Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The influence of electronic word-of-mouth adoption on brand love amongst Generation Z consumers

Emerging markets are developing countries whose economies are growing rapidly (AmankwahAmoah, Boso & Debrah, 2018). The main aim of an emerging market is to advance its economy (Saksiriruthai 2019). Emerging markets are essential for the global economy because they comprise 80% of the global population and 70% of total global gross domestic product (GDP) (Corporate Finance Institute 2021). In general, emerging markets experience rapid growth, high productivity levels and rising standards of living (Amankwah-Amoah et al., 2018). However, there is a high degree of instability and volatility in these markets, which are susceptible to inflation, price changes in commodities and fluctuating currencies and interest rates (Tsagkanos, Siriopoulos & Vartholomatou 2019). Amadeo (2020) inferred that instability and volatility increase the risk of doing business with emerging markets. However, for most foreign investors, higher risks equate to higher returns, which increase the attractiveness of such markets. Globally, the top five emerging markets are Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) (Asongu, Akpan & Isihak 2018). However, numerous other emerging markets, especially in Africa, have been identified to provide major opportunities for foreign investors (Amankwah-Amoah, Boso & Debrah 2018).
Laboratory Measurements of High-n Iron L-Shell X-Ray Lines

We present a comprehensive wavelength survey of Fe L-shell X-ray lines between 7 and 11 Å measured using flat crystal spectrometers and the EBIT-I and EBIT-II electron beam ion traps at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. This survey includes all significant emission lines produced by over 200 n → 2 transitions in Fe XVIII-XXIV, with n = 4-10. The identification and assignment of transitions are made with the help of detailed theoretical modeling using the Flexible Atomic Code (FAC).
An optogenetic assay method for electrogenic transporters using Escherichia coli co‐expressing light‐driven proton pump

In organisms, nutrients and wastes move across the cellular membrane, in which membrane‐embedded transporters facilitate and inhibit the movement. Despite the physiological significances, the currently used assay methods for transporter activities require tedious preparation and analytical processes. In this study, we report the isotope‐free and label‐free measurement system for the transport activities of electrogenic transporters. In the system, two molecules, a light‐driven inward proton pump rhodopsin, xenorhodopsin (XeR), and a representative of an electrogenic transporter, an oxalate transporter (OxlT), were co‐expressed in Escherichia coli cells. The light illumination of the cells co‐expressing XeR and OxlT showed an increase in the pH of the bulk solution and that the extent of the pH change is significantly enhanced by adding the oxalate, suggesting the light‐induced inward proton transport by XeR coupled to the negative electrogenic transport by OxlT. Such a pH increase was dependent on the oxalate concentration, but not on the XeR expression level. Of note, pH increase was not observed for the nonfunctional mutants of OxlT, R272A, and K355Q, supporting the validity of the system. Thus, we successfully developed an optogenetic assay method for electrogenic transporters using E. coli co‐expressing light‐driven proton pump.
Qualities of Academic Librarians Who Advance into Middle Management: An Exploratory Factor Analysis

Abstract The path to management is difficult for academic librarians without formal supervisory experience, especially in public services. However, little research on how frontline librarians without supervisory experience advance into middle management has been conducted. To determine the extent to which a relationship between certain personal characteristics and librarians’ likelihood to advance exists, a survey was administered to public services librarians who had been promoted into middle management within the previous 5 years. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that charismatic presence, long-term thinking, instruction experience, customer service orientation, interpersonal skills, and ability to achieve tenure/promotion in rank contributed to librarians’ successful advancement.
Musiré: multimodal simulation and reconstruction framework for the radiological imaging sciences

