Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Growth–mortality relationships as indicators of life-history strategies : a comparison of nine tree species in unmanaged European forests

Forest succession depends strongly on the life history strategies of individual trees. An important strategic element is the ability to survive unfavourable environmental conditions that result in strongly reduced tree growth. In this study, we investigated whether the relationship between growth and mortality differs among tree species and site conditions. We analysed 10 329 trees of nine tree species (Picea abies, Taxus baccata, Fagus sylvatica, Tilia cordata, Carpinus betulus, Fraxinus excelsior, Quercus robur, Betula spp. and Alnus glutinosa) from unmanaged forests of Europe: the continental
Crystal structure and band gap studies of hydrogarnet calculated results by density functional theory

Herein, we investigate the hydrogarnet sample by X-ray diffraction and calculated the related garnets included grossular, katoite and hydrogrossular by density functional theory to investigate the effect of silicon composition. The results of X-ray diffraction suggests that the chemical formula should be Ca2.93Al1. 97Si0.64O2. 56(OH)9.44. The optimized lattice parameters are in good agreement with the available data. We demonstrated the structural details of oxygen tetrahedron with or without silicon and found the stability and the band gap of garnet to be selectively modified by controlling the distribution and concentration of silicon atoms at different structural deformation levels. Moreover, the hydrogrossular configuration with the silicon atoms in separate manner is favored of the high stability and large band gap. It is firstly proposed that the band gap of hydrogarnet should be 3.17-3.65 eV by first-principles calculations. This was explained by the majority of the DOS contributions from the electrons in O and Ca atoms. It is believed that our research contributes to the mechanism of silicon distribution in garnet and helps the further disposal and treatment of silicate mud.
Renal Cancer is Not Radioresistant: Slowly but Continuing Shrinkage of the Tumor After Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of stereotactic body radiation therapy for primary lesion of renal cell carcinoma with long-term and regular follow-up of tumor size and renal function. Methods: This prospective study included 13 patients treated with stereotactic body radiation therapy for primary lesion of stage I renal cell carcinoma between August 2007 and June 2016 in our institution. Diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma was made by 2 radiologists using computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging. A dosage of 60 Gy in 10 fractions or 70 Gy in 10 fractions was prescribed. The higher dose was selected if dose constraints were satisfied. Tumor response on imaging examination, local progression-free rate, overall survival, and toxicity were assessed. Results: The mean follow-up period was 48.3 months (range: 11-108 months). The tumors showed very slow but continuous response during long-term follow-up. Three cases (23.1%) showed transient progression during the short follow-up. The mean duration until the day on which partial response was confirmed among the partial or complete response cases was 22.6 months (95% confidence interval, 15.3-30.0 months). Local progression-free rate was 92.3% for 3 years and overall survival rate 91.7% for 2 years and 71.3% for 3 years. Twelve cases (92.3%) had impaired renal function at baseline. Renal function decreased slowly and mildly in most of the cases, but 2 cases of solitary kidney showed grade 4 or 5 renal dysfunction. Conclusion: All renal tumors decreased in size slowly but continuously for years after stereotactic body radiation therapy. Renal cancer can be treated radically with stereotactic body radiation therapy as a radiosensitive tumor, but careful attention should be given in cases with solitary kidney.
Intake, milk yield, and physiological parameters of lactating cows fed on diets containing different quantities of xiquexique (Pilosocereus gounellei).

