire-precursors (Betula, Alnus, and Corylus), and of herb species that indicate an anthropogenic disturbance. The small openings created within the woodlands were probably used as grazing areas. The first signs of agriculture appear at ca. 1500 cal. yr BP. Only during the last 300 years does pollen of the cereals e.g. Secale, Hordeum- group, Poaceae >40 µm, suggest the spread of arable field in the lowlands (Oas Depression), but not in the proximity of the study basins.
Magnetite Formation by the Novel Fe(III)-reducing Geothrix fermentans Strain HradG1 Isolated from a Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Sediment with Increased Magnetic Susceptibility

Surface sediments at the former military base Hradcany, Czech Republic, heavily contaminated with hydrocarbons, were remediated over years by air-sparging. The sediments show a strong magnetic enhancement at the groundwater fluctuation zone. Here we describe the isolation of a new Fe(III)-reducing and magnetite-producing bacterial strain Geothrix fermentans HradG1from this magnetic and redox-dynamic layer. This isolation underlines that the genus Geothrix is a relevant group of bacteria in hydrocarbon-contaminated environments that undergo dynamic oxic-anoxic redox fluctuations. The Fe(III)-reducing metabolic activity of these organisms potentially leads to changing magnetic soil properties that can potentially be used to identify biogeochemical hotspots.
Percutaneous endoscopic cervical medial branch neurotomy for chronic cervical zygapophyseal joint pain : a pilot study

Percutaneous radiofrequency neurotomy (PRN) is a neurosurgical technique for chronic cervical zygapophyseal joint (Z-joint) pain. However, its failure of some 30% of patients to respond may be compatible with inadequate patient selection, anatomic variation of MB, malposition of electrode, incomplete ablation, and regeneration of MB, etc. In theory, pain will return when the axons regenerate and nociceptive transduction is reinstated. This study aims to evaluate the effect and safety of a newly established percutaneous endoscopic cervical medial branch neurotomy (PECMBN) technique for chronic cervical Z-joint pain. 25 patients of cervical Z-joints pain diagnosed by means of placebo-controlled, diagnostic triple anesthetic medial branch blocks (MBB) were non-randomly divided into conservative group (11 cases) receiving conservative treatment and operation group (14 cases) receiving PECMBN in which target MBs were exposed endoscopically and cut off with micro-punch and ablated with tip-flexible radiofrequency electrode. Visual analogue score (VAS) of neck pain and referred pain were followed up. The MacNab score was recorded at 12 months postoperatively. Results show that the percentage of pain relief (neck/referred) at any time point postoperatively in operation group was higher compared to that in conservative group. MacNab outcomes in operation group were significantly better than that in conservative group. So we concluded that PECMBN for chronic cervical Z-joint pain is an accurate, effective and safe minimally invasive spine surgery. Higher success rate can be achieved compared with reported outcomes of PRN without complications increased.
Experimental Validation of Pareto Optimality in Characteristics of the Image Plane Point Spread Functions obtained by Pupil Plane Phase Filtering

Pupil plane filtering is a real time, non-scanning technique for tailoring the Point Spread Function (PSF) in imaging systems. By placing lossless phase filters on the pupil of an imaging system, the central lobe of the PSF can be narrowed down to improve the resolution capability of the system. But this effect is accompanied by enhancement of peak intensity in the side lobes, so that the full benefits of narrowing down the central lobe cannot be harnessed. This behavior can be described by Pareto optimal relationship between width of the central lobe and the peak intensity in the sidelobes. This paper reports our investigations on experimental validation of theoretically determined Pareto fronts.
The Perceived Relationship of Leadership Behaviors to Teacher Preparedness for Implementing Connecticut’s Core Standards in Mathematics and Use of Math Practices Aligned with Key Shifts in the Common Core

This study examines the relationship between specific leadership behaviors (i.e. the extent to which principals establish goals and expectations; plan, coordinate and evaluate teaching and the curriculum; and promote and participate in teacher learning) and teachers’ self-reported sense of preparedness and self-reported use of practices that align with the key shifts in the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics (CCSSM). Data for this quantitative study are from a teacher survey that was distributed electronically to all K-8 certified Connecticut teachers in fall, 2015. A total of 2013 surveys were completed by Connecticut teachers who taught mathematics during the 2014-2015 school year, and constitute the analytic sample. Linear regression analysis shows significant relationships between principal leadership behaviors, teachers’ self-reported preparedness to teach the CCSSM, and the extent to which teachers reported using math practices that are aligned with Common Core expectations. Specifically, teachers who reported higher levels of principal involvement in setting clear goals and expectations, and supporting and participating in teacher learning, also reported higher levels of preparedness to teach the CCSSM. Teachers who reported higher levels of principal involvement
DFT Study of Poly Furfuryl Alcohol-Rhodamine B Blend

