Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Postlarval settlement of the spiny lobster Panulirus argus along the Caribbean coast of Mexico: Patterns, influence of physical factors, and possible sources of origin

We analyzed and compared 17 yr of monthly settlement indices of postlarvae of the Caribbean spiny lobster, Panulirus argus, at two locations on the Mexican Caribbean coast. Along this coast, the shelf is very narrow and the local circulation is driven by waves overtopping subtidal coral reef crests. Settlement occurred year‐round, but both locations showed annual rhythmicity, average seasonal maxima during the autumn, and similar interannual variation, reflecting the influence of mesoscale oceanographic processes on settlement. Significant correlations between settlement indices and a number of interrelated physical factors indicate that sea‐level variation is the main factor influencing settlement. There was further association between extreme settlement pulses and extreme weather events (tropical storms and hurricanes) during the late summer‐autumn. The autumn settlement peak indicates that large hurricane waves enhance the onshore transport of postlarvae that originated during the spring spawning peak. The geographic range of potential sources of larvae that settle along this coast during the periods of March‐April and September‐October, 5‐9 months after hatching (the estimated larval duration for P. argus), was investigated by stochastic simulations integrating passive trajectories backward in time using 6 yr of stable outputs from a well‐established numerical model for the entire Atlantic Ocean. Trajectories from the model indicate that the local population of P. argus depends to a large extent on larval supply from many potential source regions across and outside the Caribbean but that some larvae follow pathways that permit selfrecruitment.
货币战争 = Currency wars

“War is not merely a political act, but also a political instrument, a continuation of political relations, a carrying out of the same by other means. ” This working defi nition of war by the 19th century Prussian military historian Clausewitz is widely accepted even today. If the notion that “quantitative easing is a continuation of monetary policy by other means” is added to this, the use of the term “currency wars” becomes understandable.
A Comparative Study of Laparoendoscopic Single-Site Surgery Versus Conventional Laparoscopy for Upper Urinary Tract Malignancies

Purpose The proper indication for laparoendoscopic single-site surgery (LESS) in urology is still under debate, especially for malignant diseases. We compared the perioperative outcomes between LESS and conventional laparoscopy (CL) for upper urinary tract malignancies. Materials and Methods We reviewed the records of 75 patients who underwent radical nephrectomy, nephroureterectomy with bladder cuff excision, or partial nephrectomy with the LESS or CL approach between December 2008 and December 2010. We compared characteristics and perioperative outcomes between patients who underwent LESS or CL. All operations were performed by three surgeons using the transperitoneal approach. Results For all three surgery types, no differences in patient characteristics, estimated blood losses, transfusion rates, or durations of hospital stay were found between the two groups. No complications were found between the two groups in those who underwent nephroureterectomy with bladder cuff excision; however, significantly more complications were found in the LESS group than in the CL group in those who underwent radical nephrectomy or partial nephrectomy. Most of the complications with LESS radical nephrectomy occurred in the early introduction period of the technique. Conclusions No significant differences in perioperative outcomes were found between the LESS and CL groups in those who underwent radical nephrectomy or nephroureterectomy with bladder cuff excision. Therefore, the use of LESS in these cases is expected to expand as surgeons gain more experience with this technique and as other technical advances in laparoscopic instruments occur. However, partial nephrectomy with LESS should be performed restrictively considering the current level of surgical skill.
Macrophage ATP-Binding Cassette Transporter A1 Overexpression Inhibits Atherosclerotic Lesion Progression in Low-Density Lipoprotein Receptor Knockout Mice

