Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Quantification of Volatile Compounds in Chinese Ciders by Stir Bar Sorptive Extraction (SBSE) and Gas Chromatography‐Mass Spectrometry (GC‐MS)

J. Inst. Brew. 117(1), 61–66, 2011 A new method for the quantification of volatile compounds in ciders was developed using stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) followed by gas chromatography (GC)-mass spectrometry (MS). The optimized conditions consisted of 10 mL cider sample with NaCl addition to a final concentration of 30% (w/v) extracted by SBSE at 55°C during 60 min, stirring at 1100 rpm. Under the conditions described above, the method linearity was satisfactory, with correlation coefficients (R 2 ) higher than 0.99 in all cases. The detection limits of this method ranged from 0.01 to 6.37 µg/L, and quantification limits ranged from 0.03 to 21.25 µg/L. The recoveries of analyzed compounds varied between 70.92 and 111.38%. The relative standard deviations (RSD) were all below 10%. A total of 54 volatile compounds in six samples from Chinese cider were quantified, mainly esters, alcohols, terpenoids, aromatics, and acids.
Thermoelectric Property Studies on Cu‐Doped n‐type CuxBi2Te2.7Se0.3 Nanocomposites

Combining high energy ball‐milling and hot‐pressing, significant enhancements of the thermoelectric figure‐of‐merit (ZT) have been reported for p‐type Bi0.4Sb1. 6Te3 nanocomposites. However, applying the same technique to n‐type Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 showed no improvement on ZT values, due to the anisotropic nature of the thermoelectric properties of n‐type Bi2Te2.7Se0.3. Even though texturing was effective in improving peak ZT of Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 from 0.85 to 1.04, reproducibility from batch to batch remains unsatisfactory. Here, we show that good reproducibility can be achieved by introducing an optimal concentration of 0.01 copper (Cu) per Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 to make Cu0.01Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 samples. A peak ZT value of 0.99 was achieved in Cu0.01Bi2Te2.7Se0.3 samples without texturing. With texturing by re‐pressing, the peak ZT was increased to 1.06. Aging in air for over 5 months did not deteriorate but further improved the peak ZT to 1.10. The mechanism by which copper improves the reproducibility, enhances the carrier mobility, and reduces the lattice thermal conductivity is also discussed.
Three-dimensional array of highly oriented crystalline ZnO microtubes

The ability to generate homogeneous particulate thin films of highly oriented and highly porous microparticles of a post transition metal oxide onto polycrystalline and single-crystalline substrates, at low cost, by a template-free, aqueous low-temperature coating process is demonstrated by the fabrication of a large three-dimensional array of perpendicularly oriented hexagonal microtubes of crystalline zincite ZnO from an aqueous solution of zinc nitrate and methenamine.
DETERMINATION OF HEAT TRANSFER COEFICIENT BY INVERSE HEAT TRANSFER ANALYSIS WITH THERMOGRAPHIC EXPERIMENT

The objective of this paper is to determine temperature dependent heat transfer coefficient for the characterization of building porous materials in the range 20 – 60oC, using the approach based on the solution of the inverse heat transfer problem and the results of measuring boundary conditions. The Levenberg–Marquardt iteration algorithm in software MATHEMATICA is applied to solve nonlinear system of algebraic equations resulting from the sensitivity matrix. The surface temperature distribution is measured using the infrared camera.
Unraveling interactions in large complex systems using quantum chemistry interpretative techniques and new generation polarizable force fields

In this contribution, following the results exposed at the Seventh International Conference of Computational Methods in Sciences and Engineering (ICCMSE 09), we present an overview of some available new techniques able to unravel interactions in large complex systems such as biomolecules, ions in solution, lanthanides and actinides complexes. We first focus our attention on Quantum Chemistry (QC) interpretative techniques introducing some Energy Decomposition Analysis (EDA) scheme such as the newly introduced fragment localized Single-CI DFT scheme. We then present the recently developed DEMEP analysis which is an extension of the topological analysis of the Electron Localization Function (ELF) to the computations of chemically intuitive local electrostatic moments. In a second part, we then discuss how such QC techniques can be used, following a "bottom-up" strategy in order to develop new generation polarizable force field based on distributed multipoles such as the AMOEBA and SIBFA (Sum of Interaction .
ADAMTS proteases in cardiovascular physiology and disease