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of substituting Tifton-85 grass hay with different quantities of xiquexique ( Pilosocereus gounellei ) (0, 12, 24, and 36%) on the nutrient intake and physiological responses of lactating dairy cows. Eight multiparous crossbred cows at approximately 100 days in milk, with an average milk yield of 15 kg of milk per day-1, and an average body weight (BW) of 465.20 ± 39.37 kg, were distributed in a 4 × 4 double Latin square design. Each experimental period lasted 16 days, consisting of 10 days for adaptation and 6 days for data collection, giving a total of 64 experimental days. The roughage: concentrate ratio was 60:40, on a dry matter (DM) basis. The DM intake, expressed in kg day-1, was affected quadratically by the levels of xiquexique in the diets. The intakes of DM, expressed in % BW and g kg-0.75, and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) in the three units analyzed (kg day-1, % BW, and g kg-0.75), as well as the intakes of organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), ether extract (EE), and total carbohydrates (TC), expressed in kg/day-1, decreased linearly with the levels of xiquexique in the diet. Milk yield (kg day-1) was reduced by the addition of xiquexique into the diet, but feed efficiency was not influenced. Water intake from feed (WIFeed), expressed in kg day-1 and % BW, incresed linearly with increasing levels of xiquexique in the total diet, while voluntary water intake, expressed in kg day-1 and % BW (WIVoluntary), decreased linearly. The total water intake (WITotal) was not affected by experimental treatments. Participation of WIVoluntary in the WITotal linearly reduced with Xiquexique levels in the diet. The respiratory rate and surface temperature during both periods of the day (morning and afternoon), and rectal temperature during the morning were not influenced by the levels of xiquexique in the diet. Therefore, xiquexique can be utilized in the feeding of medium and high producing dairy cows, as a means of reducing nutrient intake, milk yield, and voluntary consumption of water without changing feed efficiency or the animals’ physiological responses.
Munich Personal RePEc Archive Inequality, Financial Development and Government: Evidence from Low-Income Developing Countries

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of financial and economic development on cross-country income inequality using a panel data set from 50 low-income developing counties over a long period 1970-2008. The results show that financial development helps in reducing inequalities, however a non-monotonic relationship between financial development and inequality does not hold. The study finds a non-monotonic relationship between inequality and level of economic development, thus this study supports Kuznets inverted-U hypothesis. The government emerges as a major player in reducing income inequalities as its role is significant in all models. Policy makers should primarily focus on achieving the higher levels of economic development to reduce increasing inequalities. Since financial development, reduces inequalities irrespective of its level, policy makers need to focus more on improvements in financial reforms. JEL Classification: C23, D31, H10 and E51
Isolation and characterization of a BBC1 cDNA from common wheat

A breast basic conserved 1 (BBC1) cDNA has been isolated from common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Analysis of amino acid sequence derived from the cDNA showed that the wheat BBC1 was highly hydrophilic and rich in alanine, lysine, glutamic acid and arginine residues. The transcription of wheat BBC1 mRNA was regulated by low temperature. Southern blotting analysis showed that BBC1 existed as a small family in common wheat genome.
Homologs of Old Yellow Enzyme in plants.

Old Yellow Enzyme (OYE) is a flavin mononucleotide-dependent oxidoreductase. 12-oxophytodienoic acid reductases (OPRs) are OYE homologs and are represented by multigene families in plants. OPRs catalyze the reduction of double bonds in α,β-unsaturated aldehydes or ketones. They belong to the octadecanoid pathway, which converts linolenic acid to jasmonic acid (JA). Individual OPR family members may have distinct functions due to their different substrate specificity, subcellular localization, tissue distribution, and differential regulation of their expression in response to specific environmental cues. Based on their differential preferences for 12-oxophytodienoate (OPDA) stereoisomers, these enzymes are classified into two subgroups: OPRI and OPRII. OPRI enzymes preferentially catalyze the reduction of cis-(−)OPDA over the JA precursor cis-(+)OPDA , and therefore, they are not involved in JA biosynthesis. Although a significant progress has been made to understand the exact physiological roles of OPR enzymes, the function of OPRI subgroup members in plants remains largely unknown. Enzymes belonging to this subgroup are possibly involved in defense responses and signaling. The members of the OPRII subgroup are required for JA biosynthesis because they catalyze the reduction of the JA precursor cis-(+)OPDA. This review will highlight some characteristics of this family in Arabidopsis and other species and discuss the physiological role of OPR family members in plants.
Glucose Transporter 1 Expression Is Regulated by Aged Garlic Extract during Cerebral Ischemia

