Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Genus extinction, origination, and the durations of sedimentary hiatuses

Abstract Short-term variations in rates of taxonomic extinction and origination in the fossil record may be the result of true changes in rates of turnover, variable rates of fossil preservation, or some combination of the two. Here, positive extinction and origination rate excursions among Phanerozoic marine animal genera are reexpressed in terms of the amount of normal, background time they represent. In addition to providing a background-adjusted calibration of rate intensities, this reexpression determines the durations of sampling gaps that would be required to explain entirely all observed rate excursions as sampling artifacts. This possibility is explored by analyzing a new compilation of the timing and duration of sedimentary hiatuses in North America. Hiatuses spanning more than approximately one million years (Myr) in the marine sedimentary rock record have a mean duration of 73 Myr. There are two major hiatus types—those that form in response to long-duration tectonic cycles and that bound the major Sloss-scale sequences (mean duration 200 Myr), and those that form in response to shorter-duration changes in sediment accommodation space and that occur within major Sloss-scale sequences (mean duration less than 23 Myr). The latter are approximately exponentially distributed and have a mean duration that is comparable to the mean duration of intervening sedimentary rock packages. Although sedimentary hiatuses are generally long enough in duration to accommodate the hypothesis that short-term variations in rates of genus origination and extinction are artifacts of sampling failures at major unconformities (“Unconformity Bias” hypothesis), the observed evolutionary rates are not correlated with hiatus durations. Moreover, hiatuses that follow the major mass extinctions are not long in comparison to most other non–mass extinction intervals. These results do not support the hypothesis that hiatuses at major unconformities alone have artificially clustered genus first and last occurrences, thereby causing many of the documented statistical similarities between the temporal structure of the sedimentary rock record and macroevolutionary patterns. Instead, environmental changes related to the expansion and contraction of marine environments may have been the primary forcers of both biological turnover and the spatio-temporal pattern of sediment accumulation. Fully testing this “Common Cause” hypothesis requires quantifying and overcoming lingering taxonomic, biostratigraphic, facies, and numerous other biases that are both inherent in geologic data and imposed by imperfect knowledge of the fossil record.
Onshore Monitoring With Virtual Source Seismic In Horizontal Wells: Challenges And Solutions

The Virtual Source (VS) Method provides unparalleled capability to synthesize controlled and repeatable downhole sources at the location of VSP geophones. Although the physical sources are located at the surface, VS redatuming corrects for small non-repeatability of surface shooting and compensates for subsurface changes above the receivers. If Virtual Sources are created at permanently placed receivers, then we essentially obtain a “permanent downhole source and receiver” configuration that is optimal for sensitive reservoir monitoring. We demonstrate these advantages with a field data example and then focus on defining acquisition, drilling and tool requirements for onshore VS monitoring.
AN APPROACH FOR AUTOMATING DESIGN OF WEB, ITS METRICS & KNOWLEDGE-BASE

In view of the fact that web applications are significantly large, complex, highly dynamic & critical software systems, it is desirable that processes of web design and development be systematic & be automated as far as possible. The task of automating an engineering activity is quite complex because it involves two types of contrasting intelligences: (i) Human intelligence which is rooted in informal expression, judgmental evaluation, inductive reasoning and commonsense, and (ii) The machine intelligence which is essentially based on formal expression, formal rule-based evaluation & deductive reasoning etc. Human intelligence is required for understanding the problem domains & their environments, and then for using the understanding for designing & developing solutions in such a form that it is understood and executed by the contrasting intelligence, viz. the machine intelligence. The proposed approach takes care of the facts of human capabilities being rooted in informality & of machine capabilities being purely formal. For this purpose, solutions conceived by human experts—which are generally expressed in some natural language—are, first of all, translated to semi-formal mathematical entities: recursive lists. These recursive lists then are easily translated to fully formal entities in some functional programming language like LISP or Haskell. In this communication, the approach is applied to structural aspects of web and is explained through sufficient exemplars. The dynamics of web will be discussed subsequently.
The Effect of a Mediterranean Diet on All-Cause Mortality in Elderly Individuals: A Systematic Review

