Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Taxes and Quotas for a Stock Pollutant with Multiplicative Uncertainty

We compare taxes and quotas when firms and the regulator have asymmetric information about abatement costs. Damages are caused by a stock pollutant. Uncertainty enters multiplicatively, i.e. it affects the slope rather than the intercept of abatement costs. We calibrate the model using cost and damage estimates of greenhouse gases. As with additive uncertainty, taxes dominate quotas. The advantage of taxes is much greater with mulitiplicative, compared to additive uncertainty.
Molecular and Functional Characteristics of APJ

We have recently identified apelin as the endogenous ligand for human APJ. In rats, the highest expression of APJ mRNA was detected in the lung, suggesting that APJ and its ligand play an important role in the pulmonary system. When apelin-36 and its pyroglutamylated C-terminal peptide, [<Glu65]apelin-13, were compared in microphysiometric analyses, the elevation of extracellular acidification induced in cells expressing APJ by [<Glu65]apelin-13 was transient, whereas that by apelin-36 was sustained. These responses were almost completely inhibited by a specific inhibitor for Gi or that for Na+/H+ exchanger. 125I -Labeled [<Glu65]apelin-13 analogue specifically bound to APJ with a high affinity, and [<Glu65]apelin-13 was more potent than apelin-36 in competitive inhibition assays. Because pretreatment with apelin-36 but not [<Glu65]apelin-13 drastically reduced the binding of the labeled apelin to APJ, the different patterns of acidification induced by these two peptides appeared to reflect their dissociation rather than association with APJ. Apelin elicited the migration of APJ-expressing cells, and [<Glu65]apelin-13 was more potent than apelin-36 in this activity. Heterogeneous molecular forms of apelin corresponding to apelin-36 and [<Glu65]apelin-13 were produced in bovine colostrum. Apelin-36 and [<Glu65]apelin-13 might have different functions in vivo and in vitro.
Incorporation of proteins within alginate fibre‐based scaffolds using a post‐fabrication entrapment method

In this study, a physical entrapment process was explored for the incorporation of proteins within preformed fibrous alginates and the release profile was tuned by varying the processing parameters. The entrapment process was carried out in a series of aqueous solutions at room temperature and involved pre‐swelling of the fibrous alginate within a Na+‐rich solution, followed by exposure to the protein of choice and entrapping it by re‐establishing cross‐links of alginate with BaCl2. Entrapment and release of fluorescein isothiocyanate‐labelled bovine serum albumin (FITC‐BSA), a model protein, was studied. It was found that a sustained release of the incorporated protein in cell culture medium for about 6 days was achieved. The main factors determining the release profile included the NaCl/CaCl2 ratio in the pre‐swelling solution, protein concentration, and the exposure time. To retard protein release, alginate fibres with entrapped FITC‐BSA were processed together with poly(d, l‐lactide) (PDLLA) into porous alginate fibre/PDLLA composites using supercritical CO2. In this manner, release of the protein for up to 3 months was achieved.
Isotopic Niche Variation in a Higher Trophic Level Ectotherm: Highlighting the Role of Succulent Plants in Desert Food Webs

Stable isotope analysis of animal tissues allows description of isotopic niches, whose axes in an n-dimensional space are the isotopic ratios, compared to a standard, of different isotope systems (e.g. δ13C, δ15N). Isotopic niches are informative about where an animal, population or species lives and about what it consumes. Here we describe inter- and intrapopulation isotopic niche (bidimensional δ13C-δ15N space) of the Orange-throated whiptail (Aspidoscelis hyperythra), an arthropodivorous small lizard, in ten localities of Baja California Sur (Mexico). These localities range from extreme arid to subtropical conditions. Between 13 and 20 individuals were sampled at each locality and 1 cm of tail-tip was collected for isotope analysis. As expected, interpopulation niche width variation was much larger than intrapopulation one. Besides, isotopic variation was not related to age, sex or individual size of lizards. This suggests geographic variation of the isotopic niche was related to changes in the basal resources that fuel the trophic web at each locality. The position of Bayesian isotope ellipses in the δ-space indicated that whiptails in more arid localities were enriched in 13C, suggesting most of the carbon they ingested came from CAM succulent plants (cacti, agaves) and in minor degree in C4 grasses. Contrarily, whiptails in subtropical areas were depleted in 13C, as they received more carbon from C3 scrubs and trees. Localities closer to sea-level tended to be enriched in 15N, but a clear influence of marine subsidies was detected only at individual level. The study contributes to identify the origin and pathways through which energy flows across the trophic webs of North American deserts.
Behavioral analysis of fuzzy cognitive map models by simulation