Aged garlic extract is obtained after prolonged hydroethanolic extraction of garlic cloves and is recognized for its high antioxidant content. Although evidence indicates that aged garlic extract delays brain ischemia-induced damage, the molecular mechanisms of this effect are unclear. Moderate concentration of reactive oxygen species induces glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) expression that in astrocytessupports brainenergy metabolism. This has suggested that reduction of excessive reactive oxygen species formation during severe ischemia maycontribute to neuroprotection. Thus, in view of the high antioxidant properties of aged garlic extract, we investigated the effect of ischemia on GLUT1 expression and its regulation after aged garlic extract treatment. Rats were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion during 2 hto produce ischemia and then were sacrificed after different times of reperfusion. In fronto-parietal cortex GLUT1 mRNA expression peaked after 1and 24h of reperfusion. Nevertheless, no significant change on total protein level was observed by Western blotting, buta severe reduction on GLUT1 positive astrocytes was detected by immunofluorescence after 2 h of reperfusion. Remarkably, aged garlic extract (360 mg/kg;i.p.) administered after is chemia increased GLUT1 mRNA expressionin cortex after 2 h of reperfusion and partially prevented the middle cerebral artery occlusion-induced reduction of GLUT1 in astrocytes. These results suggest that GLUT1 over expression in astrocytes may underlie some of the beneficial effects on neuronal survival observed with aged garlic extract treatment.
The Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME): Mission Concept and First Scientific Results

The Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) is a new instrument aboard the European Space Agency's (ESA) Second European Remote Sensing Satellite(ERS-2), which was launched in April 1995. The main scientific objective of the GOME mission is to determine the global distribution of ozone and several other trace gases, which play an important role in the ozone chemistry of the earth's stratosphere and troposphere. GOME measures the sunlight scattered from the earth's atmosphere and/or reflected by the surface in nadir viewing mode in the spectral region 240-790 nm at a moderate spectral resolution of between 0.2 and 0.4 nm. Using the maximum 960-km across-track swath width, the spatial resolution of a GOME ground pixel is 40 3 320 km2 for the majority of the orbit and global coverage is achieved in three days after 43 orbits. Operational data products of GOME as generated by DLR-DFD, the German Data Processing and Archiving Facility (D-PAF) for GOME, comprise absolute radiometrically calibrated earthshine radiance and solar irradiance spectra (level 1 products) and global distributions of total column amounts of ozone and NO 2 (level 2 products), which are derived using the DOAS approach (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy). (Under certain conditions and some restrictions, the operational data products are publically available from the European Space Agency via the ERS Helpdesk.) In addition to the operational data products, GOME has delivered important information about other minor trace gases such as OClO, volcanic SO2 ,H 2CO from biomass burning, and tropospheric BrO. Using an iterative optimal estimation retrieval scheme, ozone vertical profiles can be derived from the inversion of the UV/VIS spectra. This paper reports on the GOME instrument, its operation mode, and the retrieval techniques, the latter with particular emphasis on DOAS (total column retrieval) and advanced optimal estimation (ozone profile retrieval). Observation of ozone depletion in the recent polar spring seasons in both hemispheres are presented. OClO observed by GOME under twilight conditions provides valuable information on the chlorine activation inside the polar vortex, which is believed to be responsible for the rapid catalytic destruction of ozone. Episodes of enhanced BrO in the Arctic, most likely contained in the marine boundary layer, were observed in early and late spring. Excess tropospheric nitrogen dioxide and ozone have been observed during the recent Indonesian fire in fall 1997. Formaldehyde could also clearly be identified by GOME and is known to be a by-product resulting from biomass burning.
Biocompatibility of nanometre scale porous anodic aluminium oxide membranes towards the RK 13 epithelial cell line: A preliminary study