A theoretical study of poly furfuryle alcohol (PFA), rhodamine B (Rh B) dye and their blends (PFA-Rh B) is carried out by using the density functional theory (DFT). Electronic states and opto-electronic properties are investigated. The electronic states indicate that the oligomers of FA are insulators and Rh B is a wide band gap semiconductor. Their blends have a narrow band gap of about 0.75 eV. The optoelectronic properties are studied using TDDFT, which indicates that the chain length of poly furfuryl alcohol is an effective parameter to control both energies and intensities of absorption in which longer chain causes absorption with high intensity within long wavelength. A single broad baned of electron excitations is more like 8-oligomer-RhB case, which centers at wavelengths about 599 nm and 625 nm. This band of absorption covers the whole visible region of spectrum.
An unusual cyst nematode from New Zealand, Paradolichodera tenuissima gen. n., sp. n. (Tylenchida: Heteroderidae)

Summary – A new genus, Paradolichodera gen. n. , is proposed for a heteroderid species parasitising the rush Eleocharis gracilis on the banks of a lagoon near Christchurch, New Zealand. The slender body of the second-stage juveniles (a = 61-79) makes the type species, P. tenuissima sp. n. , unique among known Heteroderidae species. The females weakly tan after death and retain eggs. The cysts are elongate-ovoid with rounded posterior end, a circumfenestral vulva area in terminal position, an indistinct anus and a cuticle with faint striation anteriorly and punctations posteriorly. The male body is not twisted, a cloacal tube is present and phasmids are lacking. Morphologically, the new genus is closest to Dolichodera in the subfamily Punctoderinae. A phylogenetic analysis of the ITS1-rRNA sequence of P. tenuissima sp. n. shows a close relationship to Punctodera and Globodera.
Dynamic chlorophyll and nitrogen: carbon regulation in algae optimizes instantaneous growth rate

Photoacclimation models are a prerequisite for accurate estimates of primary production in aquatic environments under typically variable light conditions. They generally start from empiri- cal functions of the internal chlorophyll a (chl a) or nutrient quota (e.g. the Droop model). We propose that physiological variations in phytoplankton reflect phenotypic adaptation which maximizes the growth rate. Growth maximization has to account for indirect effects of the enhancement of carbon (C) acquisition by acclimation, primarily through concomitant changes in the intracellular nitrogen (N) budget. Our model expresses, for the first time, the indirect effect of alterations in N uptake on C assimilation by a parameter-free trade-off between the 2 uptake functions. The model explicitly pre- scribes optimal protein partitioning between N and C uptake and sub-partitioning into carboxylation (1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, Rubisco) and light harvesting. Applications to various published experimental data for different phytoplankton species support the validity of the optimal- ity hypothesis and point to different flexibility in the re-organization of chloroplasts between taxa as well as to different time-scales on which photoacclimation operates. Simulations of a batch culture with the haptophyte Isochrysis galbana show that a decoupling in pigment N:C from cellular N:C may explain observed lag phases in chl a:C regulation. For diatoms, seemingly stronger constraints in intra-cellular stoichiometry determine the photoacclimative response to variable light regimes, as simulated and reported for Skeletonema costatum. N and chl a quotas correlate well in nutrient- limited chemostats of Thalassiosira fluviatilis, but in part decouple under light limitation. In N limited growth, non-linearity in N:C as expressed by the Droop function results from a combination of a linear quota dependency, down-regulation of relative carboxylation capacity, and increasing N costs of chl a synthesis at elevated growth rates. Our optimality assumption that includes indirect feed- backs through the concept of protein partitioning generates an accurate model for adaptation in physiological traits.
Exporting Language Teaching Methods from Canada to China