Background: The concept of a Mediterranean diet decreasing mortality rates is one that is becoming more popular in current research today. However, the effect on mortality when this diet is initiated in an elderly population is largely unexplored. The purpose of this review is to look at whether current research suggests that a Mediterranean diet can impact all-cause mortality in this population. Methods: Exhaustive search of available medical literature in Medline-Ovid, CINAHL, and Google Scholar using the keywords: diet/Mediterranean, mortality, and elderly/aging. GRADE was utilized in assigning the quality of evidence. Results: Three studies met eligibility criteria. The results showed that a variation of the Mediterranean diet can inversely impact mortality if started at early advanced years of age. The main components of the diet must be included. Moderate alcohol consumption has no impact on the effects of this diet. Dairy and saturated fat intake could decrease longevity if not eaten in moderation. Conclusion: Studies show benefits to starting a Mediterranean diet at early advanced age in regards to mortality. However, there are many factors associated with this recommendation that need to be further evaluated. Degree Type Capstone Project First Advisor Mark Pedemonte, MD
Fatigue damage observed non-destructively in fibre composite coupon test specimens by X-ray CT

This study presents a method for monitoring the 3D fatigue damage progression on a micro-structural level in a glass fibre/polymer coupon test specimen by means of laboratory X-ray Computed Tomography (CT). A modified mount and holder made for the standard test samples to fit into the X-ray CT scanner along with a tension clamp solution is presented. Initially, the same location of the test specimen is inspected by ex-situ X-ray CT during the fatigue loading history, which shows the damage progression on a micro-structural level. The openings of individual uni-directional (UD) fibre fractures are seen to generally increase with the number of cycles, and new regions of UD fibre fractures also appear. There are some UD fibre fractures that are difficult to detect since their opening is small. Therefore, the effect of tension on the crack visibility is examined afterwards using a tension clamp solution. With applied tension some additional cracks become visible and the openings of fibre fractures increases, which shows the importance of applied tension during the scan.
Optimization of Steering System of Forklift Vehicle for Idle Performance

This paper presents an optimal design process for the steering system of a forklift vehicle. An efficient procedure for minimizing the engine-induced idle vibration is developed in this study. Reciprocating unbalance and gas pressure torque as two major sources of engine excitation are studied. Using the field vibration tests and FEM analysis, the cause and characteristics of steering system’s idle vibration are recognized. So as to distribute the characteristic modes based on the optimization strategy, global sensitivity analysis of the main parameters is also carried out to achieve the optimal combination of the optimization factors. Based on all analysis above, some structure modifications for optimization are presented to control the idle vibration. The effectiveness and rationality of the improvements are also verified through experimental prototyping testing. This study also makes it possible to provide a design guideline using CAE (computer aided engineering) analysis for some other objects.
Integration of real-time 3D capture, reconstruction, and light-field display

Effective integration of 3D acquisition, reconstruction (modeling) and display technologies into a seamless systems provides augmented experience of visualizing and analyzing real objects and scenes with realistic 3D sensation. Applications can be found in medical imaging, gaming, virtual or augmented reality and hybrid simulations. Although 3D acquisition, reconstruction, and display technologies have gained significant momentum in recent years, there seems a lack of attention on synergistically combining these components into a “end-to-end” 3D visualization system. We designed, built and tested an integrated 3D visualization system that is able to capture in real-time 3D light-field images, perform 3D reconstruction to build 3D model of the objects, and display the 3D model on a large autostereoscopic screen. In this article, we will present our system architecture and component designs, hardware/software implementations, and experimental results. We will elaborate on our recent progress on sparse camera array light-field 3D acquisition, real-time dense 3D reconstruction, and autostereoscopic multi-view 3D display. A prototype is finally presented with test results to illustrate the effectiveness of our proposed integrated 3D visualization system.
On the interpretation of results returned by branch-site models

