Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of soil nutrient management practices of taro farmers in Taveuni, Fiji

There is evidence that the soil health in Taveuni, Fiji is deteriorating over time threatening livelihoods of taro producers. The present study was conducted to understand the soil nutrient management practices followed by taro farmers in Taveuni. The study revealed that the farmers in Taveuni use various organic and chemical fertilizers and various other soil fertility management practices such as mulching, crop rotation with legumes, yagona and agroforestry. The quantity of nitrogen, phosphorous and potash (NPK) applied to taro crop on different types of soils was meager. The study further revealed that there was imbalanced and insufficient use of chemical fertilizers and organic sources of soil nutrients. The main cause of low use of fertilizers was that the farmers in Taveuni do not know the fertility status of their farms as no soil testing was ever done and majority of them are also not fully aware of various low-cost organic methods of maintaining soil fertility of farms.
Saving costs with a big data strategy framework

Disruptive innovations such as Big Data offer enormous benefits to organizations however they usually come with a cost. Decision makers instinctively seek to adopt such innovative technologies for competitive advantage, however, they also explore ways in reducing implementation costs to a reasonable level. This research was focused on developing and empirically testing a Big Data Strategy framework that helps organizations in aligning their business strategy with the Big Data project in order to identify the potential value before embarking on a full Big Data implementation. The SAVI-BIGD framework was tested in two different organizations and findings reveals that the framework can help organizations identify the potential value of the Big Data project and also to save costs. This paper reports on a second case study testing and suggests how any organization taking ownership and championing the implementation of this Big Data strategy framework could save cost and generate their Strategic Big Data Goals.
Immunological and Anti‐Chaperone Therapeutic Approaches for Alzheimer Disease

Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia. Currently available therapies only provide symptomatic relief. A number of therapeutic approaches are under development that aim to increase the clearance of brain Aβ peptides. These include immune mediated clearance of Aβ and the inhibition of the interaction between Aβ and its pathological chaperones. Both active and passive immunization has been shown to have robust effects in transgenic mouse models of AD on amyloid reduction and behavioral improvements. However, a human trial of active immunization has been associated with significant toxicity in a minority of patients. New generation vaccines are being developed which likely will reduce the potential for cell‐mediated toxicity. In addition, the recent development of anti‐chaperone therapy opens a new therapeutic avenue which is unlikely to be associated with toxicity.
Strong-motion data from the two Pingtung, Taiwan, earthquakes of 26 December 2006

1016 strong-motion records at 527 free-field stations and 131 records at 42 strong-motion arrays at buildings and bridges were obtained for the Pingtung earthquake doublet from the Taiwan Central Weather Bureau’s dense, digital strong-motion network. We carried out standard processing of these strong-motion records at free-field stations. A data set, including the originally recorded files, processed data files, and supporting software and information, is archived online http://tecdc . earth.sinica. edu.tw/data/EQ2006Pingtung/. We have not yet completed the processing of the strong-motion array data at buildings and bridges. However, some preliminary results and the strong-motion array data recorded at the second nearest instrumented building to the Pingtung earthquake doublet are shown. This paper is intended to document our data processing procedures and the online archived data files, so that researchers can efficiently use the data. We also include two preliminary analyses: (1) a comparison of ground motions recorded by multiple accelerographs at a common site, the TAP117 station in Taipei, and (2) attenuation of the horizontal ground motions (peak acceleration and response spectra at periods of 0.2, 1.0, and 3.0 s) with respect to distance. Our comparison study of multiple recordings at TAP117 indicates that waveform coherence among 20and 24-bit accelerograph records is much higher as compared to records from 16-bit or 12-bit accelerographs, suggesting that the former are of better quality. For the 20and 24-bit accelerographs, waveform coherence is nearly 1 over the frequency range 1 to 8 Hz for all components, and is greater than about 0.9 from 8 to 20 Hz for the horizontal component, but only from 8 to 12 Hz for the vertical component. Plots of pseudo-acceleration response spectra (PSA) as a function of distance, however, show no clear indication for a difference related to the performance level of the accelerographs. The ground-motions of the first event (MW = 7.0) are comparable, or even somewhat lower, than those from the smaller second event (MW = 6.9), consistent with the relative difference of the local magnitudes (ML = 6.96 and 6.99 for the first and second events, respectively). The ground motions from the first event are generally lower than those predicted from equations based on other in-slab subduction earthquakes, whereas the ground motions from the second event are closer to the predictions. Ground-motions for soil sites are generally larger than those from rock sites.
Variations in creep rate along the Hayward Fault, California, interpreted as changes in depth of creep

