Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Computational fluid dynamics as a modern tool for engineering characterization of bioreactors

Since design, construction and evaluation of bioreactors for large-scale production is costly and time consuming, computational methods may give some insights into the fluid mechanics within bioreactors. Thus, critical limiting factors, such as insufficient mixing as well as inhomogeneous nutrient and oxygen mass transfer, may be identified early in the design process. Although advanced experimental techniques such as laser Doppler anemometry and particle image velocimetry are also reliable, they are too time consuming to characterize the complete flow pattern in industrial scales and rely on optical accessibility. Therefore, the knowledge of flow characteristics provided by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is indispensable for the rational design of bioreactors. Based on previously published reviews, the present work summarizes the latest publications on the usage of CFD to characterize and scale-up bioreactors used in biotechnological processes. Selected models that are used to predict the fluid flow pattern and key engineering parameters of commonly used bioreactors are described. Related issues, such as grid dependency of CFD results and the requirement for experimental verification are also addressed. Finally, an overview of proposed but not yet feasible CFD applications is presented, including fluid–structure interaction, the use of direct numerical simulation and the coupling fluid flow and chemical reactions.
COMMENTS ON TRIASSIC PTEROSAURS WITH A COMMENTARY ON THE "ONTOGENETIC STAGES" OF KELLNER (2015) AND THE VALIDITY OF BERGAMODACTYLUS WILDI

Six stages (OS1-6) were identified by Kellner (2015) to establish the ontogeny of a given pterosaur fossil. These were used to support the erection of several new Triassic taxa including Bergamodactylus wildi, which is based on a single specimen (MPUM 6009) from the Norian of Lombardy, Italy. However, those ontogenetic stages are not valid because different pterosaur taxa had different tempos of skeletal development. Purported diagnostic characters of Bergamodactylus wildi are not autapomorphic or were incorrectly identified. Although minor differences do exist between MPUM 6009 and the holotype of Carniadactylus rosenfeldi, these do not warrant generic differentiation. Thus, MPUM 6009 is here retained within the taxon Carniadactylus rosenfeldi as proposed by Dalla Vecchia (2009a).
The Causal Relationship between Insider Ownership, Owner Identity and Market Valuation among the Largest European Companies

The causal relationship between insider ownership and market valuation is tested by simultaneous estimation of the causes and effect of insider ownership among the largest continental European companies. Controlling for nation and industry effects insider ownership (measured by the fraction of “closely held” shares) is found to have a positive effect on market valuation (market-to-book values). And market valuation is found to have a positive feedback effect on the level of insider ownership. The findings provide empirical support for a theoretical model proposed by La Porta et al (1999). But the results are also found to be sensitive to owner identity: while a higher level of financial and corporate insider ownership is found to increase market valuation, family ownership has no significant effect, and a higher level of government ownership is found to reduce market valuation.
Original article. Assessment of biochemical changes among Egyptian women with increased body weight

Abstract Background: Obesity is a condition that results from chronic disruption of energy balance where energy intake continuously exceeds energy expenditure and accumulation of body fat results Objective: We evaluated the relationships between ghrelin and leptin with the metabolic state of normal weight, overweight, and obese Egyptian women. Methods: We studied 82 subjects with ages from 43 to 65. They were free of endocrine-related disease and divided into three groups according to their body mass index (BMI), group 1 with BMI less than 25 kg/m2, group 2 with BMI between 25 to 30 kg/m2, and group 3 with BMI more than 30 kg/m2. Ghrelin and leptin were determined by ELISA technique. Insulin resistance was measured by homeostasis model assessment. Lipid profile was determined in all groups. Results: Fasting plasma levels of ghrelin were lower in overweight and obese groups compared to normal weight control group. There was statistically significant negative correlation of ghrelin levels with leptin, BMI and HOMA. Results showed that higher concentrations of fasting leptin were found in overweight and obese groups compared with the normal weight control group. There was statistically significant positive correlation between leptin and other biochemical parameters, insulin, BMI, and HOMA. Conclusion: Ghrelin and leptin may be associated with obesity. These markers can be of value when assessing management.
Prediction of Piping Erosion Along Middle Mississippi River Levees—An Empirical Model