The a disintegrin-like and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motif (ADAMTS) family comprises 19 proteases that regulate the structure and function of extracellular proteins in the extracellular matrix and blood. The best characterized cardiovascular role is that of ADAMTS-13 in blood. Moderately low ADAMTS-13 levels increase the risk of ischeamic stroke and very low levels (less than 10%) can cause thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). Recombinant ADAMTS-13 is currently in clinical trials for treatment of TTP. Recently, new cardiovascular roles for ADAMTS proteases have been discovered. Several ADAMTS family members are important in the development of blood vessels and the heart, especially the valves. A number of studies have also investigated the potential role of ADAMTS-1, -4 and -5 in cardiovascular disease. They cleave proteoglycans such as versican, which represent major structural components of the arteries. ADAMTS-7 and -8 are attracting considerable interest owing to their implication in atherosclerosis and pulmonary arterial hypertension, respectively. Mutations in the ADAMTS19 gene cause progressive heart valve disease and missense variants in ADAMTS6 are associated with cardiac conduction. In this review, we discuss in detail the evidence for these and other cardiovascular roles of ADAMTS family members, their proteolytic substrates and the potential molecular mechanisms involved.
Comparative analysis of spontaneous blinking and the corneal reflex

Ocular surface health, the cognitive status, psychological health or human neurological disorders, among others, can be assessed by studying eye blinking, which can be differentiated in spontaneous, reflex and voluntary. Its diagnostic potential has provided a great number of works that evaluate their characteristics and variations depending on the subject's condition (sex, tiredness, health, …). The objective of this study was to analyse the differences in blinking kinematics of spontaneous and reflex blinks, distinguishing between direct and consensual reflexes, using a self-developed, non-invasive and image processing-based method. A video-oculography system is proposed using an air jet driven by a syringe to induce reflex and a high-speed camera to record the blinking of both eyes. The light intensity diffused by the eye changes during blinking and peaks when the eyelid closes. Sixty-second sequences were recorded of 25 subjects blinking. Intensity curves were off-line fitted to an exponentially modified Gaussian (EMG) function, whose σ, μ and τ parameters were analysed. A two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) of these parameters was conducted to test the influence of the subject, the eye and blink type. In the closing phase, direct and consensual corneal reflexes are faster than spontaneous blinking, but there was no significant difference between them, nor between right and left eyes. In the opening phase, the direct corneal reflex was the slowest and significant differences appeared between right and left eyes.
Arcminute-scale studies of the interstellar gas towards HESS J1804−216: Still an unidentified TeV γ-ray source

Abstract The Galactic TeV ${\gamma}$ -ray source ${\mathrm{HESS\,J}1804{-}216}$ is currently an unidentified source. In an attempt to unveil its origin, we present here the most detailed study of interstellar gas using data from the Mopra Southern Galactic Plane CO Survey, 7- and 12-mm wavelength Mopra surveys and Southern Galactic Plane Survey of HI. Several components of atomic and molecular gas are found to overlap ${\mathrm{HESS\,J}1804{-}216}$ at various velocities along the line of sight. The CS(1-0) emission clumps confirm the presence of dense gas. Both correlation and anti-correlation between the gas and TeV ${\gamma}$ -ray emission have been identified in various gas tracers, enabling several origin scenarios for the TeV ${\gamma}$ -ray emission from ${\mathrm{HESS\,J}1804{-}216}$ . For a hadronic scenario, ${\mathrm{SNR\,G}8.7{-}0.1}$ and the progenitor supernova remnant (SNR) of ${\mathrm{PSR\,J}1803{-}2137}$ require cosmic ray (CR) enhancement factors of ${\mathord{\sim} 50}$ times the solar neighbour CR flux value to produce the TeV ${\gamma}$ -ray emission. Assuming an isotropic diffusion model, CRs from both these SNRs require a slow diffusion coefficient, as found for other TeV SNRs associated with adjacent ISM gas. The morphology of gas located at 3.8 kpc (the dispersion measure distance to ${\mathrm{PSR\,J}1803{-}2137}$ ) tends to anti-correlate with features of the TeV emission from ${\mathrm{HESS\,J}1804{-}216}$ , making the leptonic scenario possible. Both pure hadronic and pure leptonic scenarios thus remain plausible.
A statistical theory of the strength of epidemics: an application to the Italian COVID-19 case

The proposed theory defines a relative index of epidemic lethality that compares any two configurations in different observation periods, preferably one in the acute and the other in a mild epidemic phase. Raw mortality data represent the input, with no need to recognize the cause of death. Data are categorized according to the victims’ age, which must be renormalized because older people have a greater probability of developing a level of physical decay (human damage), favouring critical pathologies and co-morbidities. The probabilistic dependence of human damage on renormalized age is related to a death criterion considering a virus spread by contagion and our capacity to cure the disease. Remarkably, this is reminiscent of the Weibull theory of the strength of brittle structures containing a population of crack-like defects, in the correlation between the statistical distribution of cracks and the risk of fracture at a prescribed stress level. Age-of-death scaling laws are predicted in accordance with data collected in Italian regions and provinces during the first wave of COVID-19, taken as representative examples to validate the theory. For the prevention of spread and the management of the epidemic, the various parameters of the theory shall be informed on other existing epidemiological models.
How do developmental and parental exposures to predation affect personality and immediate behavioural plasticity in the snail Physa acuta?

