Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Drought-tolerant cyanobacteria and mosses as biotechnological tools to attain land degradation neutrality

Abstract. The induction of biocrusts through inoculation-based techniques has gained increasing scientific attention in the last 2 decades due to its potential to address issues related to soil degradation and desertification. The technology has shown the most rapid advances in the use of biocrust organisms, particularly cyanobacteria and mosses, as inoculants and biocrust initiators. Cyanobacteria and mosses are poikilohydric organisms – i.e., desiccation-tolerant organisms capable of reactivating their metabolism upon rehydration – that can settle on bare soils in abiotically stressing habitats, provided that selected species are used and an appropriate and customized protocol is applied. The success of inoculation of cyanobacteria and mosses depends on the inoculant's physiology, but also on the ability of the practitioner to identify and control, with appropriate technical approaches in each case study, those environmental factors that most influence the inoculant settlement and its ability to develop biocrusts. This review illustrates the current knowledge and results of biocrust induction biotechnologies that use cyanobacteria or mosses as inoculants. At the same time, this review's purpose is to highlight the current technological gaps that hinder an efficient application of the technology in the field.
Geometrical characteristics associated with atherosclerotic disease in the basilar artery: a magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging study.

Background Vascular geometry may play an important role in the development of atherosclerosis. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between the geometrical characteristics of basilar artery (BA) and the presence, burden, and distribution of BA plaques using magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging. Methods Patients with cerebrovascular symptoms in the posterior circulation were recruited and underwent magnetic resonance imaging. The BA's geometrical characteristics, including actual length, straightened length, tortuosity, lateral basilar artery-vertebral artery (VA) angle, lateral mid-BA angle, and BA convexity, were measured. The presence of plaques, stenosis, and plaque burden, including mean and maximal wall thickness, were evaluated. The BA's cross-sectional vessel wall was divided into 4 quadrants: dorsal, ventral, right, and left quadrant. The distribution of BA plaques was analyzed. Results Of 344 recruited patients (mean age: 68.1±11.1 years; 200 males), 100 (29.1%) had BA plaques. Patients with BA plaques had higher tortuosity of the BA (13.6±9.0 vs. 9.7±7.7, P<0.001) compared to those without BA plaques. Multivariate regression analysis showed that tortuosity of the BA was associated with the presence of BA plaques (OR, 1.641; 95% CI, 1.232 to 2.186; P=0.001) and mean wall thickness (β, 0.045; 95% CI, 0.008 to 0.081; P=0.017). The plaque distribution in the left wall and right wall of BA was more frequent in patients with right (P=0.006) and left (P<0.001) convex BA, respectively. Conclusions The BA's geometrical characteristics, particularly tortuosity and convexity, are independently associated with the presence, burden, and distribution of plaques in the BA.
Evaluation of Hepato-protective and Nephron-Protective Potential of Euphorbia nivulia Buch.-Ham. Against Carbon Tetrachloride-induced Toxicity in Sprague Dawley Rats

Background: Euphorbia nivulia Buch. -Ham (En) is one of the members of Euphorbiaceae family that is rich in phytochemicals including flavonoids, triterpenes and polyphenolics. Purpose: To evaluate hepato-nephronprotective potential of Euphorbia nivulia. Study Design: Sprague Dawley rats were used as animal models in the study. Methods: En hydro alcoholic extract was standardized and managed in high dose (300 mgkg−1 body weight (BW) and low dose (150 mgkg−1 BW) to Sprague Dawley rats, administered with CCl4 (1mlkg−1BW). Silymarin (50 mgkg−1 BW) was taken as positive control. The treatments were given thrice a week. Consequently, blood and hepatic homogenates were collected after 4 weeks of treatment. While the situation of kidney was explored through measurement of serum creatinine, serum urea, sodium and albumin levels. Hepatic and renal samples of rats treated with both 150 and 300 mg/kg of the extract were used for tissue pathological study. Results: En extract revealed dose dependent moderate level of shelter against CCl4 intoxicated hepato-nephrotoxicity as directed from the acquired results. The decrease of the albumin levels by the maximum dose of the extract exceeded similar to that attained with Silymarin, and the protecting effects of the extract against oxidative destruction were evaluated. Examination of serum show significant (p < 0.05) elevation in the level of aspartate transaminase(AST), alkaline phosphatase(ALP), alanine transaminase(ALT), whereas decline were noted for albumin in CCl4 treated rats. Histopathological cuts and damages were seen in hepatic cells and kidney of rats managed by CCl4. But, co-administration of En extract, dose dependently, improved the CCl4-carried hepatic harms in these limits. Conclusion: These effects propose that the phyto-ingredients of En extract with known polyphenols were able to improve the oxidative stress brought along with CCl4 and may be a useful healing mediator to manage oxidative stress related disorders like hepato-nephro toxicity.
Research on Zero-Voltage Ride Through Control Strategy of Doubly Fed Wind Turbine