Abstract : As floodwaters rise against the riverside slope of a levee hydrostatic pressure builds within the foundation (pervious sands) of the levee. Conventional underseepage analyses are performed to estimate the potential for internal erosion because of the excess hydrostatic pressure. This study explores the use of an empirical model that uses traditional variables in addition to assessing previous levee performance and river geomorphology to estimate piping.
Pole Dancing for Fitness: The Physiological and Metabolic Demand of a 60-Minute Class.

Nicholas, JC, McDonald, KA, Peeling, P, Jackson, B, Dimmock, JA, Alderson, JA, and Donnelly, CJ. Pole dancing for fitness: The physiological and metabolic demand of a 60-minute class. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2018-Little is understood about the acute physiological or metabolic demand of pole dancing classes. As such, the aims of this study were to quantify the demands of a standardized recreational pole dancing class, classifying outcomes according to American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) exercise-intensity guidelines, and to explore differences in physiological and metabolic measures between skill- and routine-based class components. Fourteen advanced-level amateur female pole dancers completed three 60-minute standardized pole dancing classes. In one class, participants were fitted with a portable metabolic analysis unit. Overall, classes were performed at a mean V[Combining Dot Above]O2 of 16.0 ml·kg·min, total energy cost (EC) of 281.6 kcal (4.7 kcal·min), metabolic equivalent of tasks (METs) of 4.6, heart rate of 131 b·min, rate of perceived exertion (RPE) of 6.3/10, and blood lactate of 3.1 mM. When comparing skill- and routine-based components of the class, EC per minute (4.4 vs. 5.3 kcal·min), peak V[Combining Dot Above]O2 (21.5 vs. 29.6 ml·kg·min), METs (4.3 vs. 5.2), and RPE (7.2 vs. 8.4) were all greater in the routine-based component (p < 0.01), indicating that classes with an increased focus on routine-based training, as compared to skill-based training, may benefit those seeking to exercise at a higher intensity level, resulting in greater caloric expenditure. In accordance with ASCM guidelines, an advanced-level 60-minute pole dancing class can be classified as a moderate-intensity cardiorespiratory exercise; when completed for ≥30 minutes, ≥5 days per week (total ≥150 minutes) satisfies the recommended level of exercise for improved health and cardiorespiratory fitness.
Farm Structure and the Effects of Agri-Environmental Programs: Results from a Matching Analysis for European Countries

This paper extends previous research (Pufahl and Weiss, 2009) and applies a semi-parametric propensity score matching approach to evaluate the effects of agrienvironment (AE) programs on input use and farm output of individual farms in eight Member States of the European Union. We find substantial differences in treatment effects between countries. The analysis reveals significant effects of AE participation on production (Germany, France) and farm profits (France, Ireland, United Kingdom). AE participation sporadically reduces the intensity of land use as measured by the purchase of farm chemicals (fertilizer, pesticide) and grazing livestock densities. We also find differences in the treatment effect among farms with different farm size (heterogeneous treatment effects).
Casual Mediation Analyses with Structural Mean Models

We present a linear structural mean model SMM approach for analyzing mediation of a randomized baseline intervention s e ect on a univariate follow up outcome Unlike standard mediation analyses our approach does not assume that the mediating factor is randomly as signed to individuals i e sequential ignorability Hence a comparison of the results of the proposed and standard approaches in with respect to mediation o ers a sensitivity analy ses of the sequential ignorability assumption The G estimation procedure for the proposed SMM represents an extension of the work on direct e ects of randomized treatment e ects for survival outcomes by Robins and Greenland Section and Appendix B and on treatment non adherence for continuous outcomes by Ten Have et al Simulations show good estimation and con dence interval performance under unmeasured confounding relative to the standard mediation approach Sensitivity analyses of the sequential ignora bility assumption comparing the results of the two approaches are presented in the context of two suicide depression treatment studies
Foraging by mobile predators on a rocky shore: underwater TV observations of movements of blennies Lipophrys pholis and crabs Carcinus maenas

