Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adult recruitment as a function of juvenile growth rate in size- structured plant populations

Summary. The recruitment of adults in size-structured plant populations will be sensitive to changes in juvenile growth rates when: 1) mortality is high, 2) growth rates are low, 3) the difference between seedling and adult size is large and 4) selfthinning among juvenile plants is negligible. This sensitivity can be quantified by a single parameter in a simple, general expression relating recruitment to growth. The model is demonstrated for the prediction of young spruce tree densities on small plots, and the calculation of the parameter is shown for two published demographic studies. The model can also predict features of population response to an environmental gradient, such as long tails or abrupt cut-offs, even when these features are not found in the physiological response to the gradient. The rate of escape from the vulnerability of small size is a critical factor in the life cycle of many plant species. Recruitment into the adult population may depend on many factors such as seed rain, germination rates, local environmental heterogeneity and episodic herbivory; but, in populations where the mortality rate is concentrated in the early stages of growth, adult recruitment may be highly sensitive to differences in growth rate. Some forest dynamic simulation models (Pastor and Post 1985) assume a linear relationship between growing conditions in the understory and recruitment into the adult tree population, but the form of this relationship, while plausible, is arbitrary. The purpose of this paper is to derive a simple relationship between the growth and mortality rates of juvenile plants and the rate of recruitment into the adult population. I apply the model to a field study of young spruce tree densities, and two published demographic studies of long-lived perennials.
The integrative value of conflict and dispute: Implications for defining community in the native title context

Claimants and industry professionals frequently view conflict that arises in the course of a native title claim as a detriment to timely claims resolution. I argue instead that disputation itself may constitute an integrative social process through which participants define, delimit and re-produce community. I show also how ethnographic analysis of disputation can provide useful insights into broader social and cultural practices and normative value systems. Drawing on theoretical and methodological concerns with human agency and the integrative and constitutive role of conflict that challenges consensus models of community, I develop a practice-centred approach that is attentive to the ways that participants in a dispute articulate and contest the definition of community. The possibility of viewing 'culture' and group cohesion as contingent and emergent through disputation should assist anthropologists working in the native title field to incorporate conflict as a productive aspect of social and cultural practice.
Reproductive Success of Females Limited by Males in Two Pipefish Species

We investigate whether males limit the reproductive success of females in the two pipefish species Syngnathus typhle and Nerophis ophidion. Syngnathus typhle is sexually monomorphic, and courtship behavior does not differ between the sexes. In N. ophidion, on the contrary, females are larger, more colorful, and more active during courtship, possessing appearance-enlarging skin folds. In both species, males brood the offspring on their bodies, one internally and one externally. Males do not invest more energy in reproduction than do females, and in the sexually dimorphic species, males invest even less than females do. Natural sex ratios are equal in both species. Experimentally, we provided each female with an excess of males (i.e., three), in order to measure a female's maximal reproductive rate, and found that females of both species produced more eggs, or produced them at a faster rate, than naturally available males could care for. Within the time span of one male pregnancy, S. typhle females filled an average of 1.9 males and N. ophidion an average of 1.8 males; both numbers are significantly more than one (which is the average mate availability in natural populations). Measured in another way, during one male pregnancy, S. typhle and N. ophidion females both produced 41% more eggs than needed to fill a male, significantly more than no egg surplus in both species. Therefore, brood space and the rate of embryonic development limit female reproduction in these species. There was no significant difference between the species, however. Syngnathus typhle males might be expected to be less limiting than N. ophidion males, but sexual size dimorphism may be absent in S. typhle because, by contrast with N. ophidion, larger males enjoy greater reproductive success. Directional selection for increased male size may decrease sexual size dimorphism in S. typhle. At any rate, the limitation of the reproductive success of one sex by the other seems to be a necessary but not sufficient prerequisite for the evolution of sexual dimorphism and "sex roles. "
Changes in Agronomic and Physiological Traits of Sugarcane Grown with Saline Irrigation Water