Fuzzy Cognitive Maps (FCM) are widely applied to support decision making and for the prediction of the future behavior of systems. In this paper several real expert-defined models of an organization will be investigated. Simulations were performed in order to examine the asymptotic behavior of these models, especially to find (all) fixed point attractors, or to discover chaotic behavior. A sigmoid type of inference function was applied, and the effect of the steepness parameter on simulation results was investigated, too. It will be shown by several examples that the steepness parameter may even change the number and values of the final state vectors. In the end, the systematic study of the behavior of the models in terms of the changes of the (uncertain) relationship values among system components were studied.
Crop diversity for mixed first and second generation ethanol production

ABSTRACT Thermohydrolysis at low temperatures achieves lower conversion compared to high temperatures. However, the process consumes less energy. We tried to make this pretreatment process more efficient by adding triticale grist to the fermentation and use the positive effect of the protein content and the increased ethanol concentration. The concept is made for rebuild of grain distilleries and reuse of the large equipment. The concept was evaluated for several crops with an attempt to crop diversity in the fields. This work presents thermohydrolysis (155°C, 45 min) with subsequent steam explosion combined with an enzymatic hydrolysis and the addition of triticale grist in the fermentation process. All substrates achieved improved cellulose hydrolysis, except for the silages. Over 90% of the cellulose in hemp straw and Jerusalem artichoke stalks was converted to glucose. Analysis for inhibitors showed high amounts of organic acids solely in Jerusalem artichoke mashes, corn and wild plant silage. The chosen conditions are suitable for a great variety of crops, also as intercrop scenario. However, silages need pH adjustment. The high loads of organic acids clearly suppress amylase activity, but cellulase activity seems to be unaffected. The switch to mixed first and second generation ethanol production in distilleries is possible.
Phenotypic Characterization of Murine Primitive Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells Isolated on Basis of Aldehyde Dehydrogenase Activity

There are several different technical approaches to the isolation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) with long‐term repopulating ability, but these have problems in terms of yield, complexity, or cell viability. Simpler strategies for HSC isolation are needed. We have enriched primitive hematopoietic progenitors from murine bone marrow of mice from different genetic backgrounds by lineage depletion followed by selection of cells with high aldehyde dehydrogenase activity using the Aldefluor reagent (BD Biosciences, Oxford, U.K.). Lin−ALDHbright cells comprised 26.8 ± 1.0% of the total Lin− population of C57BL6 mice, and 23.5 ± 1.0% of the Lin− population of BALB/c mice expressed certain cell‐surface markers typical of primitive hematopoietic progenitors. In vitro hematopoietic progenitor function was substantially higher in the Lin−ALDHbright population compared with the Lin−ALDHlow cells. These cells have higher telomerase activity and the lowest percentage of cells in S phase. These data strongly suggest that progenitor enrichment from Lin−cells on the basis of ALDH is a valid method whose simplicity of application makes it advantageous over conventional separations.
32Tb/s (320×114Gb/s) PDM-RZ-8QAM transmission over 580km of SMF-28 ultra-low-loss fiber

Employing PDM-RZ-8QAM modulation, digital coherent detection and EDFA-only amplification, we demonstrate 25 GHz-spaced, 320×114Gb/s DWDM transmission through seven spans of ultra-low-loss fiber (average span length/loss of 82.8 km/14.6 dB) with a record capacity of 32Tb/s.
Online expansion of rare queries for sponsored search