The hypothesis was proposed that shore fishes and crabs, predators other than gastropods, may be primarily responsible for depletion of barnacle populations in the vicinity of crevices through thigmotactic behaviour during foraging. To test this hypothesis, movements of mobile predators on barnacle-dominated rock in the lower intertidal zone were observed using a fixed underwater television camera. An area of 0.2 m 2 was monitored continuously for 14 d on a vertically oriented but relatively protected shore on the west coast of Scotland. Infrared lights during nighttime high tides lit the area. Stereo photography was used to determine the topography of the area. The principal species seen by day was the blenny Lipophrys pholis (L.) while the shore crab Carcinus maenas (L.) was the most frequent species at night. Scorpion fish Taurulus bubalis (Euphrasen), dogwhelks Nucella lapillus (L.) and a single North American mink Mustela vison Schreber were also seen. Movements of crabs, and especially blennies, were concentrated around small-scale concavities in the rock surface of less than 10 cm dimensions, supporting the primary hypothesis, Times spent by Lipophrys pholis and Carcinus maenas in 0.001 m 2 (10 cm 2 ) areas within the video frame varied by 3 and 2 orders of magnitude respectively. These 2 species are known to be active predators of barnacles Semibalanus balanoides and showed behaviour consistent with attacks on barnacles as prey. Observed movements and apparent spatial concentration of attacks, especially around crevices, may be a cause of patchiness in barnacle populations at this scale.
Dynamical-Empirical forecast for the Indian monsoon rainfall using the NCEP Coupled Modelling System – Application for real time monsoon forecast

The performance of the National Centre for Environmental Prediction’s (NCEP) operational coupled modeling system known as the Climate Forecast System (CFS) is evaluated for the prediction of all India summer monsoon rainfall (AISMR) during June to September (JJAS). The evaluation is based on the hindcast initialized during March, April and May with 15 ensemble members each for 25 years period from 1981 to 2005.The CFS’s hindcast climatology during JJAS of March (lag-3), April (lag-2) and May (lag-1) initial conditions show mostly an identical pattern of rainfall similar to that of observed climatology with both the rainfall maxima (over the west-coast of India and over the head Bay of Bengal region) well captured, with a signification correlation coefficient between the forecast and observed climatology over the Indian monsoon region (bounded by 50°E-110°E and 10°S-35°N) covering Indian land mass and adjoining oceanic region. Although the CFS forecast rainfall is overestimated over the Indian monsoon region, the land only rainfall amount is underestimated compared to observation. The skill of the prediction of monsoon rainfall over the Indian land mass is found to be relatively weak, although it is significant at 95% with a correlation coefficient (CC) of 0.44 with April ensembles.By using CFS predicted JJAS rainfall over the regions of significant CCs, a hybrid dynamical-empirical model is developed for the real time prediction of AISMR, whose skill is found to be much higher (CC significant above 99% level) than the raw CFS forecasts. The dynamical-empirical hybrid forecast applied on real time for 2009 and 2010 monsoons are found to be much closer to the observed AISMR. Thus, when the hybrid model is used there is a correction not only to the sign of the actual forecast as in the case of 2009 monsoon but also to its magnitude and hence can be used as a better tool for the real time prediction of AISMR.
Water resource as a factor of production - water use and economic growth