With the rapid increase in the proportion of the installed wind power capacity in the total grid capacity, the state has put forward higher and higher requirements for wind power integration into the grid, among which the most difficult requirement is the zero-voltage ride through (ZVRT) capability of the wind turbine. When the voltage drops deeply, a series of transient processes, such as serious overvoltage, overcurrent, or speed rise, will occur in the motor, which will seriously endanger the safe operation of the wind turbine itself and its control system, and cause large-scale off-grid accident of wind generator. Therefore, it is of great significance to improve the uninterrupted operation ability of the wind turbine. Doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) can achieve the best wind energy tracking control in a wide range of wind speed and has the advantage of flexible power regulation. It is widely used at present, but it is sensitive to the grid voltage. In the current study, the DFIG is taken as the research object. The transient process of the DFIG during a fault is analyzed in detail. The mechanism of the rotor overcurrent and DC bus overvoltage of the DFIG during fault is studied. Additionally, the simulation model is built in DIgSILENT. The active crowbar hardware protection circuit is put into the rotor side of the wind turbine, and the extended state observer and terminal sliding mode control are added to the grid side converter control. Through the cooperative control technology, the rotor overcurrent and DC bus overvoltage can be suppressed to realize the zero-voltage ride-through of the doubly fed wind turbine, and ensure the safe and stable operation of the wind farm. Finally, the simulation results are presented to verify the theoretical analysis and the proposed control strategy.
Development of a model reference computed torque controller for a human lower extremity exoskeleton robot

Exoskeleton robot–based neurorehabilitation has received a lot of attention recently due to positive evidence supporting its ability to provide different forms of physical therapy and in helping evaluate the patient recovery rate accurately. The performance of exoskeleton robot–based physical therapy depends on the accuracy of the motion control system. While the computed torque control scheme based on inverse dynamics is ideal from a theoretical perspective, the stability and tracking performance strongly depends on the model accuracy. Expecting a deterministic payload for a rehabilitation robot is impractical, which makes the computed torque controller unrealistic for such an application. In this article, a 7-degree-of-freedom human lower extremity dynamic model is developed using the Lagrange method and a novel Model Reference Computed Torque Controller is utilized for control. The computed torque controller is used to estimate the joint torque requirements for tracking a trajectory. Calculated joint torques are applied to a similarly structured plant with different parameters. The deviation of the plant from the model is calculated. A proportional–integral–derivative controller is employed to force the plant to behave like the robot model. A realistic friction model is incorporated to simulate joint friction in the plant. The stability and tracking performance of the control system is presented for sequential as well as simultaneous joint movements. To verify the robustness of the developed controller, analysis of variance statistical technique is used.
Modulatory Role of Inulin Extract against Metabolic and Structural Changes in the Ovaries and Uterus of Induced Diabetic Albino Rats

Background: Chronic hyperglycemia is associated with long-term damage in the structure and functions of female gonads, especially the ovaries and uterus. Inulin is the major component of Chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) roots and leaves. Inulin is used to prepare appropriate low caloric foods for diabetic patients to maintain blood sugar levels. Aim: This work was mainly designed to evaluate the ameliorative role of inulin extract on the metabolic and structural changes in the ovaries and uterus of female rats neonatally induced by streptozotocin. Material and Methods: Twenty-four offsprings of female rats were used in the present work and separated into 4 groups (n=6). Group 1: control group, group 2: inulin supplemented group (10mg /kgbw), group 3: the streptozotocin-induced group that subjected to a single intraperitoneal dose of streptozotocin (80 mg/Kgbw), and group 4: Streptozotocin plus inulin extract. Body weight, levels of female sex hormones, antioxidants, and lipid profiles were measured. Also, the ovarian and uterine specimens were also processed for histological and immunohistochemical investigation Results: The obtained results revealed a remarkable significant decrease in the levels of serum antioxidants (superoxide dismutase and catalase) and female sex hormones as well as a significant increase in serum lipid profiles in the diabetic group. Moreover, several histopathological signs appeared in the ovarian and uterine sections of the diabetic group including, atretic follicles, degenerated germinal epithelium, stromal hemorrhage, fragmented endometrial glands, and cellular hypertrophy. Furthermore, the ovarian sections of the diabetic group displayed strong positive expression for NFκB and the uterine sections showed weak expression for B-cell lymphoma-2 if compared with the control. Conclusion: Inulin has a potential role in the amelioration of disrupted ovarian and uterine structure of diabetic rats through exerting hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, antioxidant, anti-apoptotic effects and modulation of female sex hormones.
Simulating TSN traffic scheduling and shaping for future automotive Ethernet