ESL specialists at the present time have no conceptual framework to guide them in deciding whether teaching methods developed in one country are appropriate for the educational systems of other countries. Because of the lack of such a framework, three problems are emerging as Canadian and Chinese ESL specialists wrestle with the difficulties involved in exporting Canadian teaching methods to the People's Republic of China. These problems stem from not seeing development as multidimensional, from confusion about the relationship between scientific and educational theories, and from the worldwide presence and ac- THE NEED FOR A FRAMEWORK ceptance of technocratic imperialism. Some responses are suggested to the educational practices of modelling and memorization in China. It is suggested that these practices are not dysfunctional within the current educational theory in China that places high value on certain types of teacher-student interactions and on human interactions mediated by shared values which inhere in the canon of texts known as Marxism Leninism-Mao Zi-Dong thought. It is suggested that the teaching practices ESL teachers observe in China are not trivial or accidental, but inherent and important in the fabric of Chinese society.
Hard Example Mining with Auxiliary Embeddings

Hard example mining is an important part of the deep embedding learning. Most methods perform it at the mini-batch level. However, in the large-scale settings there is only a small chance that proper examples will appear in the same mini-batch and will be coupled into the hard example pairs or triplets. Doppelganger mining was previously proposed to increase this chance by means of class-wise similarity. This method ensures that examples of similar classes are sampled into the same mini-batch together. One of the drawbacks of this method is that it operates only at the class level, while there also might be a way to select appropriate examples within class in a more elaborated way than randomly. In this paper, we propose to use auxiliary embeddings for hard example mining. These embeddings are constructed in such way that similar examples have close embeddings in the cosine similarity sense. With the help of these embeddings it is possible to select new examples for the mini-batch based on their similarity with the already selected examples. We propose several ways to create auxiliary embeddings and use them to increase the number of potentially hard positive and negative examples in each mini-batch. Our experiments on the challenging Disguised Faces in the Wild (DFW) dataset show that hard example mining with auxiliary embeddings improves the discriminative power of learned representations.
Economic Assessment and Business Models of Rooftop Photovoltaic Systems in Multiapartment Buildings: Case Studies for Austria and Germany

This paper analyses the profitability and business models of shared, nonsubsidized PV systems’ usage in multiapartment buildings in Austria in the context of legislative amendments which came into force in July 2017. In addition, it compares the Austrian results with those of Germany, where significantly higher retail electricity prices determine the profitability benchmark. To that end, a multiobjective optimization model is developed for the optimal dimensioning of PV systems and energy storage facilities in keeping with different end user objectives, ranging from minimizing annual electricity costs to maximizing self-consumption. The results show that the profitability of shared use of nonsubsidized PV systems is marginal in Austria. This means that, based on individual apartment load profiles, the profitability gap ranges between 0 and 40 euros per apartment, whereas the consideration of the building as total load leads to a small cost-saving potential of about 90 euros for the whole building in the best case and thus profitability. In contrast, significant profitability of shared PV systems in multiapartment buildings can be achieved in Germany, where the renewable energy surcharge results in high retail electricity prices. At present, different business models, accounting and billing concepts, are being tested in these countries to learn about the best-practice concepts.
Cellular Physiology of Articular Cartilage in Health and Disease

Articular chondrocytes live in an unusual and constantly changing physicochemical environment. Due to the structure of the extracellular matrix, adult cartilage is avascular, relatively hypoxic and acidic compared to other tissues (Wilkins et al., 2000). In this challenging environment the maintenance and regulation of extracellular matrix by chondrocytes is dependent on signals received through this milieu (Lai et al., 2002). In joint disease, such as osteoarthritis, the extracellular environment is altered and the cellular physiology of the chondrocyte will change to reflect this, leading to alterations in its key role of regulating matrix turnover and hence contributing to the pathophysiology of joint disease (Goldring 2006). This chapter will discuss the challenges to the chondrocyte and how cellular physiology is affected in both health and disease. We will discuss how the structure of the matrix confers its biomechanical properties to cartilage and how this translates to physiological sensing by the cartilage during static and dynamic loading with particular emphasis on effects on membrane transporters and cell signalling pathways. We will also consider how other features of cartilage in the adult influence the chondrocyte, such as oxygen tension, osmolarity and pH. Finally we will consider the changes that occur in osteoarthritis and how these translate to alterations in cellular physiology and hence matrix integrity, the loss of the which is the key feature of osteoarthritis, and how these events may be new targets for treatment of this condition.