Sponsored search systems are tasked with matching queries to relevant advertisements. The current state-of-the-art matching algorithms expand the user's query using a variety of external resources, such as Web search results. While these expansion-based algorithms are highly effective, they are largely inefficient and cannot be applied in real-time. In practice, such algorithms are applied offline to popular queries, with the results of the expensive operations cached for fast access at query time. In this paper, we describe an efficient and effective approach for matching ads against rare queries that were not processed offline. The approach builds an expanded query representation by leveraging offline processing done for related popular queries. Our experimental results show that our approach significantly improves the effectiveness of advertising on rare queries with only a negligible increase in computational cost.
Prevotella bivia empyema complicating an unusual case of spontaneous chylothorax 1

Prevotella bivia empyema complicating an unusual case of spontaneous chylothorax 1 Alessandro Di Marco Berardino and Riccardo Inchingolo, Andrea Smargiassi, Antonina Re, 2 Riccardo Torelli, Barbara Fiori, Tiziana d’Inzeo, Giuseppe Maria Corbo, Salvatore Valente, 3 Maurizio Sanguinetti and Teresa Spanu. 4 5 : Pulmonary Medicine Dept., Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli”, Università Cattolica del 6 Sacro Cuore, Roma, Italy. 7 : Institute of Microbiology, Policlinico Universitario “A. Gemelli”, Università Cattolica del Sacro 8 Cuore, Roma, Italy. 9 10 : Both authors equally contributed to this work. 11 12 Corresponding author: Riccardo Inchingolo 13 Mailing address: Pulmonary Medicine Department, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Largo 14 Gemelli 8, 00168 Rome, Italy. Phone: 39 06 30154236. Fax: 39 06 30154304; e-mail: 15 r_inchingolo@virgilio.it 16 17 18 19
Measurement of Shear Modulus Profile Using a Continuous Surface Wave Measurement System

For most ground response analyses, the shear modulus is an important parameter to be determined and it has to be measured over a large strain range, so as to characterise the soil behavior under various loading conditions. Laboratory measurement of shear modulus covers a limited strain range depending on the test method. The main difficulty lies in the determination of the shear modulus at very small strains. In this respect, geophysical methods are more attractive. One of these test methods, which uses a continuous surface wave, is used to obtain the shear modulus profile at two sites in Singapore. The Continuous Surface Wave System (CSWS) is a non-intrusive field geophysical test consisting of a vibrator source and several receiver geophones connected to a computer system. The computer collects and analyses the field data, and provides a shear modulus profile at the test site. Conclusions from the field tests support published literature that such field seismic tests are capable of measuring the low-strain shear modulus well. The interpretation of field test data in the absence of specific stratigraphic information can pose some difficulties. An important part in interpreting continuous surface wave measurement data is in the selection of a suitable inversion tool so as to derive the correct shear modulus profile for the site under consideration. A finite element approach (using LS DYNA) is investigated for inversion of field test data. Data obtained from S-wave cross-hole survey are also compared with field tests data obtained using CSWS.
Microbial technologies for the disco v ery of no v el bioacti v e metabolites

Soil microbes represent an important source of biologically active compounds. These molecules present original and unexpected structure and are selective inhibitors of their molecular targets. At Biosearch Italia, discovery of new bioactive molecules is mostly carried out through the exploitation of a proprietary strain collection of over 50 000 strains, mostly unusual genera of actinomycetes and uncommon filamentous fungi. A critical element in a drug discovery based on microbial extracts is the isolation of unexploited groups of microorganisms that are at the same time good producers of secondary metabolites. Molecular genetics can assist in these efforts. We will review the development and application of molecular methods for the detection of uncommon genera of actinomycetes in soil DNA and for the rapid dereplication of actinomycete isolates. The results indicate a substantial presence in many soils of the uncommon genera and a large diversity of isolated actinomycetes. However, while uncommon actinomycete strains may provide an increased chance of yielding novel structures, their genetics and physiology are poorly understood. To speed up their manipulation, we have developed vectors capable of stably maintaining large segments of actinomycete DNA in Escherichia coli and of integrating site specifically in the Streptomyces genome. These vectors are suitable for the reconstruction of gene clusters from smaller segment of cloned DNA, the preparation of large-insert libraries from unusual actinomycete strains and the construction of environmental libraries. # 2002 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.
Fabrication of biocomposites composed of natural rubber latex and bone tissue derived from MC3T3-E1 mouse preosteoblastic cells