5 In a recent study, Murrell et al. (2015) compared the performance of 6 several branch-site models of codon evolution. Their interpretation of results 7 published by Lu and Guindon (2014) suggests that the stochastic branch-site 8 model implemented in the software fitmodel is anti-conservative altogether, 9 i.e., positive selection is detected more often than expected when analysing 10 sequences evolving under a mixture of neutrality and negative selection. I 11 argue here that this presentation of the performance of fitmodel is mislead12 ing and should not deter evolutionary biologists from using this approach in 13 exploratory analyses of selection patterns at the molecular level. 14
Analysis of transpacific transport of black carbon during HIPPO-3: implications for black carbon aging

Abstract. Long-range transport of black carbon (BC) is a growing concern as a result of the efficiency of BC in warming the climate and its adverse impact on human health. We study transpacific transport of BC during HIPPO-3 using a combination of inverse modeling and sensitivity analysis. We use the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model and its adjoint to constrain Asian BC emissions and estimate the source of BC over the North Pacific. We find that different sources of BC dominate the transport to the North Pacific during the southbound (29 March 2010) and northbound (13 April 2010) measurements in HIPPO-3. While biomass burning in Southeast Asia (SE) contributes about 60% of BC in March, more than 90% of BC comes from fossil fuel and biofuel combustion in East Asia (EA) during the April mission. GEOS-Chem simulations generally resolve the spatial and temporal variation of BC concentrations over the North Pacific, but are unable to reproduce the low and high tails of the observed BC distribution. We find that the optimized BC emissions derived from inverse modeling fail to improve model simulations significantly. This failure indicates that uncertainties in BC removal as well as transport, rather than in emissions, account for the major biases in GEOS-Chem simulations of BC over the North Pacific. The aging process, transforming BC from hydrophobic into hydrophilic form, is one of the key factors controlling wet scavenging and remote concentrations of BC. Sensitivity tests on BC aging (ignoring uncertainties of other factors controlling BC long range transport) suggest that in order to fit HIPPO-3 observations, the aging timescale of anthropogenic BC from EA may be several hours (faster than assumed in most global models), while the aging process of biomass burning BC from SE may occur much slower, with a timescale of a few days. To evaluate the effects of BC aging and wet deposition on transpacific transport of BC, we develop an idealized model of BC transport. We find that the mid-latitude air masses sampled during HIPPO-3 may have experienced a series of precipitation events, particularly near the EA and SE source region. Transpacific transport of BC is sensitive to BC aging when the aging rate is fast; this sensitivity peaks when the aging timescale is in the range of 1–1.5 d. Our findings indicate that BC aging close to the source must be simulated accurately at a process level in order to simulate better the global abundance and climate forcing of BC.
Towards an Assay for Liposome-based Vaccine Uptake by Dendritic Cells

There are rising concerns that an inevitable Influenza A outbreak of pandemic proportions will spread at a previously unmatched rate due to the nature of our modern travel habits. It is therefore becoming increasingly urgent to develop effective, safe and easily administered vaccines suitable for use in a pandemic situation. Recently, increasing focus has been laid on the development of nanocarriers for vaccination compounds with liposomes being promising carrier candidates. Liposomes are almost endlessly customizable which makes finding the optimal formulation a difficult task. Furthermore, little is currently known about how the rate and mode of uptake of a vaccine formulation by immune cells correlates to the induced immunity, and improved knowledge of this process would allow rationalization of the development of vaccine formulations. The aim of this master’s thesis was therefore the development of an assay for the characterization and quantification of uptake of liposomes functionalized with an influenza vaccine compound candidate, by dendritic cells. To this end, total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy, epifluorescence microscopy and single particle tracking was applied and different assay approaches were evaluated. TIRF microscopy was used to probe the movement of cell-bound, fluorescently labelled liposomes at the basal membrane. The results revealed that the movement of individual liposomes was largely confined, or possibly directed. However, no uptake events by membrane fusion or by endocytosis could be clearly identified in these experiments. Epifluorescence microscopy was used in an attempt to quantify the overall liposome uptake by recording the change over time in the number of cell-bound liposomes. However, no decrease in the number of attached liposomes could be established. The work performed in this master’s thesis represents the first step towards the establishment of an assay for the study of uptake of functionalized liposomes by dendritic cells and gives useful practical insight into the possibilities and pitfalls of the set-up.
Uncertain system modeling of SNS RF control system

