Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reduction of Nitrogen Fertilizer Requirements and Nitrous Oxide Emissions Using Legume Cover Crops in a No-Tillage Sorghum Production System

Nitrous oxide (N2O) emission from denitrification in agricultural soils often increases with nitrogen (N) fertilizer and soil nitrate (NO3−) concentrations. Our hypothesis is that legume cover crops can improve efficiency of N fertilizer and can decrease N2O emissions compared to non–cover crop systems. The objectives of this study were to (a) evaluate the performance of summer leguminous cover crops in terms of N uptake and carbon (C) accumulation following winter wheat and (b) to quantify the effects of summer leguminous cover crops and N fertilizer rates on N2O emissions and grain yield of the subsequent grain sorghum crop. Field experiments were conducted in the context of a wheat-sorghum rotation for two seasons in Kansas. Treatments consisted of double-cropped leguminous cover crops following winter wheat harvest with no fertilizer applied to the following grain sorghum or no cover crop after wheat harvest and N fertilizer rates applied to the grain sorghum. The cover crops were cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan L. Millsp.), and sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.). The three N treatments (were 0, 90, and 180 kg·N·ha−1). Fallow systems with 90 and 180 kg·N·ha−1 produced significantly greater N2O emissions compared with cropping systems that received no N fertilizer. Emissions of N2O were similar for various cover crops and fallow systems with 0 kg·N·ha−1. Among cover crops, pigeon pea and cowpea had greater C accumulation and N uptake than sunn hemp. Grain yield of sorghum following different cover crops was similar and significantly higher than fallow systems with 0 kg·N·ha−1. Although fallow systems with 90 and 180 kg·N·ha−1 produced maximum sorghum grain yields, N2O emissions per unit of grain yield decreased as the amount of N fertilizer was reduced. We conclude that including leguminous cover crops can decrease N fertilizer requirements for a subsequent sorghum crop, potentially reducing N2O emissions per unit grain yield and providing options for adaptation to and mitigation of climate change.
STRONG EXCITON BINDING IN QUANTUM STRUCTURES THROUGH REMOTE DIELECTRIC CONFINEMENT

We propose a new type of hybrid systems formed by conventional semiconductor nanostructures with the addition of remote insulating layers, where the electron-hole interaction is enhanced by combining quantum and dielectric confinement over different length scales. Because of the polarization charges induced by the dielectric mismatch at the semiconductor/insulator interfaces, we show that the exciton binding energy can be more than doubled. For conventional III-V quantum wires such remote dielectric confinement allows exciton binding at room temperature.
Effects of mother's and father's education level and age at migration on children's bilingual vocabulary

ABSTRACT The present study addressed important gaps in the research literature on bilingual development by examining the effects of both mother's and father's education level and age at migration on children's bilingual vocabulary in two different age groups. The sample included 81 preschoolers and 92 preadolescents with two Turkish immigrant parents living in Norway. The children were born in Norway, or migrated to Norway before/at the age of 3. The children completed Norwegian and Turkish vocabulary tests during home visits while mothers provided information regarding both parents’ education and age at migration in structured interviews. Results from hierarchical regression analyses showed that father's education significantly predicted all children's majority (Norwegian) vocabulary scores while mother's education significantly predicted majority vocabulary scores in the preschoolers. Father's education significantly predicted minority (Turkish) vocabulary scores among the preadolescents. Mother's, but not father's, age at migration significantly predicted preschoolers' majority vocabulary scores and preadolescents' minority vocabulary. Hence, the parental background variables predicted minority vocabulary scores only among the preadolescents, not the preschoolers. We conclude that mothers and fathers influence the minority and majority language skills of their bilingual children differently and that their influence varies depending on the age of the child.
3. THE EFFECT OF CRACKS ON THE SEISMIC VELOCITIES OF BASALT FROM SITE 990, SOUTHEAST GREENLAND MARGIN 1

Seismic velocities in rocks are influenced by the properties of the solid, the pore fluid, and the pore space. Cracks dramatically affect seismic velocities in rocks; their influence on the effective elastic moduli of rocks depends on their shape and c oncentration. Thin cracks (or fractures) substantially lower the moduli of a rock relative to the effect of spherical voids (or vesicles), and lower moduli are reflected by lower P- and S-wave velocities. The objective of this research is to determine the types and concentrations of cracks and their influence on the seismic properties of subaerially erupted basalts drilled from Ho le 990A on the Southeast Greenland margin during Ocean Drilling Program Leg 163. Ellipsoidal cracks are used to model the voids in the rocks. The elastic moduli of the solid (grains) are also free parameters in the inverse modeling procedure. The apparent grain moduli reflect a weighted average of the moduli of the constituent minerals (e.g., plagioclase, augite, and clay minerals). The results indicate that (1) there is a strong relationship between P-wave velocity and porosity, suggesting a similarity of pore shape distributions, (2) the distribution of crack types within the massive, central region of aa flows from Hole 9 90A is independent of total porosity, (3) thin cracks are the first to be effectively sealed by alteration products, and (4) grain densities (an alteration index) and apparent grain moduli of the basalt samples are directly related.
Celebrity Endorsement: Developing A Brand Image in Housing Ads