Background—ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) is a key regulator of cellular cholesterol and phospholipid transport. Previously, we have shown that inactivation of macrophage ABCA1 induces atherosclerosis in low-density lipoprotein receptor knockout (LDLr−/−) mice. However, the possibly beneficial effects of specific upregulation of macrophage ABCA1 on atherogenesis are still unknown. Methods and Results—Chimeras that specifically overexpress ABCA1 in macrophages were generated by transplantation of bone marrow from human ABCA1 bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) transgenic mice into LDLr−/− mice. Peritoneal macrophages isolated from the ABCA1 BAC → LDLr−/− chimeras exhibited a 60% (P=0.0006) increase in cholesterol efflux to apolipoprotein AI. To induce atherosclerosis, the mice were fed a Western-type diet containing 0.25% cholesterol and 15% fat for 9, 12, and 15 weeks, allowing analysis of effects on initial lesion development as well as advanced lesions. No significant effect of macrophage ABCA1 overexpression was observed on atherosclerotic lesion size after 9 weeks on the Western-type diet (245±36×103 &mgr;m2 in ABCA1 BAC → LDLr−/− mice versus 210±20×103 &mgr;m2 in controls). However, after 12 weeks, the mean atherosclerotic lesion area in ABCA1 BAC → LDLr−/− mice remained only 164±15×103 &mgr;m2 (P=0.0008) compared with 513±56×103 &mgr;m2 in controls (3.1-fold lower). Also, after 15 weeks on the diet, lesions in mice transplanted with ABCA1 overexpressing bone marrow were still 1.6-fold smaller (393±27×103 &mgr;m2 compared with 640±59×103 &mgr;m2 in control transplanted mice; P=0.0015). Conclusion—ABCA1 upregulation in macrophages inhibits the progression of atherosclerotic lesions.
Conservative whole‐organ scaling contrasts with highly labile suborgan scaling differences among compound eyes of closely related Formica ants

Abstract Static allometries determine how organ size scales in relation to body mass. The extent to which these allometric relationships are free to evolve, and how they differ among closely related species, has been debated extensively and remains unclear; changes in intercept appear common, but changes in slope are far rarer. Here, we compare the scaling relationships that govern the structure of compound eyes of four closely related ant species from the genus Formica. Comparison among these species revealed changes in intercept but not slope in the allometric scaling relationships governing eye area, facet number, and mean facet diameter. Moreover, the scaling between facet diameter and number was conserved across all four species. In contrast, facet diameters from distinct regions of the compound eye differed in both intercept and slope within a single species and when comparing homologous regions among species. Thus, even when species are conservative in the scaling of whole organs, they can differ substantially in regional scaling within organs. This, at least partly, explains how species can produce organs that adhere to genus wide scaling relationships while still being able to invest differentially in particular regions of organs to produce specific features that match their ecology.
Why do octaves sound the same ?

The octave, a relation between two tones whose fundamental frequencies stand in the ratio 2:1, is a foundation of tonal musics worldwide: notes separated by an octave are considered harmonically equivalent , and melodies are often sung or played in parallel octaves yet are considered identical melodies. Why do octaves sound the same? I hypothesize that our perceived similarity of octave-related tones derives from other properties of the octave interval — namely spectral fusion, sensitivity to interval tuning, and generalization of response to the common fundamental — which are qualitatively similar to properties of larger intervals in the harmonic series. Consequently, double-octaves (ratio 4:1) should have less similarity (in the above sense) than twelfths (ratio 3:1) have; the octave equivalence present in music is the result of a learned transitivity applied to the natural perceptual similarity. I further hypothesize a mechanism for these properties in which neural circuits in the brainstem inferior colliculus detect coincident firing of neurons tuned to harmonics of a fundamental to compute the periodicity pitch; occasional skipped firings lead to excitation of subharmonically tuned neurons, causing a note to sound like its subharmonic octave. Psychoacoustics experiments to measure musical and nonmusical humans' tuning sensitivity, generalization , and spectral fusion of twelfths and double-octaves should serve to evaluate the first hypothesis. Animals trained to respond to one note generalize this response to other notes (Blackwell and Schlosberg 1943); raising these animals in artificial acoustic environments may alter the patterns of generalization and thus provide a test for learning of octaves. Direct extracellular recording from the brainstem of animals could provide evidence for the proposed neural mechanism of harmonic equivalence.
Real-time Gesture Recognition Using RFID Technology