A software-based workflow is proposed for managing the execution of simulation and image reconstruction for SPECT, PET, CBCT, MRI, BLI and FMI packages in single and multimodal biomedical imaging applications. The workflow is composed of a Bash script, the purpose of which is to provide an interface to the user, and to organize data flow between dedicated programs for simulation and reconstruction. The currently incorporated simulation programs comprise GATE for Monte Carlo simulation of SPECT, PET and CBCT, SpinScenario for simulating MRI, and Lipros for Monte Carlo simulation of BLI and FMI. Currently incorporated image reconstruction programs include CASToR for SPECT and PET as well as RTK for CBCT. MetaImage (mhd) standard is used for voxelized phantom and image data format. Meshlab project (mlp) containers incorporating polygon meshes and point clouds defined by the Stanford triangle format (ply) are employed to represent anatomical structures for optical simulation, and to represent tumour cell inserts. A number of auxiliary programs have been developed for data transformation and adaptive parameter assignment. The software workflow uses fully automatic distribution to, and consolidation from, any number of Linux workstations and CPU cores. Example data are presented for clinical SPECT, PET and MRI systems using the Mida head phantom and for preclinical X-ray, PET and BLI systems employing the Digimouse phantom. The presented method unifies and simplifies multimodal simulation setup and image reconstruction management and might be of value for synergistic image research. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Synergistic tomographic image reconstruction: part 2’.
Comparative Study of Plasma Cladded Fe-Based Composite Hardfacings with In Situ Synthesized Cr and Ti Carbide Reinforcement

This study aimed to compare the X3CrNiMo17-13-3 stainless steel based plasma transferred arc (PTA) cladded hardfacings, reinforced with the in-situ synthesized Cr and Ti carbides. Carbon black and either pure Cr, pure Ti, or TiO2 were utilized as reinforcement precursors (the respective hardfacings are further referred to as Cr+C, Ti+C and TiO2+C). The pre-placed mixtures of matrix and reinforcement precursor powders were remelted by the plasma transferred arc, applying the preliminarily optimized process parameters (95 A, 22 – 24 V, 0.2 mm/s). As a reference, the unreinforced stainless steel hardfacing was used. The carbide reinforcement was successfully in-situ synthesized in all the hardfacings. The Cr + C hardfacing exhibited the largest average hardness (556 ± 29 HV1), while the TiO2 + C hardfacing had the largest average Young’s modulus (156.3 ± 19.7 GPa). The Cr + C and Ti + C hardfacings demonstrated the 2.3 and 2.1 times higher resistance to abrasive wear than the reference hardfacing. The TiO2 + C hardfacing showed 1.5 times lower wear resistance than the reference hardfacing presumably due to a lack of the reinforcement and a lower strain hardening ability.
Correlation between GMAW Parameters and Mechanical Properties of Hot-Rolled, High-Strength Low-Alloy (HSLA) Steel Butt Joints

In all industrial fields, the product requirements are more and more demanding. HSLA steels are designed to provide higher atmospheric corrosion resistance and improved mechanical properties than structural steels. The paper presents the results of an experimental program based on factorial design, applied to predict the mechanical properties of butt-welded joints of S420MC and S460MC hot-rolled, high-strength low-alloy (HSLA) steel plates with 2mm, 4mm and 8mm thickness. Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) was used and correlations between the main process parameters and the related mechanical properties of the welded joints were found. Obtained mathematical correlations can be exploited to provide optimal combination of welding parameters to fit the quality requirements of the end-users for envisaged welded product.
Assessing Water Footprint of Copper Production by Pyrometallurgy

As an important tool for water resource environmental impact assessment, the application of water footprint assessment method in copper production process is conducive to more accurate assessment of water resource environmental impact in copper production process. The water footprint assessment method released by the Water Footprint Network was used to study the water footprint of the production process of cathode copper products produced by pyrometallurgy. It was found that the water footprint of 1 ton of copper produced by pyrometallurgy was 242m3, of which the blue water footprint accounted for 60%, the grey water footprint accounted for 40%. The direct water footprint accounted for 67% and the indirect water footprint accounted for 33%. The characteristics of water footprint contribution at each process were compared, which provided data support and reference for enterprises to better understand the water resource environmental impact of copper by pyrometallurgy and to choose the water resource utilization mode with their own production characteristics.
The Specific Connexin 43–Inhibiting Peptide Gap26 Improved Alveolar Development of Neonatal Rats With Hyperoxia Exposure