This article aims to analyze the celebrity endorsement strategy used to communicate brand image messages in housing advertisements. Even though there is a lot of literature about celebrity endorsement, no research has been made up to now about how this method is used in the housing market. Within the scope of the study, first housing advertisements published from 2001 to 2016 have been scanned. Hurriyet newspaper was selected as the source as it is the newspaper with the highest circulation. After all the advertisements published on Hurriyet newspaper have been scanned, advertisement where a celebrity was the spokesperson was determined. This research, which tries to explain celebrity endorsement widely used for marketing of housings with the “mean- ing transfer model” of McCracken, showed that in transferring cultural meaning of the celebrity to the product or housing, traits of attractiveness or credibility is exploited in general. However, it was seen that other meanings of the celebrity—modern, traditional, etc.—along with his/her credibility and attractiveness are effective in determining the image of the housing project marketed.
The Adequacy of the Traditional Econometric Approach to Nonlinear Cycles

To show that the traditional econometric approach is not able to deal with deterministic chaos, we use an extension of Goodwin.s growth cycle model to generate arti.cial data for output. An EGARCH model is estimated to describe the data generation process. Although using some traditional econometric tests no evidence of misspeci. - cation is found the estimated process is qualitatively wrong: it is dynamically stable when the true process is unstable. We present a speci.c econometric procedure de- veloped to deal with deterministic chaos: the BDS statistics. Also an explanation for the little evidence of deterministic chaos in aggregated macroeconomic time series is suggested.
Algerian Carob Tree Products: A Comprehensive Valorization Analysis and Future Prospects

This research presents a thorough analysis of the nutrients and anti-nutrients contained in different products from Algerian carob tree, Ceratonia siliqua L. (pod, pulp, seeds and leaves). Other parameters such as moisture, ash content and calorific value were also determined. The main purpose was to characterize these products derived from carob tree and analyze their possible valorization in several fields such as chemical, energy or medical industries. The results show that these products contain low amount of crude lipids (2.4–4.5%), moderate amounts of protein (4–7.4%) and high levels of total sugar (up to 66.6%). The compositional analysis reveals high nutritional values but, at the same time, it is also worth underscoring their high content in anti-nutrients: (i) trypsin inhibitor (6.4–7.3 mg·g−1); and (ii) phytic acid (0.6–0.94 mg·g−1). This work quantifies these two secondary metabolites in carob tree products for the first time. Finally, based on the results obtained, a process scheme is proposed for the complete use of carob tree products, including the use of anti-nutrients (trypsin inhibitors and phytic acid) for bio-medical applications since many research studies support that these compounds have great potential in this field.
Duration of Exposure and Mortality of Different Strains of Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) (Coleoptera: bostrichidae) Exposed to Bifenthrin Insecticide in the Laboratory

The length of exposure time to Bifenthrin on four strains of larger grain borer Prostephanus truncatus Horn (Coloeoptera: Bostrichidae) was studied in the laboratory at 28 -33C and 70 – 85% relative humidity. Five serial dilutions of the toxicant ranging from 0.031 to 0.0012 g/ml, including a control were used. Mortality was recorded at 3 hourly intervals of 3, 6, 9 and 12 hours post-treatment. Data were analysed using log10 versus probit regression and analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results showed that significant (P<0.05) dosage-related mortality responses were recorded at the different time intervals during the first 3 and 6 hours of exposure. Nevertheless, significant mortalities (P<0.05) occurred after 9 to 12 hours post-contact with the insecticide. The Ibadan strain appeared to be more susceptible with LD50 value of 10.19 μg/ml compared with the other strains, while the Benue strain showed more tolerance to the test insecticide with LD50 of 29.60 μg/ml. Thus, the Ibadan strain was two times more susceptible than the Enugu and Ghana strains and 3 times that of the Benue strain.
Commercial Performance of Blue Mussel (Mytilus edulis, L.) Stocks at a Microgeographic Scale