Abstract Natural rubber latex (NRL) is mainly used around traditional industrial products, but currently their target application is continuously expanding into tissue engineering. To broaden our knowledge of application in tissue engineering of NRL, we have focused on the surface modification of NRL nanoparticles through the biomineralization of hydroxyapatite (HA) using simulated body fluid in order to create a better cytocompatibility with controlled cell adhesion and mineralization properties in osteogenic culture to determine the effect on bone outcomes. Using MC3T3-E1 mouse osteoblastic-like cells incubated with NRL nanoparticles coated with HA layer, we have examined the osteogenic differentiation and expressions of multiple proteins and characteristic genes of mature osteoblast. We have successfully prepared the biocomposites composed of NRL and bone tissue.
The Effect of Eqoul, a Metabolite of Isoflavone, on Endothelial Cell-independent Vasodilatation of Human Uterine Artery In Vitro

Background The purpose of this study is to investigate 1) whether equol has the direct modulation on vascular tone of endothelium-denuded human uterine artery, and 2) if present, whether this equol-induced modulation of vascular tone is mediated by intracellular calcium modulation through Ca2+ & K+ channels on vascular smooth muscle cell membrane. Methods The uterine arteries were obtained at the time of hysterectomy from 15 women. The uterine smooth muscles were pretreated with phenylephrine, 10-5 M & high KCl solution 70 mM. The equol at 6 different concentrations from 10-11 to 10-6 M were used for the evaluation of modulatory action of equol on precontracted vascular smooth. The cumulative concentration-response for equol were determined on phenylephrine-induced contractions and compared with the results without pretreatment. Results Equol 10-11 to 10-6 M in concentration showed relaxation effect on vascular smooth muscle contraction which was induced by phenylephrine 10-5 M. This relaxation effect of equol was dose-dependent. Equol in same concentrations showed no significant effects on vascular smooth muscle contraction induced by high KCI solution. Phenylephrine-induced contraction was markedly reduced from 10-7 to 10-4 M in concentration by pretreatment of equol, but high KCI-induced contraction was not affected by pretreatment of equol. Conclusions This vasodilatation effect of equol may be induced by calcium antagonistic action, which was mediated through antagonistic action for receptor-dependent Ca2+ channel, but not for voltage-dependent Ca2+ channel. As far as we know, this is the first report of phytoestrogen equol on vascular reactivity of human vessels.
A Novel Reversible BCD Adder For Nanotechnology Based Systems

This paper proposes two reversible logic gates, HNFG and HNG. The first gate HNFG can be used as two Feynman Gates. It is suitable for a single copy of two bits with no garbage outputs. It can be used as "Copying Circuit" to increase fan-out because fan-out is not allowed in reversible circuits. The second gate HNG can implement all Boolean functions. It also can be used to design optimized adder architectures. This paper also proposes a novel reversible full adder. One of the prominent functionalities of the proposed HNG gate is that it can work singly as a reversible full adder unit. The proposed reversible full adder contains only one gate. We show that its hardware complexity is less than the existing reversible full adders. The proposed full adder is then applied to the design of a reversible 4-bit parallel adder. A reversible Binary Coded Decimal (BCD) adder circuit is also proposed. The proposed circuit can add two 4-bit binary variables and it transforms the result into the appropriate BCD number using efficient error correction modules. We show that the proposed reversible BCD adder has lower hardware complexity and it is much better and optimized in terms of number of reversible gates and garbage outputs with compared to the existing counterparts.
On the Reformulation of Some Classes of PNS-Problems as Set Covering Problems

Process network synthesis (PNS) has enormous practical impact; however, its solution is difficult in general. This experience has been recently reasoned by Blázsik and Imreh who pointed out that PNS-problems axe NP-hard. They proved that a simple subclass of PNS-problems is equivalent to the class of set covering problems. In the present paper, it is shown that more general classes of PNS-problems can also be reformulated as set covering problems. This enables the sophisticated techniques developed for solving set covering problems also to be applied for solving some PNS-problems.
Target lobe volume reduction and COPD outcome measures after endobronchial valve therapy