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a common devastating pulmonary complication in preterm infants. Alveolar maldevelopment is the crucial pathological change of BPD highly associated with oxidative stress–mediated excessive apoptosis. Cellular injury can be propagated and amplified by gap junction (GJ)–mediated intercellular communication. Connexin 43 (Cx43) is the most ubiquitous and critical GJ protein. Gap26 is a specific Cx43 mimic peptide, playing as a Cx43-GJ inhibitor. We hypothesized that Cx43-GJ was involved in alveolar maldevelopment of BPD via amplifying oxidative stress signaling and inducing excessive apoptosis. Neonatal Sprague Dawley rats were kept in either normoxia (21% O2) or hyperoxia (85% O2) continuously from postnatal day (PN) 1 to 14 in the presence or absence of Gap26. Moreover, RLE-6TN cells (type II alveolar epithelial cells of rats) were cultured in vitro under normoxia (21% O2) or hyperoxia (85% O2). RLE-6TN cells were treated by N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) (a kind of reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger) or Gap26. Morphological properties of lung tissue are detected. Markers associated with Cx43 expression, ROS production, the activity of the ASK1-JNK/p38 signaling pathway, and apoptotic level are detected in vivo and in vitro, respectively. In vitro, the ability of GJ-mediated intercellular communication was examined by dye-coupling assay. In vitro, our results demonstrated ROS increased Cx43 expression and GJ-mediated intercellular communication and Gap26 treatment decreased ROS production, inhibited ASK1-JNK/p38 signaling, and decreased apoptosis. In vivo, we found that hyperoxia exposure resulted in increased ROS production and Cx43 expression, activated ASK1-JNK/p38 signaling, and induced excessive apoptosis. However, Gap26 treatment reversed these changes, thus improving alveolar development in neonatal rats with hyperoxia exposure. In summary, oxidative stress increased Cx43 expression and Cx43-GJ–mediated intercellular communication. And Cx43-GJ–mediated intercellular communication amplified oxidative stress signaling, inducing excessive apoptosis via the ASK1-JNK/p38 signaling pathway. The specific connexin 43–inhibiting peptide Gap26 was a novel therapeutic strategy to improve the alveolar development of BPD.
DeepCUBIT: Predicting Lymphovascular Invasion or Pathological Lymph Node Involvement of Clinical T1 Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer on Chest CT Scan Using Deep Cubical Nodule Transfer Learning Algorithm

The prediction of lymphovascular invasion (LVI) or pathological nodal involvement of tumor cells is critical for successful treatment in early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We developed and validated a Deep Cubical Nodule Transfer Learning Algorithm (DeepCUBIT) using transfer learning and 3D Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) to predict LVI or pathological nodal involvement on chest CT images. A total of 695 preoperative CT images of resected NSCLC with tumor size of less than or equal to 3 cm from 2008 to 2015 were used to train and validate the DeepCUBIT model using five-fold cross-validation method. We also used tumor size and consolidation to tumor ratio (C/T ratio) to build a support vector machine (SVM) classifier. Two-hundred and fifty-four out of 695 samples (36.5%) had LVI or nodal involvement. An integrated model (3D CNN + Tumor size + C/T ratio) showed sensitivity of 31.8%, specificity of 89.8%, accuracy of 76.4%, and AUC of 0.759 on external validation cohort. Three single SVM models, using 3D CNN (DeepCUBIT), tumor size or C/T ratio, showed AUCs of 0.717, 0.630 and 0.683, respectively on external validation cohort. DeepCUBIT showed the best single model compared to the models using only C/T ratio or tumor size. In addition, the DeepCUBIT model could significantly identify the prognosis of resected NSCLC patients even in stage I. DeepCUBIT using transfer learning and 3D CNN can accurately predict LVI or nodal involvement in cT1 size NSCLC on CT images. Thus, it can provide a more accurate selection of candidates who will benefit from limited surgery without increasing the risk of recurrence.
Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost – Responses of Fishers’ Communities to Shifts in the Distribution and Abundance of Fish