In Japan, the highest salt concentration in irrigation water for sugarcane cultivation has been reported to be above 2500 mg L−1, which may cause harmful effects to the crops; however, little information is available on the relationship between the salinity of irrigation water and sugarcane. To investigate its effects on agronomic and physiological traits, a Japanese cultivar, Saccharum spp cv. NiF8, was grown with 0, 200, 500, 1000, 2000, and 3000 mg NaCl L−1 under pot conditions. The treatments significantly lowered leaf area; however, NaCl levels up to 500 mg L−1 did not greatly reduce culm weight and juice sugar concentration. These traits were impaired when the tested cultivar was grown with 1000 mg NaCl L−1 or higher, indicating that salt concentration is desired to be lower than 1000 mg L−1. CO2 assimilation rate was inhibited mainly due to stomatal closure caused by salt stress. The treatments significantly altered Na+, Cl−, and K+ concentrations in juice but not those in leaf, suggesting that juice analysis is an effective method to estimate its salinization status. Culm weight and juice sugar concentration were severely affected as juice conductivity exceeded 900 mS m−1; thereby, sugarcane plants of NiF8 possessing conductivity above this level could be considered salt-stressed where water salinity is a concern.
Parents perceptions and practices toward child drowning prevention: A qualitative approach

Background: Child drowning is the critical public health problem across the world. Although Thailand has learned from experiences of developed nations, Thai parents may encounter huge challenge on reducing risks of child accidental drowning. We therefore aimed to understand Thai parents’ perceptions and practices of their child drowning prevention in and around their home. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted amongst seven parental Mother/Father couples from a municipality of one Thai province. All participants consented to take part in the study trough 50 minute in-depth individual interviews, providing a wide range of data. Thematic analysis was undertaken and brings about three main themes relating to their perceptions and practices. Results: The perceptions and practices of 14 participants are expressed in three themes and three sub themes. The results show that parents’ awareness and practices towards child drowning prevention were inadequate. Parents often taught and supervised the child to keep safety from drowning. However, the participants also revealed the requirement of education support need from health professionals. Conclusion: Participants illuminated their understanding and daily behavior regarding child drowning prevention based on their perceptions and experiences. The findings can be valuable contribution to inform paediatric nursing curriculum, child healthcare practice, child health policy in Thailand and beyond.
High-voltage Ride Through Strategy for DFIG Considering Converter Blocking of HVDC System

This paper presents a P-Q coordination based highvoltage ride through (HVRT) control strategy for doubly fed induction generators (DFIGs) based on a combined Q-V control and P-V de-loading control. The active/reactive power injection effect of DFIG on transient overvoltage is firstly analyzed and the reactive power capacity evaluation of DFIG considering its de-loading operation is then conducted. In the proposed strategy, the reactive power limit of DFIG can be flexibly extended during the transient process in coordination with its active power adjustment. As a result, the transient overvoltage caused by DC bipolar block can be effectively suppressed. Moreover, key outer loop parameters such as Q-V control coefficient and de-loading coefficient can be determined based on the voltage level of point of common coupling (PCC) and the available power capacity of DFIG. Finally, case studies based on MATLAB/Simulink simulation are used to verify the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.
The Effects of a Synbiotic Containing Enterococcus faecium and Inulin on Growth Performance and Resistance to Coccidiosis in Broiler Chickens