Water is one of the most important natural resources that is necessary for the rise and development of any biological and human activity. Being water resource a necessary good for multiple uses, it generates a series of competitive demands whose degree of competitiveness becomes greater in the presence of relevant and increasing pressure factors. The paper sets out a logical scheme for the analysis of productive uses of water, with the purpose of understanding both the functioning of an economy in the presence of a technical constraint to the exploitation of water resources, and the possible policy instruments available to the public authority. Our starting point is the definition of productive uses of water in terms of the amount of resource that is activated to make the stock of physical capital productive. Water resource is not a pure public good, it is available at private and social costs, given the existence of an optimal ratio between physical capital and water resources needed by the economic system in order to be productive. A complementarity hypothesis between the two forms of capital considered (physical and water capital) arises, with the first coming from private investment and the second being defined as the amount of public investment in services and infrastructures for water resource exploitation. As public investment in water capital crowds out private saving eventually available for private physical capital accumulation, an allocation criterion is needed to maximize total production of the system, never falling behind the optimal physical capital-water capital ratio. The first section of the paper reviews the literature dealing with the relationship between natural resources use and economic growth; the second section is focused on the presentation of a Solow-type model that introduces water in a general production function. In developing the model, equilibrium conditions in a Â“water economyÂ” are described and a parametrical device is set in order to identify optimal taxation policies to finance public water infrastructures investment. The last section shows the results of an empirical analysis that is carried out in order to test the existence of a significant relationship between the aggregate use of water and per capita income produced by an economy. A country-based panel data analysis is performed with the aim of estimating a Â“waterÂ” production function.
An Analytical Approach to Operational Space Control of Robotic Manipulators with Kinematic Constraints

Abstract This paper presents a novel control architecture for operational space control when the end effector or the robotic chain is kinematically constrained. Particularly, we address kinematic control of robots operating in the presence of obstacles such as point, plane, or barrier constraints imposed on a point on the manipulator. The main advantage of the proposed approach is that we are able to control the end-effector motion in the normal way using conventional operational space control schemes, and by re-writing the Jacobian matrix we also guarantee that the constraints are satisfied. The most challenging problem of obstacle avoidance of robotic manipulators is the extremely complex structure that arises when the obstacles are mapped from the operational space to joint space. We solve this by first finding a new set of velocity variables for a point on the robot in the vicinity of the obstacle, and on these new variables we impose a structure which guarantees that the robot does not hit the obstacle. We then find a mapping denoted the Constrained Jacobian Matrix from the joint variables to these new velocity variables and use this mapping to find a trajectory in joint space for which the constraints are not violated. We present for the first time the Constrained Jacobian Matrix which imposes a kinematic constraint on the manipulator chain and show the efficiency of the approach through experiments on a real robot.
The deep Earth origin of the Iceland plume and its effects on regional surface uplift and subsidence

Abstract. The present-day seismic structure of the mantle under the North Atlantic Ocean indicates that the Iceland hotspot represents the surface expression of a deep mantle plume, which is thought to have erupted in the North Atlantic domain during the Palaeocene. The spatial and temporal evolution of the plume since its eruption is still highly debated, and little is known about its deep mantle history. Here, we use palaeogeographically constrained global mantle flow models to investigate the evolution of deep Earth flow beneath the North Atlantic since the Jurassic. The models show that over the last ∼ 100 Myr a remarkably stable pattern of convergent flow has prevailed in the lowermost mantle near the tip of the African Large Low-Shear Velocity Province (LLSVP), making it an ideal plume nucleation site. We extract model dynamic topography representative of a plume beneath the North Atlantic region since eruption at ∼ 60 Ma to present day and compare its evolution to available offshore geological and geophysical observations across the region. This comparison confirms that a widespread episode of Palaeocene transient uplift followed by early Eocene anomalous subsidence can be explained by the mantle-driven effects of a plume head ∼ 2500 km in diameter, arriving beneath central eastern Greenland during the Palaeocene. The location of the model plume eruption beneath eastern Greenland is compatible with several previous models. The predicted dynamic topography is within a few hundred metres of Palaeocene anomalous subsidence derived from well data. This is to be expected given the current limitations involved in modelling the evolution of Earth's mantle flow in 3-D, particularly its interactions with the base of a heterogeneous lithosphere as well as short-wavelength advective upper mantle flow, not captured in the presented global models.
Gemini GMOS spectroscopy of HeII nebulae in M 33