Background: This study for the first time examines the biomedical potential of using anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) for culturing Oryctolagus cuniculus (European Rabbit) Kidney (RK-13) epithelial cells. Methods: The cellular response of RK-13 cells towards in-house synthesised AAO membranes, a commercially available membrane and glass controls were investigated by examining cell adhesion, morphology and proliferation. The in-house membranes were anodized using a two-step procedure to produce a highly ordered hexagonal pore and channel structure. Results: Cell proliferation over a 48 h period indicated that the AAO membranes were more than comparable with the glass control substrates. Subsequent microscopy observations revealed evidence of focal adhesion sites and cellular extensions interacting with the underlining porous membrane surface structure. Conclusions: The study has shown that AAO membranes have the potential to culture RK-13 cells and indicate a possible tissue engineering technique for producing tissues.
Categorisation of Tweets Using Ensemble Classification Methods

Twitter is a micro-blogging site that facilitates users to exchange short messages. Twitter is predominantly used in fields like business, healthcare, education and nation security. Twitter is being used by a large number of users for updating real time information and sentiment expression. The objective of this paper is to automate the classification of tweets into particular category using various machine learning algorithms like naïve bayes, SVM, and linear regression model. The proposed ensemble model aims to improve performance metrics of these algorithms. A comparative study of the algorithms used for tweet classification is done and results are discussed in the paper.
Are Poor Countries Above Their Steady-State Income Levels?*

It has been argued that the neoclassical growth model implies that less-developed countries are, on average, far above their steady-state levels of income per capita, whereas richer countries are below their steady states. This paper contends that this surprising result is unreliable because it ignores the variability in the base-period ‘level of technology’ and is, therefore, not necessarily an argument against the plausibility of the neoclassical growth model. It does, however, illustrate a drawback of using cross-section data to examine the convergence implications of the neoclassical growth model.
Value of Manchester Acute Coronary Syndromes Decision Rule in the Detection of Acute Coronary Syndrome; a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Introduction: There is still no consensus on the value of Manchester Acute Coronary Syndromes (MACS) decision rule in detecting acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Therefore, the purpose of the present systematic review and meta-analyzes is to summarize the clinical evidence in the evaluation of the value of MACS in the diagnosis of ACS. Methods: A literature search was performed on the Medline, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. Outcomes included acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and major adverse cardiac event (MACE). Data were analyzed in the STATA 14.0 statistical program and the results were reported as summary receiver operating characteristics (SROC), sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratio, and diagnostic odds ratio with 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Results: Finally, 8 articles included in the meta-analysis. The area under the SROC of MACS was excellent in rule out of AMI (AUC = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.97 to 0.99) and MACE (AUC = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.95 to 0.98). The sensitivity and specificity of the troponin-only MACS/history electrocardiogram alone MACS (HE-MACS) in the rule out of AMI were0.99 (95% CI: 0.98-0.99) and 0.22 (95% CI: 0.11-0.37), respectively, and for the original MACS were in order 0.99 (95% CI: 0.98-0.99) and 0.26 (95% CI: 0.20-0.34),. The sensitivity and specificity of the troponin-only MACS / HE-MACS in the rule out of MACE were 0.94 (95% CI: 0.92-0.96) and 0.22 (95% CI: 0.12-0.39) compared to the 0.99 (95% CI: 0.98-0.99) and 0.27 (95% CI: 0.22-0.33) for the original MACS. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that original MACS, troponin-only MACS, and HE-MACS are able to rule out AMI and MACE. However, further studies are needed in developing countries to confirm its external validity.
Development of Dual Beam High Speed Doppler OFDI