As species respond to warming water temperatures, fishers dependent upon such species are being compelled to make choices concerning harvest strategies. Should they “follow fish” to new fishing grounds? Should they change their mix of target species? Should they relocate their operations to new ports? We examined how fishing communities in the Northeast United States —a hotspot of recent warming—have already responded to documented shifts in the distribution and abundance of fluke, red and silver hake. We focused on groundfish trawl communities that historically targeted these species and examined their “at-sea” responses by combining qualitative interviews with quantitative analysis of fishing records and ecological surveys. Three distinct responses emerged: shifting fishing grounds, shifting target species, and shifting port of landing. Our research finds that following the fish is rare and only occurred in one of the assessed communities, the large trawler community of Beaufort, North Carolina. The more common response was a shift in target species and a change in catch composition. However, regulations and markets often constrained the ability to take advantage of a changing mix of species within fishing grounds. Indeed, the overall species diversity in catch has declined among all of our focal communities suggesting that communities have lost the ability to be flexible when it may be most needed as a response to climate change. Additionally, the high value of fluke and the need to land in southern states with higher quota allocations is likely a driver of the changing nature of “community” with increasing vessels landing outside their home port, especially when landing fluke. Our findings suggest that fidelity to historical fishing grounds combined with perceiving environmental change as non-permanent, predispose many fishers to trust in “cyclicality” and return of species over time. However, this strategy may make those communities unable or unwilling to “follow fish” more vulnerable to changes in distribution and abundance due to climate change. Our findings have the potential to directly inform resource management policies as well as more deliberate adaptations by communities themselves as they strive to address the imminent risks of climate change.
A Porphyromonas gingivalis Capsule-Conjugate Vaccine Protects From Experimental Oral Bone Loss

Periodontal diseases are chronic inflammatory diseases of the periodontium that result in progressive destruction of the soft and hard tissues supporting the teeth, and it is the most common cause of tooth loss among adults. In the US alone, over 100 million individuals are estimated to have periodontal disease. Subgingival bacteria initiate and sustain inflammation, and, although several bacteria have been associated with periodontitis, Porphyromonas gingivalis has emerged as the key etiological organism significantly contributing to the disease. Currently, intensive clinical maintenance strategies are deployed to mitigate the further progression of disease in afflicted individuals; however, these treatments often fail to stop disease progression, and, as such, the development of an effective vaccine for periodontal disease is highly desirable. We generated a conjugate vaccine, comprising of the purified capsular polysaccharide of P. gingivalis conjugated to eCRM®, a proprietary and enhanced version of the CRM197 carrier protein with predetermined conjugation sites (Pg-CV). Mice immunized with alum adjuvanted Pg-CV developed robust serum levels of whole organism-specific IgG in comparison to animals immunized with unconjugated capsular polysaccharide alone. Using the murine oral bone loss model, we observed that mice immunized with the capsule-conjugate vaccine were significantly protected from the effects of P. gingivalis-elicited oral bone loss. Employing a preclinical model of infection-elicited oral bone loss, our data support that a conjugate vaccine incorporating capsular polysaccharide antigen is effective in reducing the main clinical endpoint of periodontal disease—oral bone destruction. Further development of a P. gingivalis capsule-based conjugate vaccine for preventing periodontal diseases is supported.
CCR2 Deficiency Impairs Ly6Clo and Ly6Chi Monocyte Responses in Orientia tsutsugamushi Infection