This paper addresses the modeling problem of the linear accelerator RF system for SNS. The cascade of the klystron and the cavity is modeled as a nominal system. In the real world, high voltage power supply ripple, Lorentz force detuning, microphonics, cavity RF parameter perturbations, distortions in RF components, and loop time delay imperfection exist inevitably, which must be analyzed. The analysis is based on the accurate modeling of the disturbances and uncertainties. In this paper, modern control theory is applied for modeling the disturbances, uncertainties, and for analyzing the closed loop system robust performance.
Supervised Physical Activity and Metabolic Syndrome Components of Women Assisted in Primary Health Care

Objective: To assess the effects of a Physical Exercise Program (PEP) on the components of MetS in women assisted in a primary health care unit. Methods: We conducted a 16-week lifestyle intervention study with physical activity for patients at high risk of developing MetS. 42 patients (21 with MetS and 21 controls) volunteered to take part in a Physical Exercise Program (PEP), a structured and supervised aerobic and resistance exercise program, 4 times/week, 60 minutes/session. Main Outcome Measures: Prevalence of MetS components, Framingham’s Cardiovascular Risk (CR), and physical fitness. Results: MetS presented higher values of CR, Body Weight (BW), BMI, waist circumference, body fat percentage (%BF), blood glucose, Triglycerides (TG) and VLDL-Cholesterol. Experimental group also brought up lower values of Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) and Forced Expiratory Volume (FEV 1 ). After the PEP there was a decrease in the CR, in the prevalence of MetS components, BW, BMI, %BF, TG, and VLDL-C, resting blood pressure, increase in lean body mass, exercise heart rate, functional capacity, maximum oxygen consumption (VO 2 max.), FVC, FEV 1 and maximum voluntary ventilation. Conclusion: Physical activity was successful in reducing the components of the MetS and CR, highlighting the potential of exercise in primary health care.
Hplc stanoveni obsahu vitaminu e v krmnych surovinách, krmivech a potravinách

Vitamin E is a collective term for fat-soluble chroman-6-ol derivatives that exhibit biological activity of α-tocopherol. At present, eight such derivatives are included in the vitamin E family: α-,β-,γ- and 8-tocopherol and α-,β-,γ- and δ-tocotrienol. The vitamin E content in food and feeds is expresed as that of α-tocopherol. The aim of this paper was to monitor the content of tocopherols and tocotrienols in food and feed materials and their mixtures. The contents were recalculated as α-tocopherol equivalents (a-TE). The α-tocopherol contents and α-TEs were compared. The content of the other tocopherols and tocotrienols in food and compounded feeds does not significantly contribute to the α-TEs.
Acceptance testing procedure equivalence