Individuals differ in personality and immediate behavioural plasticity. While developmental environment may explain this group diversity, the effect of parental environment is still unexplored—a surprising observation since parental environment influences mean behaviour. We tested whether developmental and parental environments impacted personality and immediate plasticity. We raised two generations of Physa acuta snails in the laboratory with or without developmental exposure to predator cues. Escape behaviour was repeatedly assessed on adult snails with or without predator cues in the immediate environment. On average, snails were slower to escape if they or their parents had been exposed to predator cues during development. Snails were also less plastic in response to immediate predation risk on average if they or their parents had been exposed to predator cues. Group diversity in personality was greater in predator-exposed snails than unexposed snails, while parental environment did not influence it. Group diversity in immediate plasticity was not significant. Our results suggest that only developmental environment plays a key role in the emergence of group diversity in personality, but that parental environment influences mean behavioural responses to the environmental change. Consequently, although different, both developmental and parental cues may have evolutionary implications on behavioural responses.
Novel perspectives of target-binding by the evolutionarily conserved PP4 phosphatase

Protein phosphatase 4 (PP4) is an evolutionarily conserved and essential Ser/Thr phosphatase that regulates cell division, development and DNA repair in eukaryotes. The major form of PP4, present from yeast to human, is the PP4c-R2-R3 heterotrimeric complex. The R3 subunit is responsible for substrate-recognition via its EVH1 domain. In typical EVH1 domains, conserved phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan residues form the specific recognition site for their target's proline-rich sequences. Here, we identify novel binding partners of the EVH1 domain of the Drosophila R3 subunit, Falafel, and demonstrate that instead of binding to proline-rich sequences this EVH1 variant specifically recognizes atypical ligands, namely the FxxP and MxPP short linear consensus motifs. This interaction is dependent on an exclusively conserved leucine that replaces the phenylalanine invariant of all canonical EVH1 domains. We propose that the EVH1 domain of PP4 represents a new class of the EVH1 family that can accommodate low proline content sequences, such as the FxxP motif. Finally, our data implicate the conserved Smk-1 domain of Falafel in target-binding. These findings greatly enhance our understanding of the substrate-recognition mechanisms and function of PP4.
Darwin's vexing contrivance: a new hypothesis for why some flowers have two kinds of anther

Heteranthery, the presence of two or more anther types in the same flower, is taxonomically widespread among bee-pollinated angiosperms, yet has puzzled botanists since Darwin. We test two competing hypotheses for its evolution: the long-standing ‘division of labour' hypothesis, which posits that some anthers are specialized as food rewards for bees whereas others are specialized for surreptitious pollination, and our new hypothesis that heteranthery is a way to gradually release pollen that maximizes pollen delivery. We examine the evolution of heteranthery and associated traits across the genus Clarkia (Onagraceae) and study plant–pollinator interactions in two heterantherous Clarkia species. Across species, heteranthery is associated with bee pollination, delayed dehiscence and colour crypsis of one anther whorl, and movement of that anther whorl upon dehiscence. Our mechanistic studies in heterantherous species show that bees notice, forage on and export pollen from each anther whorl when it is dehiscing, and that heteranthery promotes pollen export. We find no support for division of labour, but multifarious evidence that heteranthery is a mechanism for gradual pollen presentation that probably evolved through indirect male–male competition for siring success.
On the Identity of Species of Oreobates (Anura: Craugastoridae) from Central South America, with the Description of a New Species from Bolivia

Abstract. The similar morphology of species in the genus Oreobates that inhabit rocky outcrops amidst the Seasonally Dry Tropical Forests and Cerrado savannas of central South America has led to taxonomic inaccuracies when only external morphology was considered. Therefore, researchers frequently fail to determine the true taxonomic status of some of these populations and thus attribute them to unidentified or misidentified species. Integrating different sources of data is of fundamental importance to understand the diversity of species in this group. Herein, we used external morphology (16 characters measured in 54 adult specimens), bioacoustics (238 advertisement calls of 19 specimens of Oreobates from six localities), and molecular evidence (based on 58 16S gene fragments representing 24 of the currently available names of Oreobates) to evaluate the taxonomic status and distribution range of Oreobates from 10 localities in central South America. We performed phylogenetic analysis, principal component analysis, and discriminant function analysis to evaluate the taxonomic status of Oreobates in central South America. We redescribe Oreobates heterodactylus based on a newly collected series of topotypes and additional material from other localities. We reassess the taxonomic status of Oreobates crepitans, herein considered as a junior synonym of O. heterodactylus. We also describe eastern Bolivian populations of Oreobates as a new species.
Mercury exposure in an endangered seabird: long-term changes and relationships with trophic ecology and breeding success