This paper describes development of a high speed Doppler OFDI system for non-invasive vascular imaging. Doppler OFDI (optical frequency domain imaging) is one of the phase-resolved second generation OCT (optical coherence tomography) techniques for high resolution imaging of moving elements in biological tissues. To achieve a phase-resolved imaging, two temporally separated measurements are required. In a conventional Doppler OCT, a pair of massively oversampled successive A-lines is used to minimize de-correlation noise at the expense of significant imaging speed reduction. To minimize a de-correlation noise between targeted two measurements without suffering from significant imaging speed reduction, several methods have been developed such as an optimized scanning pattern and polarization multiplexed dual beam scanning. This research represent novel imaging technique using frequency multiplexed dual beam illumination to measure exactly same position with aimed time interval. Developed system has been verified using a tissue phantom and mouse vessel imaging.
Mathematical modelling of rainfall runoff from small catchments of the northwest coast of the Black Sea

This article is devoted to the use of a mathematical model of a flood runoff for calculating rainfall runoff hydrographs from small catchments of the northwest coast of the Black Sea. The described model was tested and applied for the following catchments located in various geographical conditions, with various amounts of initial data: experimental catchments in Zacarpathian, the northwest of the Black Sea region – Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, small catchments of the northern part of Vietnam, etc. This work was carried out on the basis of Moldavian Water-Balance Station databases. The development of a complex approach to a mathematical simulation of the formation of the processes of rain floods from small catchments is also given further investigation in this article. A brief description of the structure of a flood runoff spatial model from small catchments then provided. As well as this, the advantages of using radiolocation measurement of rainfall in the mathematical modeling of the formation of a flood runoff are shown. The results of construction runoff hydrographs confirm the possibility of applying this spatial model with the use of radar information. The optimization of model parameters was made with the data of 123 floods. The values of the quality criterion S/σ turned out not to exceed the value 0.8 in 81% of the considered cases of floods.
The Physics of Statecraft: Technology, Terrain, and the Territorialization of Modern States 1

While variation in the power and size of states has long been recognized as one of the central drivers of geopolitical behavior, few studies have directly addressed the question of how and why different states came to be the sizes they did. The most prominent formal contributions to this question, based in a logic of voluntary optimization, fail to account for some of the most fundamental patterns observed in empirical data on state sizes, including the fact that territorial sizes are consistently lognormally distributed. In contrast, we develop an ecological model of coercive competition, which seeks to capture both the positive feedback dynamics inherent in states' pursuit of territorial expansion, and the physical constraints of projecting power over long distances. Moreover, we show that the empirical predictions derived from this model are in strong agreement, both qualitatively and quantitatively, with real distributions of state sizes observed over the period 1500 AD to 1998 AD.
Methane emission from nitrate-treated tannin rich feed for cattle in Vietnam

In developing countries such as Vietnam the population consumes more animal products for example milk and meat than before which requires greater livestock production. Ruminants contributes to more methane emission which creates a dilemma between food production and its environmental impact. By feeding ruminants with nutritive crops which humans can not assimilate the animal performance will increase in terms of better growth and milk production without inpinging on food that can be consumed directly by humans. Increasing animal performance reduces methane emission in terms of amount of methane in kg-1 milk and meat which today is much greater in developing countries than developed countries. The aim of the study was to investigate tropical tannin-rich legumes for their potential as a feed supplement for ruminants made in vitro. Tannin-rich legumes binds protein in the rumen, which increase the proportion of bypass protein in the feed, and reduces enteric methane emission. Addition of nitrate further reduces methane emission and available nitrogen increases. Four legumes; Acacia mangium, Flemingia macrophylla, Leucaena leucocephala and Stylosanthes guianensis was studied together with a well-studied tannin-rich euphorbiaceae; Manihot esculenta Crantz (Cassava) as a reference. Four different drying methods were used; sundried, dried in heat, freeze-dried and dried in room temperature. Freeze-drying showed significantly (P<0.05) higher production of methane than the other three methods. Acacia mangium and Flemingia macrophylla produced significantly (P<0.05) less amount of methane. No significant difference could be found on methane production with or without addition of calcium nitrate to the foliage. Acacia mangium and Flemingia macrophylla dried in the sun, dried in room temperature or heat-dried in oven are possible feed supplement for ruminants with the properties of both mitigating enteric methane and enhancing the amount of bypass protein in the feed.