This article addresses the issues of comparing different acceptance testing systems in an industrial setting, specifically in the dairy industry. The issues were two-fold: how to demonstrate that two different product testing systems were equivalent; and how to ensure that testing done by a customer or consumer on delivery of the product does not reject product deemed acceptable by the producer's testing system. Our comparison of sampling systems was focused around Operating Characteristic curves. Our results suggest that previous approaches are sound when data are normally distributed, although some refinement is possible. When data are not distributed normally, especially with multi-parameter distributions, the usual one dimensional Operating Characteristic curve method fails. In such cases, test methods can be compared by comparing acceptance surfaces in three dimensional plots. To address discrepancies between producer and consumer testing systems, especially if these arise because of different levels of variability between the two systems, an approach involving confidence intervals has the most appeal. References L. J. Bain and M. Engelhardt. Introduction to Probability and Mathematical Statistics . Duxbury Press, 2000. N. N. Cencov. Statistical Decision Rules and Optimal Inference. American Mathematical Society, 2000. J. Cohen. A coefficient of agreement for nominal scales. Educational and Psychological Measurement. 20 , 1960, 37--46. D. R. Cox and D. V. Hinkley. Theoretical Statistics. Chapman and Hall/CRC, 1979. P. Grzegorzewski. Acceptance sampling plans by attributes with fuzzy risks and quality levels. In: P-Th. Wilrich and H. J. Lenz, editors, Frontiers in statistical quality control, Vol. 6, pages 36--46. Physica-Verlag, 2001. K. Gwet. Handbook of Inter-Rater Reliability. Advanced Analytics, LLC. , 2010. A. Hald. Statistical theory of sample inspection by attributes. Academic, 1981. {ISO 8196-1:2009} Milk---Definition and evaluation of the overall accuracy of alternative methods of milk analysis. {ISO 8196-2:2000} Milk---Definition and evaluation of the overall accuracy of indirect methods of milk analysis. N. A. Nechval, K. N. Nechval, E. K. Vasermanis. Statistical decision equivalence principle and its applications. Proceedings of International Conference RelStat04 , 2004, 81--89. S. K. Niazi. Handbook of Bioequivalence Testing . Informa Healthcare, 2007. NIST/SEMATECH e-Handbook of Statistical Methods . http://www.itl. nist.gov/div898/handbook/pmc/section2/pmc21.htm H. D. Patterson and R. Thompson. Recovery of inter-block information when block sizes are unequal. Biometrika , 58 (3), 1971, 545--554. http://www.ams. org/mathscinet-getitem? mr=0319325 S. Wellek. Testing Statistical Hypotheses of Equivalence . Chapman and Hall/CRC, 2002. P.-Th. Wilrich. Single sampling plans for the inspection by variables in the presence of measurement error. Allgermeines Statistisches Archiv , 84 , 2000, 239--250. P.-Th. Wilrich. Statistical concepts of capability of detection. Appl. Stochastic Models Bus. Ind. 18 , 2002, 339--346. http://www.ams. org/mathscinet-getitem? mr=1932646
The rationale behind weakly tied networking of the Bangladeshi Diaspora in Malaysia

This paper is an exploration of the survival strategies of the Bangladeshi Diaspora in Malaysia. To cope with the realities, Bangladeshi migrants develop different forms of survival strategies. As a result intra and inter-ethnic strong and weak ties are formed in the receiving country. Empirical analysis depicts that respondents with weak ties have higher income mobility than those with strong ties. It also demonstrates that the Bangladeshi migrants of the study areas do not restrict themselves only to their close social networks; rather they develop distant networks for higher social mobility. Or in other words, though the ideal socio-cultural model emphasizes community cohesion (something that can be conceptualized as an example of a tightly structured social system), the actual behavior of the Bangladeshi migrants indicates a loosely or disintegrated social system. Migrant's embeddedness in the ongoing social relations and power structures regulates the nature and strength of these ties.
Impact of Nanograting Phase-Shift on Light Absorption Enhancement in Plasmonics-Based Metal-Semiconductor-Metal Photodetectors

The finite difference time-domain (FDTD) method is used to simulate the light absorption enhancement in a plasmonic metal-semiconductor-metal photodetector (MSM-PD) structure employing a metal nanograting with phase shifts. The metal fingers of the MSM-PDs are etched at appropriate depths to maximize light absorption through plasmonic effects into a subwavelength aperture. We also analyse the nano-grating phase shift and groove profiles obtained typically in our experiments using focused ion beam milling and atomic force microscopy and discuss the dependency of light absorption enhancement on the nano-gratings phase shift and groove profiles inscribed into MSM-PDs. Our simulation results show that the nano-grating phase shift blue-shifts the wavelength at which the light absorption enhancement is maximum, and that the combined effects of the nano-grating groove shape and phase shift degrade the light absorption enhancement by up to 50%.
Solutions for the Drinfeld-Sokolov Equation Using an IBSEFM Method

In this study, the Drinfeld-Sokolov system is solved by the application of the improved Bernoulli sub-equation function method (IBSEFM). We have found new solutions different from the others articles in the literature. In addition, we carried all the computations out and the graphics plot in this article by software Wolfram Mathematica 9.