Bivalve aquaculture is an important component of the economy in eastern Canada. Because of current social, environmental, economic, and resource constraints, offshore mussel cultivation seems to be a promising strategy. With the objective of optimizing farming strategies that support the sustainability and development of the mussel industry at a microgeographic scale, we evaluated, after a traditional two year production cycle, the commercial performance of spat from several mussel (Mytilus edulis) stocks originating from sites separated by less than 65 km and cultivated at two different grow-out sites (shallow lagoon and offshore waters). The spatiotemporal variation in spat performance was studied through a multiyear in situ “stock-site” spat transfer design. The spat supply originating from the Bassin du Havre-Aubert lagoon systematically exhibited a larger size at sleeving time when compared to other stocks, and a better productivity level when harvested. Nevertheless, an alternative strategy would be to collect spat from the Havre-aux-Maisons lagoon, mostly because of the important commercial volumes of spat that can be collected there. Commercial performance (net income) was three times higher in the deep offshore grow-out site than in the shallow lagoon site. This better productivity in the open sea confirms the highly valuable strategy of offshore mussel farming in this area, where it was hypothesized that the less stressful environmental conditions positively influence reproduction, survival, and growth trends.
Design of a Programmable Gain Amplifier (PGA) for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) in 0.13 um CMOS

Programmable Gain Amplifiers (PGA's) are circuits capable of conveniently changing their gain to address various levels of amplification. Knowing this, the topology proposed in this work takes a source degenerated first stage, a common-source with resistive load second stage, and a gm boosting circuit interface to realize a PGA that has low power consumption and low area. The design developed was able to achieve a maximum power dissipation of 103.1 uW, a minimum bandwidth of 5.59 MHz, a maximum noise of 32.01 nV/sqrt(Hz), and a gain range of 2.31 - 19.84 dB. Each differential output of the circuit is loaded with 700 fF, which is the estimated load for the hypothetical following block, the Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC). Furthermore, the supply voltage of the circuit is 1 V and the design was undertaken on Global Foundrie's 130 nm technology. The phase margin of the core circuit is no greater than 100.3˚ and no less than 49˚ . The circuit which design is described in this work is intended to be within the receiver (RX) sub-domain of a Bluetooth Low-Energy (BLE) system, which finds applications on the IoT and healthcare industries, for instance.
Edge detection in non-linear scalable space

Automatic image processing and computer vision applications often include object extraction and recognition. To extract object boundaries better, high-quality methods of edge detection are required. Objects in real-world photos usually have complex structure, and discovering their edges with higher precision is a very important and tough task. Better edge detection drastically increases the quality of the entire process. Unfortunately, edge detection problem still has no satisfactory solution in the case of real-world color images, because efficient approaches exist for grayscale images only. Known edge detection techniques usually either consist of special filters applied to a grayscale image, or implement rather unpredictably behaving artificial intelligence solutions. We propose a new powerful mathematical tool to extract edge information not only from intensity but from color distribution as well. Correctness of edge detection gets better by means of an adaptive mathematical model of non-linearly scalable color space. In our research, we consider flexible non-linear transformation of the color space with a few parameters. It helps reliably extracting otherwise faded edges delimiting the objects. We compare the results of edge detection process based on this new technique to well-known base-line approaches of Canny, Prewitt, Sobel and Wallace filters.
Conducting polymer composites

Conducting polymer composites become increasingly important for technical applications. In this article, the resulting electrical properties of such materials are illustrated by a variety of experimental examples. It is shown that the combined mechanical, thermal and electrical interaction between the filler particles via their electrical contacts and the surrounding polymer host matrix are responsible for the properties of the composite material. A short review is given of the theoretical background for the understanding of the electrical transport in such materials. The arrangement of the filler particles and the resulting conductivity can be described either by percolation or by effective medium theories. It can also be related to different types of charge carrier transport processes depending on the internal composite structure. Special emphasis is given to the microstructure of the filler particles such as size, hardness, shape and their electrical and thermal conductivities. A detailed analysis of the physics of the contact spots and the temperature development during current flow at the contact is given. It is shown that the polymer matrix has a strong influence on the electrical conductivity due to its elastic properties and the response to external thermal and mechanical stimulation. Strong changes in the electrical conductivity of conducting polymer composites can be realized either by thermal stimuli, leading to a positive and negative temperature coefficient in resistivity, or by applying mechanical stress. By using nonlinear fillers an additional degree of functionality can be achieved with conducting polymers.
COVID-19 recognition and digital risk stratification

Abstract In the acute hospital setting the COVID-19 pandemic presents some unique challenges to acute patient care. These include accurate recognition of cases, confirmation of both testing requests and results, establishing patient acuity and alerting to deterioration. We report our experience introducing a digital COVID-19 assessment tool with an associated live dashboard at two acute NHS hospitals, enabling accurate hospital-level reporting alongside risk stratification.
Bi-Level Adaptive Computed-Current Impedance Controller for Electrically Driven Robots

SUMMARY This paper presents a bi-level adaptive computed-current impedance controller for electrically driven robots. This study aims to reduce calculation complexities by utilizing the electrical equations of actuators, instead of the entire model of the electromechanical system. Moreover, taking the dynamical effects of mechanical parts into account through the current’s feedback, external disturbances are compensated. In order to handle uncertainties, a bi-level optimization problem is formulated to obtain guaranteed stability besides the estimation convergence. An adaptation rule and its optimal tuning gain are achieved. The proposed method is applied to control of a rehabilitation robot to evaluate its performance.
Scanning microwave microscopy of buried CMOS interconnect lines with nanometer resolution