Mercury (Hg) is an environmental contaminant which, at high concentrations, can negatively influence avian physiology and demography. Albatrosses (Diomedeidae) have higher Hg burdens than all other avian families. Here, we measure total Hg (THg) concentrations of body feathers from adult grey-headed albatrosses (Thalassarche chrysostoma) at South Georgia. Specifically, we (i) analyse temporal trends at South Georgia (1989–2013) and make comparisons with other breeding populations; (ii) identify factors driving variation in THg concentrations and (iii) examine relationships with breeding success. Mean ± s.d. feather THg concentrations were 13.0 ± 8.0 µg g−1 dw, which represents a threefold increase over the past 25 years at South Georgia and is the highest recorded in the Thalassarche genus. Foraging habitat, inferred from stable isotope ratios of carbon (δ13C), significantly influenced THg concentrations—feathers moulted in Antarctic waters had far lower THg concentrations than those moulted in subantarctic or subtropical waters. THg concentrations also increased with trophic level (δ15N), reflecting the biomagnification process. There was limited support for the influence of sex, age and previous breeding outcome on feather THg concentrations. However, in males, Hg exposure was correlated with breeding outcome—failed birds had significantly higher feather THg concentrations than successful birds. These results provide key insights into the drivers and consequences of Hg exposure in this globally important albatross population.
Influence of Prey Scent on Chemosensory Behavior of Two Fossorial Earthsnakes: Conopsis biserialis and Conopsis nasus (Serpentes: Colubridae)

Abstract. Terrestrial, arboreal, and semiaquatic snake species are well known to discriminate among prey types using chemosensation. In contrast, chemosensory capacities of cryptic and fossorial snake species are not well understood. We tested for interspecific differences in the ability of two fossorial earthsnakes, Conopsis biserialis and Conopsis nasus, to detect and discriminate among potential invertebrate and vertebrate prey based on chemical cues alone. Presentation of swabs treated with various prey odor extracts revealed that both snake species were able to detect prey using chemoreception. Chemosensory tongue-flick attack scores and lower latency responses were significantly different for treated swabs when compared to water controls, and interspecific differences were observed. We also found that tongue-flick attack score was higher for invertebrate prey odors than vertebrate prey odors in both earthsnake species. Additionally, differential chemosensory responses to chemicals from different prey types indicated that snakes could discriminate among at least some invertebrate prey types based on chemosensory cues.
Effective Practices in Community Supervision model: Staff perceptions of the model and implementation

Staff who provide service to individuals under correctional supervision are critical to organizational change, implementation, and sustainability of policies and practices. The training on evidence-based practices demonstrates a movement toward effective interactions with community supervision officers and their clients, specifically to the Risk–Need–Responsivity model and core correctional practices. Research over the past several decades provides that fidelity to Risk–Need–Responsivity and core correctional practice can reduce recidivism among the community correctional population. However, the correctional field has a history of training staff, but limited success in implementing and sustaining these practices. The current qualitative study analyzes the feedback from 307 community supervision officers who responded to open-ended questions regarding the implementation of Effective Practices in Community Supervision model, a curriculum that incorporates the Risk–Need–Responsivity model and core correctional practices. Qualitative responses indicate key themes that help and hinder the implementation of evidence-based practices: individual attitudes and beliefs, organizational elements, and leadership.
Control of mesostructure in self-assembled polymer/surfactant films by rational micelle design

Micron-thick hydrogel films with ordered 3D mesostructures form spontaneously at the interface of polyelectrolyte–surfactant solutions. Here we demonstrate that by rationally designing the micelle shapes it is possible to predict and so tailor the nanostructure formed within surfactant–polyelectrolyte films. Using quaternary ammonium surfactants with a range of packing parameters, we demonstrate that micelle shape in solution governs the ordered liquid crystalline phase found in the polymer-surfactant composite films. Such structural control allows modification of film properties to potentially enhance their effectiveness for applications such as inorganic templating, encapsulation and molecular sensing.
How tasty is governance? Understanding the effect of a “cooperative” label on perceived taste of food products

This research investigates whether a label on cooperative governance influences the perceived taste of a product through a sensation transfer process. The first study measures perceived taste of unbranded products implicitly (via an Implicit Association Test) and explicitly (via a survey). The label improves the implicitly and explicitly perceived taste. The second study, reproducing the same protocols with branded products, confirms this result for implicitly perceived taste, but the effect of the label on explicitly perceived taste disappears. Because implicit measures are more predictive of routine purchasing than are explicit measures, we recommend spotlighting cooperative governance on food products.