Endobronchial valve (EBV) therapy may be associated with improvements in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease-related outcomes and may therefore be linked to improvements in the body mass index, airflow obstruction, dyspnoea, exercise capacity (BODE) index. Data from 416 patients with advanced emphysema and hyperinflation across Europe and USA, who were randomised to EBV (n=284) or conservative therapy (n=132) were analysed. Quantitative image analysis was used to compare the volume of the targeted lobe at baseline and at 6 months to determine target lobe volume reduction (TLVR). 44% of patients receiving EBV therapy (versus 24.7% of controls) had clinically significant improvements in the BODE index (p<0.001). BODE index was significantly reduced by mean±sd 1.4±1.8, 0.2±1.3 and 0.1±1.3 points in patients with TLVR >50%, 20%–50% and <20%, respectively (intergroup differences p<0.001), but increased by 0.3±1.2 points in controls. Changes in BODE were predicted by baseline BODE and correlated significantly with lobar exclusion and lung volumes at 6 months. A greater proportion of patients in the treatment group than in the control group achieved a clinically meaningful improvement in BODE index; however, the likelihood of benefit was less than half in both groups. Patients in whom TLVR was obtained had greater improvements in clinical outcomes. Patients treated with EBV were more likely to have a significantly reduced BODE score (44% treated versus 25% controls) http://ow.ly/qXRUy
Design of Diffraction Limited Head Mounted Display Optical System Based on High Efficiency Diffractive Elements

A diffraction limited optical system for head mounted displays (HMDs) was designed. This optical system consists of four modules, including 1:5 mm and 5:30 mm beam expanders, polarization grating-polarization conversion system (PG-PCS) and refractive/diffractive projection optical module. The PG-PCS module transforms the unpolarized Gaussian beam to a linearly polarized beam and it simultaneously homogenizes the spatial intensity profile. The optical projector module has a 30° field of view, a 22 mm eye relief, and a 10 mm exit pupil diameter with a compact structure. Common acrylic materials were utilized in the optical design process; therefore, the final optical system was lightweight. The whole optical system is suitable for a 0.7 inch liquid crystal on silicon microdisplay (LCOS) with HDTV resolution (1920×1080) and 8.0 μm pixel pitch.
The Role of Fiber in Ruminant Ration Formulation

Several livestock species have the ability to digest fiber via microbial fermentation and to obtain useful energy from this process. However, in ruminants, fermentation of fiber occurs prior to the small intestine (Figure 1). Thus, microbial protein that is produced, as fiber is being digested, is available for digestion to amino acids with subsequent absorption for use by the animal. Although horses and pigs can digest some fiber, fermentation of fiber takes place in the hindgut which, is after the site of active protein digestion and amino acid absorption. The objective of this paper is to explain how fiber is digested in the rumen, to review practical factors that affect fermentation of fiber in the diet of ruminants, and to explain the basis for recommendations for fiber in ruminant diets.
Diffusion tensor imaging in Alzheimer's disease: insights into the limbic-diencephalic network and methodological considerations

Glucose hypometabolism and gray matter atrophy are well known consequences of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Studies using these measures have shown that the earliest clinical stages, in which memory impairment is a relatively isolated feature, are associated with degeneration in an apparently remote group of areas—mesial temporal lobe (MTL), diencephalic structures such as anterior thalamus and mammillary bodies, and posterior cingulate. These sites are thought to be strongly anatomically inter-connected via a limbic-diencephalic network. Diffusion tensor imaging or DTI—an imaging technique capable of probing white matter tissue microstructure—has recently confirmed degeneration of the white matter connections of the limbic-diencephalic network in AD by way of an unbiased analysis strategy known as tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS). The present review contextualizes the relevance of these findings, in which the fornix is likely to play a fundamental role in linking MTL and diencephalon. An interesting by-product of this work has been in showing that alterations in diffusion behavior are complex in AD—while early studies tended to focus on fractional anisotropy, recent work has highlighted that this measure is not the most sensitive to early changes. Finally, this review will discuss in detail several technical aspects of DTI both in terms of image acquisition and TBSS analysis as both of these factors have important implications to ensure reliable observations are made that inform understanding of neurodegenerative diseases.