This paper reports scanning microwave microscopy of CMOS interconnect aluminum lines both bare and buried under oxide. In both cases, a spatial resolution of 190 ± 70 nm was achieved, which was comparable or better than what had been reported in the literature. With the lines immersed in water to simulate high-k dielectric, the signal-to-noise ratio degraded significantly, but the image remained as sharp as before, especially after averaging across a few adjacent scans. These results imply that scanning microwave microscopy can be a promising technique for non-destructive nano-characterization of both CMOS interconnects buried under oxide and live biological samples immersed in water.
Financial Stability and Interacting Networks of Financial Institutions and Market Infrastructures

An interacting network coupling financial institutions’ multiplex (i.e. multi-layer) and financial market infrastructures’ single-layer networks gives an accurate picture of a financial system’s true connective architecture. We examine and compare the main properties of Colombian multiplex and interacting financial networks. Coupling financial institutions’ multiplex networks with financial market infrastructures’ networks removes modularity, which enhances financial instability because the network then fails to isolate feedbacks and limit cascades while it retains its robust-yet-fragile features. Moreover, our analysis highlights the relevance of infrastructure-related systemic risk, corresponding to the effects caused by the improper functioning of FMIs or by FMIs acting as conduits for contagion.
Tectonic history across the Iapetus suture zone in Ireland

Abstract The early Paleozoic rocks of eastern Ireland span the suture zone between the Laurentian and Ganderian continental margins of the Iapetus Ocean. The Grangegeeth Terrane comprises a Laurentian continental fragment and Ordovician volcanic arc that formed the southern margin of the late Ordovician Rathkenny Basin of Moffat Shale facies mudstone. Together, these were overstepped in Wenlock time by Laurentia-derived greywackes and became the southernmost tract of the Longford–Down Terrane accretionary prism as subduction brought them into the Laurentian-margin trench. South of the suture, Middle Ordovician failed rifting of a Ganderian volcanic arc terrane was followed by shortening during continuing subduction under the north-facing arc. In Newfoundland, a Ganderian volcanic arc migrated across the ocean in mid-Ordovician times to accrete to Laurentia. In Ireland, the late-accreted arc on the Laurentian margin was formed on a Laurentian microcontinent, and Ganderia had an active margin throughout Late Ordovician time. Silurian closure of Iapetus was between the leading edge of Ganderia and the Laurentian margin, unlike in the Canadian Appalachians, where separate Ordovician and Silurian sutures are recognized. Iapetus was narrow by Katian time but subduction-related magmatism continued into Wenlock times on both margins.
Metaheuristic Kriging: A New Spatial Estimation Method

Kriging is one of the most widely used spatial estimation method. In kriging estimation, weights assigned to the neighboring data are determined by minimizing the estimation error variance (EEV). Due to the minimization of the EEV the variability of the estimation result is lower than the original data. This paper presents the metaheuristic kriging (MK) as a new estimation method which has similar structure with kriging. But unlike kriging MK does not minimize the estimation error variance, instead converges to the EEV minimum which provides MK to increase the variability of the estimation. The MK uses the metaheuristic differential evolution algorithm in minimization of the EEV which gives names the MK. As a case study, Ordinary kriging (OK) and MK are applied to the Jura data set to estimate the spatial distribution of the Nickel (Ni) content. Results of the estimations are compared. Results shows that metaheuristic kriging over performed to the ordinary kriging in terms of variability of the estimation. The MK can be used any place where kriging is applied due to the variability of the estimation is higher than OK. The parameters used in MK are case speci fic so parameter tuning have to be made in the estimations to reach the desired outcomes. This study only exposes the univariate spatial estimation.
1 Family functioning , emotional intelligence and 2 values : analysis of the relationship with aggressive 3 behavior in adolescents 4

Aggressive behavior in adolescence is influenced by a diversity of individual, family and 12 social variables. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between family 13 functioning, emotional intelligence and values for development of different types of aggression, as 14 well as to establish profiles according to the predictor variables of aggression. To do this, a sample 15 of 317 high school students aged 13 to 18 were administered the Peer Conflict Scale, the Family 16 Functionality Scale, the Brief Emotional Intelligence Inventory for Senior Citizens and the Values 17 for Adolescent Development Scales. The study showed that stress management, positive adolescent 18 development and family functioning predominated in nonaggressive subjects with higher scores 19 than aggressors. There was also a negative relationship between the different types of aggression 20 and emotional intelligence, positive values and family functioning. In addition, two different 21 profiles were found. The first had low scores on all the variables, while the second profile had higher 22 scores on all the variables except family functioning which was higher. 23