Coccidiosis is a common infectious disease in poultry, causing major economic losses. The aim of this study was first, to investigate the effects of synbiotic Biomin®IMBO on performance of broilers in normal condition (experiment 1) and secondly, to evaluate the influence of synbiotic on severity of intestinal lesion score and fecal oocyst shedding of the broilers challenged with coccidian (experiment 2). There were four dietary treatments in each experiment; basal diet (control) and basal diet +0.05, 0.1 or 0.15% synbiotic Biomin®IMBO of diet. In experiment 1,400 day-old male broiler chicks were randomly assigned to 16 pens (25 birds/pen) and were fed regular nonmedicated broiler starter (0-10d), grower (11-28d) and finisher (29-42d) diets. The measured traits were: Body weight gain (BWG), feed intake (FI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) at the end of each period. In experiment 2, on 10d, four birds from each pen used in experiment 1 (totally 64 birds) were transformed to battery. On 15d, birds were inoculated esophageally with 5000 oocysts of either Eimeria acervulina or Eimeria tenella. On 6 day after postinoculation, intestinal lesion score and number of oocysts excreted for successive five days were determined.The results showed that BWG was increased significantly (P<0.05) in broilers fed diet containing 0.1 and 0.15% synbiotic, when compared to control group, from 1d to 42d. The presence of synbiotic in diet made significant improvement (P<0.05) in FCR of finisher and total experimental periods. All groups fed diets with synbiotic significantly (P<0.05) shed less oocysts than non-supplementation groups. The lowest lesions score of duodenum and cecum were observed in broiler fed diet with 0.15% synbiotic. In conclusion, it can hypothesize that synbiotic Biomin®IMBO can promote growth and have protective properties against coccidiosis in broiler diets.
EFFECT OF SILICA NANOCONFINEMENT OF LIPID BILAYERS ON ITS PHASE TRANSITION AND ON THE COLLOIDAL STABILITY OF SILICA NANOPARTICLES

OF THESIS EFFECT OF SILICA NANOCONFINEMENT OF LIPID BILAYERS ON ITS PHASE TRANSITION AND ON THE COLLOIDAL STABILITY OF SILICA NANOPARTICLES In this work, we incorporated 4-(N-Boc-aminometyl) phenylboronic acid (BA), at different concentrations, into 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3phosphocholine (DPPC) bilayers confined within nanopores of two different mean pore diameters of 7.4 nm and 11.7 nm of micron sized silica particles. The confinement of DPPC into nanopores resulted in the depression in the main phase transition temperatures compared to the liposomal system. The addition of BA was found to induce disruptions in the acyl chains of the lipid molecules at all concentrations of the solute. The lipid bilayer cooperativity was found to be higher in the confined systems compared to the liposomal systems despite the presence of higher disorder in the hydrophobic acyl chains in the former as suggested by lower main phase transition temperatures. The partition coefficient of BA within the bilayers of DPPC was found to be higher in liposomal systems in comparison to the confined systems. The differences in mean pore sizes of the micron sized silica did not result in any significant differences in the partitioning behaviour of BA within DPPC. The results helped us understand the partitioning of BA in systems in which DPPC was confined into silica nanopores relative to DPPC liposomes. The knowledge of the behaviour of boronic acid in confined systems can help us in designing biomimetic systems, with optimum concentrations of the embedded molecule, to serve the purpose of separation of compounds from dilute aqueous solutions. Subsequently, the method of evaporation deposition was used to fill the pores of silica nanoparticles with 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3phosphocholine (DPPC) and assess the effect of increasing the mass ratio of lipid to silica nanoparticles on the zeta potential and colloidal stability of the nanoparticles. An increase in the mass ratio resulted in observable reductions in magnitudes of zeta potential of the resulting nanoparticles compared to bare silica nanoparticles. Lipid enveloping of pore filled silica nanoparticles results in zeta potentials comparable to that of DPPC liposomes. The reductions in zeta potentials of the lipid filled silica nanoparticles were hypothesized to be the result of several isolated lipid bilayers covering the exterior surface of the nanoparticles, besides filling the nanopores. The complete assessment of colloidal stability of the system necessitates obtaining of information regarding the changes in hydrodynamic diameters and the settling behaviour, with extended time periods, of the lipid filled particles in conjunction with the obtained values of zeta potential of the system. The determination of the optimal amount of lipids that can be deposited into the silica nanopores would enable the designing of systems involving extraction and sensing of highly lipophilic molecules from dilute solutions.
Purification of automobile exhaust gas by activated carbon supported Fe3+ modified nano-TiO2 and its application on asphalt pavement