This paper presents a real-time gesture recognition technique based on RFID technology. Inexpensive and unintrusive passive RFID tags can be easily attached to or interweaved into user clothes. The tag readings in an RFID-enabled environment can then be used to recognize the user gestures in order to enable intuitive human-computer interaction. People can interact with large public displays without the need to carry a dedicated device, which can improve interactive advertisement in public places. In this paper, multiple hypotheses tracking is used to track the motion patterns of passive RFID tags. Despite the reading uncertainties inherent in passive RFID technology, the experiments show that the presented online gesture recognition technique has an accuracy of up to 96%.
How Mergers May Affect The Mass Scaling Relations Between Black Holes, Galaxies, and Other Gravita

Supermassive black hole (BH) masses (MBH) are strongly correlated with galaxy stellar bulge masses (Mbulge) and there are several ideas to explain the origin of this relationship. This study isolates the role of galaxy mergers from considerations of other detailed physics to more clearly show how a linear BH-galaxy mass relation (MBH-Mgal) can naturally emerge regardless of how primordial BHs were seeded inside galaxies, if the galaxy mass function declines with increasing mass. Under this circumstance, the MBH-Mgal relation is a passive attractor that eventually converges to a tight linear relation because of two basic statistical effects: a central limit-like tendency for galaxy mergers which is much stronger for major mergers than minor mergers, and a convergence toward a linear relation that is due mainly to minor mergers. A curious consequence of this thought experiment is that, if galaxy bulges are formed by major mergers, then merging statistics naturally show that MBH would correlate more strongly with bulge dominated galaxies, because of stronger central-seeking tendencies, than with disk dominated galaxies. Even if some other physics is ultimately responsible for causing a linear MBH-Mbulge relationship, this thought experiment shows that, counter to intuition, random merging of galaxies that harbor random BH masses tends to strengthen rather than weaken a pre-existing, linear, correlation. This idea may be generalized to other gravitationally bound systems (dark matter halo, compact nuclear objects) that retain their physical identities after experiencing mergers.
The effect mode about enterprises implementing corporate social responsibility from cost-benefit analysis

From cost-benefit analysis, the implementation of CSR needs for the support of a mature market and stakeholders. CSR to some degree has the nature of public goods, and enterprises fall into the Prisoner's Dilemma to fulfill CSR. The government's control of enterprises' behavior of not fulfilling CSR, its function is greatly restricted. Through the cultivation of enterprises voluntarily fulfill CSR, privatizing the benefits from fulfill CSR, an effective model for enterprises to fulfill CSR is set up.
Crashing into the Unknown: An Examination of Crash-Optimization Algorithms Through the Two Lanes of Ethics and Law

Autonomous vehicles will encounter situations where an accident is truly unavoidable, requiring the vehicle to decide whom or what to hit. In such situations, the vehicle will make difficult ethical decisions based upon its programming — more specifically, how its crash-optimization algorithm is programmed. This Article examines crash-optimization algorithms from an ethical and legal standpoint through the lenses of six moral dilemmas. Ethically, the Article focuses specifically on utilitarian and Kantian ethics. Legally, the Article considers the tort and criminal law implications of crash-optimization algorithms. In addition, the Article discusses whether autonomous vehicles should even make ethical decisions. Concluding that they should make ethical decisions, the next consideration is whose — the car owner’s, the car manufacturer’s, or the government’s — ethical beliefs should the car be programmed to follow. Recognizing that no one party could program a fully ethical vehicle, the Article concludes by asserting that the government should provide partial immunity to the car manufacturer to ensure that the vehicles are programmed according to ethics.
Spatiotemporal dynamics of emerging pathogens in questing Ixodes ricinus