Variations in surface creep rate along the Hayward fault are modeled as changes in locking depth using 3D boundary elements. Model creep is driven by screw dislocations at 12 km depth under the Hayward and other regional faults. Inferred depth to locking varies along strike from 4–12 km. (12 km implies no locking.) Our models require locked patches under the central Hayward fault, consistent with a M6.8 earthquake in 1868, but the geometry and extent of locking under the north and south ends depend critically on assumptions regarding continuity and creep behavior of the fault at its ends. For the northern onshore part of the fault, our models contain 1.4–1.7 times more stored moment than the model of Bürgmann et al. [2000]; 45–57% of this stored moment resides in creeping areas. It is important for seismic hazard estimation to know how much of this moment is released coseismically or as aseismic afterslip.
Zebra Fish Lacking Adaptive Immunity Acquire an Antiviral Alert State Characterized by Upregulated Gene Expression of Apoptosis, Multigene Families, and Interferon-Related Genes

To investigate fish innate immunity, we have conducted organ and cell immune-related transcriptomic as well as immunohistologic analysis in mutant zebra fish (Danio rerio) lacking adaptive immunity (rag1−/−) at different developmental stages (egg, larvae, and adult), before and after infection with spring viremia carp virus (SVCV). The results revealed that, compared to immunocompetent zebra fish (rag1+/+), rag1−/− acquired increased resistance to SVCV with age, correlating with elevated transcript levels of immune genes in skin/fins and lymphoid organs (head kidney and spleen). Gene sets corresponding to apoptotic functions, immune-related multigene families, and interferon-related genes were constitutively upregulated in uninfected adult rag1−/− zebra fish. Overexpression of activated CASPASE-3 in different tissues before and after infection with SVCV further confirmed increased apoptotic function in rag1−/− zebra fish. Concurrently, staining of different tissue samples with a pan-leukocyte antibody marker showed abundant leukocyte infiltrations in SVCV-infected rag1−/− fish, coinciding with increased transcript expression of genes related to NK-cells and macrophages, suggesting that these genes played a key role in the enhanced immune response of rag1−/− zebra fish to SVCV lethal infection. Overall, we present evidence that indicates that rag1−/− zebra fish acquire an antiviral alert state while they reach adulthood in the absence of adaptive immunity. This antiviral state was characterized by (i) a more rapid response to viral infection, which resulted in increased survival, (ii) the involvement of NK-cell- and macrophage-mediated transcript responses rather than B- and/or T-cell dependent cells, and (iii) enhanced apoptosis, described here for the first time, as well as the similar modulation of multigene family/interferon-related genes previously associated to fish that survived lethal viral infections. From this and other studies, it might be concluded that some of the characteristics of mammalian trained immunity are present in lower vertebrates.
Making Sense of Theory Construction: Metaphor and Disciplined Imagination

This article draws upon Karl Weick’s insights into the nature of theorizing, and extends and refines his conception of theory construction as ‘disciplined imagination’. An essential ingredient in Weick’s ‘disciplined imagination’involves his assertion that thought trials and theoretical representations typically involve a transfer from one epistemic sphere to another through the creative use of metaphor. The article follows up on this point and draws out how metaphor works, how processes of metaphorical imagination partake in theory construction, and how insightful metaphors and the theoretical representations that result from them can be selected. The paper also includes a discussion of metaphors-in-use (organizational improvisation as jazz and organizational behaviour as collective mind) which Weick proposed in his own writings. The whole purpose of this exercise is to theoretically augment and ground the concept of ‘disciplined imagination’, and in particular to refine the nature of thought trials and selection within it. In doing so, I also aim to provide pointers for the use of metaphorical imagination in the process of theory construction.
Energy-efficient GPGPU architectures via collaborative compilation and memristive memory-based computing