Automobile exhaust gas discharged into the air not only pollutes the environment but also seriously harms human health. Although pure nano-TiO2 has a purified effect on exhaust gas, it has a wide band-gap, a narrow response range of visible light, and is prone to agglomerate, leading to the lower catalytic efficiency. In this study, Fe3+ doping and activated carbon loading were used to compositely modify TiO2 to extend the spectral response range and dispersion performance of TiO2. Firstly, activated carbon supported Fe3+ modified nano-TiO2 (Fe-TiO2/AC) composite catalysts were prepared by sol–gel method. Then the specimens were characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometer (UV-Vis). The micro-structures were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Based on the self-developed exhaust gas test system, the effects of the activated carbon dosage, light source, temperature, catalyst dosage and other factors on the catalytic performance were investigated. Finally, the application method and effect of the catalyst in the asphalt pavement was explored. The results showed that with the increase of Fe3+ content, the grain size of nano-TiO2 decreases gradually, the band-gap narrows gradually, and the response range to visible light broadens gradually. The activated carbon loading not only increases the dispersibility of the nano-TiO2 but also increases the absorption of the exhaust gas. The Fe-TiO2/AC composite catalyst has the best degradation effect on CO, NO and HC exhaust gas, which is better than pure nano-TiO2 and Fe3+ modified TiO2. By using the spraying method, the catalytic performance of Fe-TiO2/AC photocatalyst combined with OGFC asphalt mixture reaches the maximum. With the increase of wear times, the degradation effect of the test specimen on the exhaust gas was reduced, the rate of decrease was fast, then slowly, and finally the degradation performance gradually tends to be stable.
Optic Nerve Head and Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness Analysis inHealthy and Ocular Hypertensive Eyes Using Optical Coherence Tomography

Purpose: To assess and compare optic nerve head and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness measurements in healthy and ocular hypertension subjects using optical coherence tomography (OCT). Material and Methods: The study enrolled 63 Caucasian patients (126 eyes) of the same Azeri ethnicity. 25 healthy people (50 eyes) and 38 patients (76 eyes) with ocular hypertension. Peripapillary RNFL assessment was performed using “RNFL Thickness Average Analysis Report” and the head analysis with “Optic Nerve Head Analysis” program, Stratus OCT (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc., Dublin, CA). Student and Wilcoxon tests were used to statistically evaluate the results. Results: The study revealed that considerable thinning of TRNFL (95% confidence interval) when compared to the control group was detected in the inferior quadrant by 8.2% (р ˂ 0,01) and nasal one by 9.1% (р ˂ 0,05), as well as RNFL aver 6,4% (р ˂ 0,01) and I max 6,4% (р ˂ 0,05). However, hourly in-depth analysis of the study group when compared to the control one showed a significant thinning of TRNFL that was greater at the nasal quadrant clock: 2:00 by 8,0%; 300 7,8%; 4:00 13,2% (р ˂ 0,01) and only at 5:00 of the inferior quadrant11,7% (р ˂ 0,01); the smallest shortening in TRNFL was at 12:00 1.6% in the superior quadrant. The study of bioretinometric indicators of ONH in the second group when compared to the control one revealed that there was a 38.6% increase in the cup area (р ˂ 0,01), cup/disk area ratio by 25,1% (р ˂ 0,05), cup/disk vertical ratio by 11,7% (р ˂ 0,05) and optic nerve disc diameter by 8.8% (р ˂ 0,05). No gender differences were found.
Production of Reactive Oxygen Species and Changes in Antioxidant Enzyme Activities during Differentiation of 3T3-L1 Adipocyte

Obesity, a major public health problem around the world, is a strong risk factor for the development of type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. Recent research suggests that increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) from accumulated fat in obesity leads to elevated systemic oxidative stress and contributes to the development of obesity-linked chronic disorders. The aim of the current study was to investigate changes of key enzymes associated with antioxidant response and metabolic pathways in 3T3-L1 cell, a preadipocyte cell line that undergoes differentiation into mature adipocytes. The changes in lipid accumulation, ROS production, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) during the course of differentiation were determined. The ROS production and G6PDH activity exponentially increased as differentiation progressed. However, CAT activity showed a sharp decrease until day 2, followed by a gradual increase up to day 6 and then leveled off. Given the importance of adipocyte differentiation and ROS production in oxidation-linked diseases, these data provide a biochemical rationale for further studies to identify cellular mechanisms that can counter ROS generation and modulate cellular redox environment in adipocytes.
Nonlinear Photovoltaic Degradation Rates: Modeling and Comparison Against Conventional Methods