Ixodes ricinus transmits Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, the etiological agent of Lyme disease. Previous studies have also detected Rickettsia helvetica, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Neoehrlichia mikurensis, and several Babesia species in questing ticks in The Netherlands. In this study, we assessed the acarological risk of exposure to several tick-borne pathogens (TBPs), in The Netherlands. Questing ticks were collected monthly between 2006 and 2010 at 21 sites and between 2000 and 2009 at one other site. Nymphs and adults were analysed individually for the presence of TBPs using an array-approach. Collated data of this and previous studies were used to generate, for each pathogen, a presence/absence map and to further analyse their spatiotemporal variation. R. helvetica (31.1%) and B. burgdorferi sensu lato (11.8%) had the highest overall prevalence and were detected in all areas. N. mikurensis (5.6%), A. phagocytophilum (0.8%), and Babesia spp. (1.7%) were detected in most, but not all areas. The prevalences of pathogens varied among the study areas from 0 to 64%, while the density of questing ticks varied from 1 to 179/100 m2. Overall, 37% of the ticks were infected with at least one pathogen and 6.3% with more than one pathogen. One-third of the Borrelia-positive ticks were infected with at least one other pathogen. Coinfection of B. afzelii with N. mikurensis and with Babesia spp. occurred significantly more often than single infections, indicating the existence of mutual reservoir hosts. Alternatively, coinfection of R. helvetica with either B. afzelii or N. mikurensis occurred significantly less frequent. The diversity of TBPs detected in I. ricinus in this study and the frequency of their coinfections with B. burgdorferi s.l. , underline the need to consider them when evaluating the risks of infection and subsequently the risk of disease following a tick bite.
Applied Stochastic Control in High Frequency and Algorithmic Trading

In this thesis, problems in the realm of high frequency trading and optimal market making are established and solved in both single asset and multiple asset economies. For an agent that is averse to holding large inventories for long periods of time, optimal high frequency trading strategies are derived via stochastic control theory and solving the corresponding Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equations. These strategies are analyzed and it is shown that both inventory control and accounting for adverse selection play critical roles in the success of an algorithmic trading strategy. In the single asset problem, a market maker actively modifies her limit quotes in an economy with asymmetric information. She attempts to keep her inventory small and posts her limit orders in the limit order book at a depth that mitigates her adverse selection risk, while not posting too deep in the book as to generate no trade flow. In addition to this behaviour, a profit maximizing investor trading in multiple assets also seeks out statistical arbitrage opportunities and acts aggressively via the submission of market orders when it is deemed optimal to do so.Throughout this thesis, numerical and practical considerations are made a priority. Full scale calibration and estimation methods are given in detail, as well as dimensional reductions for large scale numerical procedures, where appropriate. The bridge from abstract mathematical theory to practical real-time implementation is made complete as an entire chapter is dedicated to applications on real data.
Approximating Buy-at-Bulk k-Steiner trees

In the buy-at-bulk k-Steiner tree (or rent-or-buy k-Steiner tree) problem we are given a graph G(V; E) with a set of terminals T V including a particular vertex s called the root, and an integer k jTj. There are two cost functions on the edges of G, a buy cost b : E ! R + and a rent cost r : E ! R + . The goal is to nd a subtree H of G rooted at s with at least k terminals so that the cost P e2H b(e)+ P t2T s dist(t; s) is minimize, where dist(t; s) is the distance from t to s in H with respect to the r cost. Our main result is an O(log 5 n)-approximation for the buy-at-bulk k-Steiner tree problem. To achieve this we also design an approximation algorithm for bicriteria k-Steiner tree. In the bicriteria k-Steiner tree problem we are given a graph G with edge costs b(e) and distance costs r(e) over the edges, and an integer k. Our goal is to nd a minimum cost (under b-cost) k-Steiner tree such that the diameter under r-cost is at most some given bound D. An (; )-approximation nds a subgraph of diameter at most D (with respect to r) and cost with respect to b of at most opt where opt is the minimum cost of any solution with diameter at most D. Marathe et al [25] gave an (O(log n); O(log n))-approximation algorithm for the bicriteria Steiner tree problem. Their algorithm does not extend to the bicriteria k-Steiner tree problem. Our algorithm for the buy-at-bulk k-Steiner tree problem relies on an (O(log 2 n); O(log 4 n))-approximation algorithm we develop for the (shallow-light) bicriteria k-Steiner tree problem, which is of independent interest. Indeed, this is also one of the main tools we use to obtain the rst polylogarithmic approximation algorithm for non-uniform multicommodity buy-at-bulk [21].
Functional tradeoffs determine species coexistence via the storage effect