The broadening range of applications for vehicles has motivated the evolution of the automotive communication network. Ethernet has been deployed in production vehicles to build in-vehicle networks (IVN) by main manufacturers. To extent Ethernet with real-time service for future E/E architecture, a time-sensitive networking (TSN) profile for automotive Ethernet has been created. This paper evaluates the implementation of multiple traffic scheduling and shaping mechanisms in the automotive Ethernet, respectively. And we especially focus on two solutions, namely the time-aware shaping (TAS) and asynchronous traffic shaping (ATS). To investigate the performance, we introduce a TSN-based automotive gateway testing model in a simulation environment. Further-more, another two methods, i.e., strict-priority and credit-based shaper (CBS), as well as TAS and ATS are implemented in the model and tested within a domain-based IVN scenario. The results show that TAS guarantees the shortest worst-case latency of high-priority streams, whereas it has a longer transmission latency for low-priority streams. ATS provides less determinism for high-priority streams than TAS, but ensures a better average latency of all streams.
Attachment Style, Mother Tongue Proficiency and Sociocultural Identity Amongst Second and Third Generation South Asian Immigrants in Hong Kong

This study examined the relationship between attachment style, mother tongue (L1) and dominant language (DL) proficiency, sociocultural identification with the culture of origin, and life satisfaction amongst second-generation and third-generation South Asian immigrants in Hong Kong. Participants included 69 women and 28 men who were permanent residents of South Asian ethnicity, and who had grown up in Hong Kong. The results identified significant associations between attachment insecurity and L1 and DL proficiency, as well as commitment to the origin culture. There was a positive association between life satisfaction and commitment levels to origin culture, indicating that high commitment levels to origin culture tend to coexist with high life satisfaction. This study adds to the existing literature with a focus on language skills, attachment and acculturation in immigrant populations.
Variational Principles and Solitary Wave Solutions of Generalized Nonlinear Schrödinger Equation in the Ocean

Internal solitary waves are very common physical phenomena in the ocean, which play an important role in the transport of marine matter, momentum and energy. Because the generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equation can well explain the effects of nonlinearity and dispersion in the ocean, it is more suitable for describing the deep-sea internal wave propagation and evolution than other mathematical models. At first, by designing skillfully the trial-Lagrange functional, different kinds of variational principles are successfully established for a generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equation by the semi-inverse method. Then, the constructed variational principles are proved correct by minimizing the functionals with the calculus of variations. Furthermore, some kinds of internal solitary wave solutions are obtained and demonstrated by semi-inverse variational principle for the generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equation.
Litter Surface Temperature: A Driving Factor Affecting Foraging Activity in Dinoponera lucida (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Dinoponera lucida is a poneromorph ant endemic to the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. The species is classified as endangered in Brazil’s Red List due to its peculiar reproductive biology and high habitat fragmentation. Herein, we characterize D. lucida foraging activity and response to litter surface temperature in a lowland forest remnant in south-eastern Brazil. The mean flow of workers at nest openings was 3.8 ± 0.6 per hour, mean foraging trip was 14.2 ± 2.2 min, and mean foraging distance was 3.8 ± 0.4 m. The time spent per foraging trip and litter surface temperature were positively correlated. Flow of workers at nest openings was higher with mean temperature of litter surface between 21.0 and 27.0 °C. Our results show that D. lucida has a diurnal foraging activity related to habitat temperature. Our data contribute to the knowledge about the ecology of D. lucida and support the hypothesis of optimal food foraging regulated by habitat temperature. In addition, the better understanding of D. lucida activity patterns can assist on conservation planning of this endangered and endemic ant.
Comparison of the Cognitive Benefits of Doing Aerobic Exercise versus Performing Theater in Healthy Older Adults

ABSTRACT Previous studies have shown cognitive benefits for healthy older adults who engage in aerobic exercise training (AET) or artistic activities such as theater training (TT). However, these two activities have not been compare on their cognitive effects. So, this study compares the cognitive functioning of healthy older adults engaging in AET by playing Newcomb ball (volleyball-based game) versus those who participated in TT. Participants were 20 healthy older adults (10 women), 60–78 years of age, with an average education of 10.8 years and practitioners of AET or TT. The composition of the groups was controlled with respect to age, sex, schooling, and periodicity and time of practice of each activity. Neuropsychological functions of planning, working memory, cognitive flexibility, inhibition, and learning were evaluated. A high normal neuropsychological performance was observed in the AET group in the majority of the normalized scores for almost all the cognitive areas studied, whereas the TT group showed high average performance only in inhibition and cognitive flexibility. Although the results indicate that AET is a better option than TT as a protective factor against the cognitive decline that comes along with aging, TT cannot be ruled out as an option for elderly with physical limitations.
Learning of Sepak Sila Technique Based Video For Sepak Takraw Course