Although common practice for estimating photovoltaic (PV) degradation rate (RD) assumes a linear behavior, field data have shown that degradation rates are frequently nonlinear. This article presents a new methodology to detect and calculate nonlinear RD based on PV performance time-series from nine different systems over an eight-year period. Prior to performing the analysis and in order to adjust model parameters to reflect actual PV operation, synthetic datasets were utilized for calibration purposes. A change-point analysis is then applied to detect changes in the slopes of PV trends, which are extracted from constructed performance ratio (PR) time-series. Once the number and location of change points is found, the ordinary least squares method is applied to the different segments to compute the corresponding rates. The obtained results verified that the extracted trends from the PR time-series may not always be linear and therefore, “nonconventional” models need to be applied. All thin-film technologies demonstrated nonlinear behavior whereas nonlinearity detected in the crystalline silicon systems is thought to be due to a maintenance event. A comparative analysis between the new methodology and other conventional methods demonstrated levelized cost of energy differences of up to 6.14%, highlighting the importance of considering nonlinear degradation behavior.
Essential Oils as Taxonomic Criteria in Bothriochloa

Essential oils extracted from the inflorescences of 17 species of Bothriochloa O. Kuntze (Gramineae) were analyzed by means of a gas-liquid chromatograph. The presence or absence of peaks on the chromatograms, as well as the relative amounts of these chemical components, can be used as taxonomic criteria. Species were found to be chemically unique, except for those that form interspecific agamic complexes. In these agamospecies, as well as in sexually reproducing species, chemical, morphological, and genetic data are closely correlated. The chromatograms could be reproduced exactly from samples of the same collection obtained at different times of the growing season, as well as from the same collection grown in the greenhouse or in the field. As inflorescence structure is strongly influenced by growing conditions, chemical data often were found to be more reliable than gross morphological characters in determining species affinities.
Breeding for Drought Resistance in Common Bean: In Vitro Assay for Root Osmotic Potential

ABSTRACT Initial and adjusted osmotic potentials of separate leaf- and root-derived calli were assessed in vitro for two teparies (Phaseolus acutifolius A. Czray) and a common bean (P. vulgaris L.) cultivar differing in physiological and morpho-physiological reactions of intact plants to water stress. Unstressed leaf- and root-derived calli of common bean (CB) had higher preexisting osmotic potential (ψs) and relative growth rate (RGR) but lower dry-matter percent (DM) than those of tepary bean (TB) lines when grown on basal Murashige and Skoog medium (–0.30 MPa). Exposure to water stress (−0.58 MPa) imposed by adding polyethylene glycol (10% [w/v], PEG-10,000) did not affect these parameters for leaf-derived callus of CB and both leaf- and root-derived calli of TB. However, root-derived callus of CB showed decreased ψs that was maintained after transferring stressed callus onto medium lacking PEG for recovery from water stress. Nevertheless, its RGR decreased and DM increased. Stressed plants of both CB and TB grown in the greenhouse manifested significant reduction in leaf, stem, and root dry mass and leaf area. However, the magnitude of mass reduction was especially high for CB stem, leaf, and root. While TB root system penetrated deeper in the soil profile, CB root depth did not significantly change in response to drought. In addition, substantial CB root mass was detected in the top 10 to 20 cm of the soil profile. Stomata conductance and transpiration rate were higher for CB than TB under both well-watered and water-stress conditions. Significant relative water content reduction was detected only in CB. In spite of water stress, soil moisture was high around roots of CB compared with TB, suggesting lesser efficiency of CB root system to extract water. Stressed CB grown in the production field did not produce seed yield whereas TB gave 60 to 64% of its potential dry seed yield. In vitro assay for root osmotic potential should be useful in improving drought resistance in common bean.