We have carried out a narrow-band survey of the Local Group galaxy, M33, in the HeII λ4686 emission line, to identify HeII nebulae in this galaxy. With spectroscopic follow-up observations, we confirm three of seven candidate objects, including identification of two new HeII nebulae, BCLMP651, HBW673. We also obtain spectra of associated ionizing stars for all the HII regions, identifying two new WN stars. We demonstrate that the ionizing source for the known HeII nebula, MA 1, is consistent with being the earlytype WN star MC8 (M33-WR14), by carrying out a combined stellar and nebular analysis of MC8 and MA 1. We were unable to identify the helium ionizing sources for HBW 673 and BCLMP 651, which do not appear to be Wolf-Rayet stars. According to the [OIII]λ5007/Hβ vs. [NII]λ6584/Hα diagnostic diagram, excitation mechanisms apart from hot stellar continuum are needed to account for the nebular emission in HBW 673, which appears to have no stellar source at all.
Worst-Case Load Shedding in Electric Power Networks

We consider the worst-case load-shedding problem in electric power networks where a number of transmission lines are to be taken out of service. The objective is to identify a prespecified number of line outages that lead to the maximum interruption of power generation and load at the transmission level, subject to the active power-flow model, the load and generation capacity of the buses, and the phase-angle limit across the transmission lines. For this nonlinear model with binary constraints, we show that all decision variables are separable except for the nonlinear power-flow equations. We develop an iterative decomposition algorithm, which converts the worst-case load-shedding problem into a sequence of small subproblems. We show that the subproblems are either convex problems that can be solved efficiently or nonconvex problems that have closed-form solutions. Consequently, our approach is scalable for large networks. Furthermore, we prove convergence of our algorithm to a critical point, and the objective value is guaranteed to decrease throughout the iterations. Numerical experiments with IEEE test cases demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed approach.
A long-term corrosion barrier with an insulating boron nitride monolayer

Graphene has been demonstrated as an ultrathin and light-weight corrosion barrier because of its high impermeability. However, it fails to prevent the Cu corrosion over a long term because the high conductivity of graphene enables the formation of a galvanic cell and promotes the electrochemical reaction. Here we theoretically and experimentally study a boron nitride (BN) monolayer as a long-term corrosion barrier for Cu. Our density functional theory calculations show that the potential barrier for O2 to pass through BN is close to that of graphene. The long-term barrier characteristics of BN and graphene are comparably evaluated by aging in an ambient environment for 160 days. Morphological and spectroscopic characterization shows that a BN monolayer has much better long-term barrier performance than graphene. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis shows that the Cu2+ percentage of the aging Cu sample with a BN barrier is reduced by around 15 times compared with that covered by graphene. The superior long-term barrier performance of a BN monolayer can be understood to be a result of its high impermeability and insulating characteristics, which suppress the galvanic corrosion under the ambient environment. These studies reveal that a BN monolayer is a more effective long-term corrosion barrier than graphene.
Gliders Measure Western Boundary Current Transport from the South Pacific to the Equator

Abstract“Spray” gliders, most launched from small boats near shore, have established a sustainable time series of equatorward transport through the Solomon Sea. The first 3.5 years (mid-2007 through 2010) are analyzed. Coast-to-coast equatorward transport through the Solomon Sea fluctuates around a value of 15 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1) with variations approaching ±15 Sv. Transport variability is well correlated with El Nino indices like Nino-3.4, with strong equatorward flow during one El Nino and weak flow during two La Ninas. Mean transport is centered in an undercurrent focused in the western boundary current; variability has a two-layer structure with layers separated near 250 m (near the core of the undercurrent) that fluctuate independently. The largest variations are in midbasin, confined to the upper layer, and are well correlated with ENSO. Analysis of velocity and salinity on isopycnals shows that the western boundary current within the Solomon Sea consists of a deep core coming from the Coral Sea .