Thousands of deep and wide pipelines working concurrently make GPGPU high power consuming parts. Energy-efficiency techniques employ voltage overscaling that increases timing sensitivity to variations and hence aggravating the energy use issues. This paper proposes a method to increase spatiotemporal reuse of computational effort by a combination of compilation and micro-architectural design. An associative memristive memory (AMM) module is integrated with the floating point units (FPUs). Together, we enable fine-grained partitioning of values and find high-frequency sets of values for the FPUs by searching the space of possible inputs, with the help of application-specific profile feedback. For every kernel execution, the compiler pre-stores these high-frequent sets of values in AMM modules - representing partial functionality of the associated FPU- that are concurrently evaluated over two clock cycles. Our simulation results show high hit rates with 32-entry AMM modules that enable 36% reduction in average energy use by the kernel codes. Compared to voltage overscaling, this technique enhances robustness against timing errors with 39% average energy saving.
Cardioprotective Effect of Ghrelin in Cardiopulmonary Bypass Involves a Reduction in Inflammatory Response

Background Ghrelin has been reported to protect the cardiovascular system; however, the cardioprotective effect of ghrelin against cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) induced myocardial injury are unclear. In this study, the protective effect of ghrelin on CPB induced myocardial injury and the underlying mechanisms were investigated. Methods and Results Adult male rats were subjected to CPB and randomly to receive vehicle (n = 8), ghrelin (n = 8), ghrelin plus [D-Lys3]-GHRP-6, a GHSR-1a inhibitor (n = 8), or ghrelin plus wortmannin, a phosphoinositide 3′-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor (n = 8). In vitro study was performed on cultured cardiomyocytes subjected to simulated cardiopulmonary bypass (SCPB). Ghrelin attenuated the inﬂammatory response, as evidenced by reduced induction of TNF-α, IL-6 and myocardial myeloperoxidase activity and concurrent reduction in apoptosis, oxidative stress, and levels of myocardial injury markers following CPB. Moreover, ghrelin significantly increased cardiac function after CPB. In cultured cardiomyocytes subjected to simulated CPB, ghrelin increased cell viability and decreased the percentage of apoptotic myocytes. Inhibition of ghrelin downstream signaling blocked the cardioprotective effects both in vivo and vitro. Conclusions Ghrelin could provide an effective approach to the attenuation of CPB induced myocardial injury. The cardioprotective effects elicited by ghrelin may contribute to the inhibition of inflammatory response through the Akt-activated pathway.
Stimulus Fractionation by Interocular Suppression

Can human observers distinguish physical removal of a visible stimulus from phenomenal suppression of that stimulus during binocular rivalry? As so often happens, simple questions produce complex answers, and that is the case in the study reported here. Using continuous flash suppression to produce binocular rivalry, we were able to identify stimulus conditions where most – but not all – people utterly fail to distinguish physical from phenomenal stimulus removal, although we can be certain that those two equivalent perceptual states are accompanied by distinct neural events. More interestingly, we find subtle variants of the task where distinguishing the two states is trivially easy, even for people who utterly fail under the original conditions. We found that stimulus features are differentially vulnerable to suppression. Observers are able to be aware of existence/removal of some stimulus attributes (flicker) but not others (orientation), implying that interocular suppression breaks down the unitary awareness of integrated features belonging to a visual object. These findings raise questions about the unitary nature of awareness and, also, place qualifications on the utility of binocular rivalry as a tool for studying the neural concomitants of conscious visual awareness.
Efficacy of a School-Based Treatment Program for Middle School Youth With ADHD