How biological diversity is generated and maintained is a fundamental question in ecology. Ecologists have delineated many mechanisms that can, in principle, favor species coexistence and hence maintain biodiversity. Most such coexistence mechanisms require or imply tradeoffs between different aspects of species performance. However, it remains unknown whether simple functional tradeoffs underlie coexistence mechanisms in diverse natural systems. We show that functional tradeoffs explain species differences in long-term population dynamics that are associated with recovery from low density (and hence coexistence) for a community of winter annual plants in the Sonoran Desert. We develop a new general framework for quantifying the magnitude of coexistence via the storage effect and use this framework to assess the strength of the storage effect in the winter annual community. We then combine a 25-year record of vital rates with morphological and physiological measurements to identify functional differences between species in the growth and reproductive phase of the life cycle that promote storage-effect coexistence. Separation of species along a tradeoff between growth capacity and low-resource tolerance corresponds to differences in demographic responses to environmental variation across years. Growing season precipitation is one critical environmental variable underlying the demographic decoupling of species. These results demonstrate how partially decoupled population dynamics that promote local biodiversity are associated with physiological differences in resource uptake and allocation between species. These results for a relatively simple system demonstrate how long-term community dynamics relate to functional biology, a linkage scientists have long sought for more complex systems.
Magnetorotational Instability in Liquid Metal Couette Flow

Despite the importance of the magnetorotational instability (MRI) as a fundamental mechanism for angular momentum transport in magnetized accretion disks, it has yet to be demonstrated in the laboratory. A liquid sodium αω dynamo experiment at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology provides an ideal environment to study the MRI in a rotating metal annulus (Couette flow). A local stability analysis is performed as a function of shear, magnetic field strength, magnetic Reynolds number, and turbulent Prandtl number. The latter takes into account the minimum turbulence induced by the formation of an Ekman layer against the rigidly rotating end walls of a cylindrical vessel. Stability conditions are presented, and unstable conditions for the sodium experiment are compared with another proposed MRI experiment with liquid gallium. Because of the relatively large magnetic Reynolds number achievable in the sodium experiment, it should be possible to observe the excitation of the MRI for a wide range of wavenumbers and to further observe the transition to the turbulent state.
Fast Negative Feedback Enables Mammalian Auditory Nerve Fibers to Encode a Wide Dynamic Range of Sound Intensities

Mammalian auditory nerve fibers (ANF) are remarkable for being able to encode a 40 dB, or hundred fold, range of sound pressure levels into their firing rate. Most of the fibers are very sensitive and raise their quiescent spike rate by a small amount for a faint sound at auditory threshold. Then as the sound intensity is increased, they slowly increase their spike rate, with some fibers going up as high as ∼300 Hz. In this way mammals are able to combine sensitivity and wide dynamic range. They are also able to discern sounds embedded within background noise. ANF receive efferent feedback, which suggests that the fibers are readjusted according to the background noise in order to maximize the information content of their auditory spike trains. Inner hair cells activate currents in the unmyelinated distal dendrites of ANF where sound intensity is rate-coded into action potentials. We model this spike generator compartment as an attenuator that employs fast negative feedback. Input current induces rapid and proportional leak currents. This way ANF are able to have a linear frequency to input current (f-I) curve that has a wide dynamic range. The ANF spike generator remains very sensitive to threshold currents, but efferent feedback is able to lower its gain in response to noise.