Orientia (O.) tsutsugamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus, is a neglected, obligate intracellular bacterium that has a prominent tropism for monocytes and macrophages. Complications often involve the lung, where interstitial pneumonia is a typical finding. The severity of scrub typhus in humans has been linked to altered plasma concentrations of chemokines which are known to act as chemoattractants for myeloid cells. The trafficking and function of monocyte responses is critically regulated by interaction of the CC chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2) and its CC chemokine receptor CCR2. In a self-healing mouse model of intradermal infection with the human-pathogenic Karp strain of O. tsutsugamushi, we investigated the role of CCR2 on bacterial dissemination, development of symptoms, lung histology and monocyte subsets in blood and lungs. CCR2-deficient mice showed a delayed onset of disease and resolution of symptoms, higher concentrations and impaired clearance of bacteria in the lung and the liver, accompanied by a slow infiltration of interstitial macrophages into the lungs. In the blood, we found an induction of circulating monocytes that depended on CCR2, while only a small increase in Ly6Chi monocytes was observed in CCR2-/- mice. In the lung, significantly higher numbers of Ly6Chi and Ly6Clo monocytes were found in the C57BL/6 mice compared to CCR2-/- mice. Both wildtype and CCR2-deficient mice developed an inflammatory milieu as shown by cytokine and inos/arg1 mRNA induction in the lung, but with delayed kinetics in CCR2-deficient mice. Histopathology revealed that infiltration of macrophages to the parenchyma, but not into the peribronchial tissue, depended on CCR2. In sum, our data suggest that in Orientia infection, CCR2 drives blood monocytosis and the influx and activation of Ly6Chi and Ly6Clo monocytes into the lung, thereby accelerating bacterial replication and development of interstitial pulmonary inflammation.
Experimental Study on the Compaction and Deformation of Filling Gangue by Reducing Waste Gangue for Filling Mining

The coal mining technology of fully mechanized solid filling is an efficient and green mining method that integrates “sediment reduction” and “emission reduction. ” However, the discharge of wasted gangue and surface subsidence are controlled by the amount of wasted gangue used in filling mining and the compaction rate of gangue filled into a goaf, respectively. To increase the consumption of wasted gangue and reduce surface subsidence, mixed gangue composed of equal-quality washed gangue and crushed gangue is proposed as a raw material for solid filling on the basis of gradation theory. Next, a screening experiment was performed to analyze the grain gradation of different specimens, and a compression experiment was executed to compare and analyze the compression characteristics. The results show that the nonuniformity coefficient of mixed gangue is 55.2 and the curvature coefficient is 1.53, which significantly improve the grain gradation of washed gangue. The degree of relative compaction of mixed gangue is 1.226, which is significantly lower than that of washed gangue, which is 1.33. The deformation modulus of mixed gangue is 23–135 MPa, which is better than that of washed gangue (26–100 MPa), indicating that the compressive resistance of mixed gangue is significantly improved. The case study of the Tangkou mine suggests that mixed gangue greatly promotes the consumption of wasted gangue and can effectively control the surface deformation.
Evolutionary Insights Into Two Widespread Ectomycorrhizal Fungi (Pisolithus) From Comparative Analysis of Mitochondrial Genomes

The genus Pisolithus is a group of global ectomycorrhizal fungi. The characterizations of Pisolithus mitochondrial genomes have still been unknown. In the present study, the complete mitogenomes of two Pisolithus species, Pisolithus microcarpus, and Pisolithus tinctorius, were assembled and compared with other Boletales mitogenomes. Both Pisolithus mitogenomes comprised circular DNA molecules with sizes of 43,990 and 44,054 bp, respectively. Comparative mitogenomic analysis showed that the rps3 gene differentiated greatly between Boletales species, and this gene may be subjected to strong pressure of positive selection between some Boletales species. Several plasmid-derived genes and genes with unknown functions were detected in the two Pisolithus mitogenomes, which needs further analysis. The two Pisolithus species show a high degree of collinearity, which may represent the gene arrangement of the ancestors of ectomycorrhizal Boletales species. Frequent intron loss/gain events were detected in Boletales and basidiomycetes, and intron P717 was only detected in P. tinctorius out of the eight Boletales mitogenomes tested. We reconstructed phylogeny of 79 basidiomycetes based on combined mitochondrial gene dataset, and obtained well-supported phylogenetic topologies. This study served as the first report on the mitogenomes of the family Pisolithaceae, which will promote the understanding of the evolution of Pisolithus species.