The effects of a set of behavioral and educational interventions provided in a middle-school-based mental health program on the behavior and academic performance of 7 students diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were studied. The treatments included educational, social skills and family interventions designed to target school functioning, peer relations, and family functioning. Dependent measures included parent and teacher ratings of ADHD symptoms, daily functioning, and academic grades. Large effect sizes were found on measures of inattention and school functioning. Grades and measures of family functioning and peer relations yielded small to moderate effect sizes. Description of the procedures is provided and implications for advancing school-based mental health care for adolescents with a diagnosis of ADHD are discussed.
High False Positives and False Negatives in Yeast Parameter in an Automated Urine Sediment Analyzer

Summary Background:Automated urine sediment analyzers have proven their feasibility in medical laboratories. However, editing manual microscopic review of some specimens severely limits the usefulness of such systems. This study aims to give feedback on the practical experience on »Yeast«, which is one of the parameters that compel frequent manual reviews. Methods: 5448 freshly collected urine specimens submitted from various departments of our hospital for diagnostic urinalysis were studied by the UriSed® (77 Elektronika, Hungary). A specialist medical doctor inspected every image onboard, and reviewed the ones with a »Yeast« alarm by traditional manual microscopy. Results: UriSed alarmed in 491 samples (9%) for yeast. In 59 samples (1%) the number of particles exceeded the cut-off and a »positive for yeast« was set. A false positive report of yeast +1 to 3+/HPF was found in 51 samples (0.9%). There were 8 cases with positive for yeast from both microscopic methods. Thirty-three »negative for yeast« samples were corrected as positive after the manual microscopic review. Conclusion: We report a high percentage of false positives and negatives in the yeast parameter, in line with other studies on UriSed as well as on other instruments in the market. As an important feedback, our observations showed that the major concern in false results was »the focusing problem«. We believe in the necessity of a focus check and comparison of alarms between images on board Kratak sadr žaj Uvod: Automatski analizatori mokraćnog sedimenta sa uspehom se primenjuju u medicinskim laboratorijama. Međutim, manuelne mikroskopske pretrage nekih uzoraka znatno ogranicavaju primenu takvih sistema. Ova studija daće prikaz prakticnog iskustva sa parametrom »Gljivice«, jednim od onih koji često zahtevaju manuelne pretrage. Metode: Pomoću UriSeda (77 Elektronika, Mađarska) analizirano je 5448 svežih uzoraka urina pristiglih iz različitih odeljenja nase bolnice radi dijagnostičke analize urina. Svaki snimak je pregledao lekar specijalista, koji je i proučio one sa oznakom alarma za »Gljivice« tradicionalnom rucnom mikroskopijom. Rezultati: UriSed je uključio alarm za gljivice u 491 uzorku (9%). U 59 uzoraka (1%) broj čestica prelazio je »cut-off« i određen je »pozitivni rezultat za gljivice«. Lažni izveštaj o gljivicama + 1 do 3+/HPF pronađen je u 51 uzorku (0,9%). U 8 slučajeva je pomoću obe mikroskopske metode nađen pozitivan rezultat za gljivice. Trideset tri uzorka »negativna na gljivice« su ispravljeni u pozitivne posle ručnog mikroskop-skog pregleda. Zakljuiak: Pronašli smo visok procenat lažno pozitivnih i negativnih rezultata za parametar gljivice, što se slaže s nalazima ostalih studija o UriSedu kao i drugim instrumentima na trzištu. Vazan podatak dobijen iz našeg iskustva jeste da smo primetili da je glavni problem u vezi s lažnim rezultatima »problem fokusiranja«. Verujemo da je neophodna provera fokusa i poređenje alarma između snimaka
Exercise training provides cardioprotection via a reduction in reactive oxygen species in rats submitted to myocardial infarction induced by isoproterenol