This study aims to create a learning model of basic techniques of sila based on video of the sepak takraw course for Physical Education students of the Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Sriwijaya. The development procedure used in this study used the research and Development method. The research subjects were physical education students. Based on the results of the stage I media expert validation, the percentage was 73.2. The results of the validation of sepak takraw for the first stage of obtained a percentage of 71.4 in the fairly decent category. Based on the results of expert validation, the average percentage of the assessment was 72.3. The implication of this research is that the research product is quite feasible to use.
Tourism Imaginary and Landscape at Heritage Site: A Case in Honghe Hani Rice Terraces, China

The relationship between tourism and landscape has been extensively studied, but a conceptual framework to study cultural relationships between tourism and landscape is not specified in the literature. On the basis of the theory of social imaginary, this article takes China’s Honghe Hani Terraces as an example to study how the landscape is imagined in tourism and the potential cultural conflicts. Content analysis on tourist discourses and images in social media was conducted in order to identify tourist imaginaries about the landscape. A gap between tourism imaginaries and the Hani landscape was found: the latter was imagined as an overlooking view of stereotyped terraced imagery, a schema separated and independent from other landscape components. In-depth interviews on stakeholders and participant observations were used to study the production process of tourism imaginaries. Findings show that the viewing platforms and roads provided an enclave space from local contexts, wherein the Hani landscape was staged for gazing. The tourism company’s strategies dominated the process, leading to local communities’ marginalization and threats to the landscape. We suggest that tourism planning and marketing should maintain the integrity of landscape in tourism imaginaries and empower the local communities, thereby reducing cultural tensions between tourism and the landscape.
Using the Mathematical Model on Precision Marketing with Online Transaction Data Computing

In this paper, a decision-making system for precision marketing is presented to deal with real-world problems based on real e-business data collected in a company in Beijing. During the data preprocessing, the authors conducted a cleaning course to make sure the data to be analyzed in the latter part of the paper were credential. Based on the processed data, the authors analyzed consumer purchasing behaviors using three classic recommendation algorithms and made a performance comparison of the three algorithms. At the end of this paper, the authors proposed a series of precision marketing strategies which had been adopted by the data source company and had been proved to be effective in improving the performance.
In silico promoter characterization of PR genes and expression analysis in transgenic tomato plants expressing OsRGLP1

Transgenic approaches have shown a huge potential in crop improvement against biotic and abiotic stresses. The regulated expression of stress induced genes provides insights about the underlying molecular mechanisms. In this study, we analyzed the expression of Pathogenesis related proteins in healthy transgenic tomato plants over expressing an important stress responsive gene (OsRGLP1). The OsRGLP1 was constitutively expressed in leaves and other parts of transgenic plants. We observed that OsRGLP1 brought about an increase in the expression of tomato PR2 and PR5 genes while no significant difference was observed in the expression of tomato PR1 gene in healthy transgenic tomato plants when compared with control. The promoter analysis of all three PR genes indicated that many conserved cis acting regulatory elements (CARES) were found in the promoters of all 3 PR genes analyzed. Furthermore, some CARES were common between all three PR genes and the promoter of OsRGLP1. This could possibly suggest that similar transcription factors are involved in the expression and regulation of all 4 genes. These results can improve our understanding of the regulation and expression of tomato PR1, PR2 and PR5 which can be geared towards improving the overall immunity of tomato plant to stress factors in relation with GLP genes.
A 18‐23 GHz power amplifier design using approximate optimal impedance region approach for satellite downlink

This paper presents the design procedure of a K‐band 0.1 μm GaAs pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistors (pHEMT) monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) for satellite communication downlinks. The method focuses on the selection and design of the matching network (MN) by applying the Approximate Optimal Impedance Region (AOIR) approach which is a composition of simple mathematical constraints. The AOIR approach overcomes the drawbacks of traditional MN design method which cannot control the reflection coefficient trajectory of the MN precisely. The method formulates the constraints through symbolic‐graphic combinations with integrated functions of computer‐aided design (CAD) tools. The impedance transformation trajectory of MN is combined to reduce the mismatch and the insertion loss using equations with multiple mathematical constraints to realize the automatic selection of the MN's topology. The AOIR method fully considers the underutilized characteristics of power amplifier (PA) and to maximize its performance in a balanced manner. The MMIC, was designed using the proposed technique, operates in 18 GHz‐23 GHz with a gain of 27 dB and has an average P−1dB of 27 dBm and PAE of 38% under the continuous wave (CW) drive signal.