Exercise training has demonstrated cardioprotection effects. However, the exact mechanism behind this effect is not is clear. The present study evaluated the effects of 12 weeks of previous treadmill training on the levels of oxidative damage, antioxidant enzyme activity and injury in the myocardium of rats submitted to infarction induced by isoproterenol (ISO). Isoproterenol treatment (80 mg/kg given over 2 days in two equal doses) caused arrhythmias and 60% mortality within 24 h of the last injection in the control group (C + ISO) group when compared with the saline control group (saline). Creatine Kinase − MB levels were markedly increased in hearts from ISO-treated animals in the C + ISO group. Twelve weeks of treadmill training reduced superoxide production, lipid peroxidation levels and protein carbonylation in these animals, as well as increasing the activities and expressions of SOD and CAT. Previous training also reduced CK-MB levels and numbers of deaths by 40%, preventing the deleterious effects of ISO. Based on the data obtained in this study, it is suggested that 12-week treadmill training increases antioxidant enzymes, decreases oxidative damage and reduces the degree of infarction induced by ISO in the hearts of male rats.
Frequent sexual reproduction and high intraspecific variation in Salix arctica: Implications for a terrestrial feedback to climate change in the High Arctic

[1] Genetic variation at molecular loci may underlie important variation in the phenotypes of arctic plants. Such intraspecific variation may be a neglected but important component of biological diversity in the Arctic that could impact how arctic ecosystems respond to climate change. Here, we characterized genetic and phenotypic variation in Salix arctica and evaluated the effect of S. arctica on ecosystem CO2 exchange, a process by which terrestrial ecosystems in the Arctic feedback to the global climate system. We found high genetic variation at microsatellite loci of S. arctica collected from an inland and a coastal site in Greenland that indicates sexual reproduction has occurred frequently as the ice sheet has retreated. Across the North American range of S. arctica, ten chloroplast DNA haplotypes were identified. Haplotype diversity and allelic richness were high overall and similar across regions with different glacial histories. Phenotypic variation in ecologically important traits varied substantially in a High Arctic population of S. arctica. In a widespread High Arctic ecosystem, a net loss of CO2 to the atmosphere was observed except where S. arctica was present. We suggest that high genetic variation in S. arctica is in part a result of frequent sexual reproduction, and that the phenotypic variation we observed is likely to be at least partially genetic-based. This would enable a productive High Arctic species to adapt and potentially prosper as climate changes, and thus affect the terrestrial feedback of the Arctic to the climate system.
A Survey on Use of Rapid Tests and Tuberculosis Diagnostic Practices by Primary Health Care Providers in South Africa: Implications for the Development of New Point-of-Care Tests

Background Effective infectious disease control requires early diagnosis and treatment initiation. Point-of-care testing offers rapid turn-around-times, facilitating same day clinical management decisions. To maximize the benefits of such POC testing programs, we need to understand how rapid tests are used in everyday clinical practice. Methods In this cross-sectional survey study, 400 primary healthcare providers in two cities in South Africa were interviewed on their use of rapid tests in general, and tuberculosis diagnostic practices, between September 2012 and June 2013. Public healthcare facilities were selected using probability-sampling techniques and private healthcare providers were randomly selected from the Health Professional Council of South Africa list. To ascertain differences between the two healthcare sectors 2-sample z-tests were used to compare sample proportions. Results The numbers of providers interviewed were equally distributed between the public (n = 200) and private sector (n = 200). The most frequently reported tests in the private sector include blood pressure (99.5%), glucose finger prick (89.5%) and urine dipstick (38.5%); and in the public sector were pregnancy (100%), urine dipstick (100%), blood pressure (100%), glucose finger prick (99%) and HIV rapid test (98%). The majority of TB testing occurs in the public sector, where significantly more providers prefer Xpert MTB/RIF assay, the designated clinical TB diagnostic tool by the national TB program, as compared to the private sector (87% versus 71%, p-value >0.0001). Challenges with regard to TB diagnosis included the long laboratory turn-around-time, difficulty in obtaining sputum samples and lost results. All providers indicated that a new POC test for TB should be rapid and cheap, have good sensitivity and specificity, ease of sample acquisition, detect drug-resistance and work in HIV-infected persons. Conclusion/significance The existing centralized laboratory services, poor quality assurance, and lack of staff capacity deter the use of more rapid tests at POC. Further research into the practices and choices of these providers is necessary to aid the development of new POC tests.