Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Novel ion specificity of a carboxylate cluster Mg(II) binding site: strong charge selectivity and weak size selectivity.

Carboxylate cluster Mg(II) binding sites consist of a cluster of side-chain carboxylates, typically 3-4 in number, partially buried in a shallow cleft on the surface of a Mg(II) binding protein. Such clusters are often found in the active sites of enzymes catalyzing phosphochemistry. An example is the phospho-signaling protein CheY of the Escherichia coli chemotaxis pathway, which binds Mg(II) via a cluster of three carboxylates at its phosphorylation site. The present study quantitates both the ion charge and size specificity of the CheY site by measuring the dissociation constants of metal ions from groups Ia, IIa, IIIa, and the lanthanides; these spherical cations provide a range of substrates with incrementally varying charge and radius. The site binds divalent and trivalent cations, but it effectively excludes monovalent cations, including the physiological ions Na(I) and K(I). This charge specificity is in contrast to the site's remarkable lack of size specificity: divalent and trivalent cations exhibit affinities which are essentially independent of radius. It is revealing to compare the ion specificity of the Mg(II) site with the previously characterized specificity of the EF-hand class of Ca(II) sites commonly found in Ca(II) signaling proteins. The Mg(II) and Ca(II) sites exhibit similar charge selectivity, but the Ca(II) site is highly size-selective, preferring divalent and trivalent ions with radii similar to that of Ca(II). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Stabilization and mobility of the head and trunk in vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops) during treadmill walks and gallops

SUMMARY The brain requires internal or external reference frames to determine body orientation in space. These frames may change, however, to meet changing conditions. During quadrupedal overground locomotion by monkeys, the head rotates on a stabilized trunk during walking, but the trunk rotates on a stabilized head during galloping. Do the same movement patterns occur during in-place locomotion? Head and trunk pitch rotations were measured, and yaw and roll rotations estimated from cine films of three adult vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops L. 1758) walking and galloping quadrupedally on a treadmill. Head and trunk rotational patterns during treadmill walks were comparable to the patterns found during overground walks. The rotational velocities of these segments during both treadmill walks and gallops were also comparable to the velocities found during natural locomotion. By contrast, whereas head and trunk rotational patterns during treadmill gallops did occur that were comparable to the patterns practiced during overground gallops, a significantly different pattern involving large and simultaneous head and trunk rotations was more commonly observed. Simultaneous head and trunk rotations may be possible during treadmill gallops because the fixed visual surround is providing an adequate spatial reference frame. Alternatively, or in addition to this visual information, a re-weighting in other sensory modalities may be occurring. Specifically, the vestibular inputs used during overground locomotion to reference gravity or a gravity-derived vector may become less important than proprioceptive inputs that are using the treadmill belt surface as a reference. Regardless, the spatial reference frame being used, blinks that occur at specific times during the largest head yaw rotations may be necessary to avoid the initiation of unwanted and potentially destabilizing lateral sway brought on by sudden increases in optic flow velocity.
A common dominant scale emerges from images of diverse satellite platforms using the wavelet transform

In this article we investigate the scale dependence of spatial heterogeneity in multiresolution and multisensor data using the wavelet transform. The landscape analysed with the wavelets retains the same dominant pattern irrespective of the original pixel size of the image. In agricultural areas, typically characterized by a mosaic of cultivated fields, the wavelet transform quantified consistently a median dominant scale of 512 m in the Orthophoto, Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) and Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM + ). The dominant scale represented the dominant field size of cultivated areas. The shape of the average wavelet energy curves was also similar among the images. In semi-natural areas the wavelet transform quantified consistently a median dominant scale of 128 m in the Orthophoto and ASTER. The median dominant scale of ETM + was slightly smaller and located at 64 m. We characterized the spatial heterogeneity of agricultural and semi-natural areas in Andalucía (Spain) using multisensor data not time coincident ranging from 1 m (Orthophoto), to 15 m (ASTER) to 28.5 m (ETM + ). The contrast in vegetation cover was measured using Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in ASTER and ETM + and red band in Orthophoto. We performed a multiresolution analysis using a Haar two-dimension discrete wavelet transform to quantify and compare the intensity (maximum degree of contrast in vegetation cover), the dominant scale (the scale at which the maximum intensity occurs) and the wavelet energy curve (intensity plotted as a function of the scale) of different images at intervals of power of 2 within the scale range from 2 to 4096 m.
Development of a simple free viewpoint video system

A simple free viewpoint video system which is able not only to display user-specified views at arbitrary angle but also to efficiently stream the necessary video over a network is described. Virtual view synthesis based on projection theory was implemented to obtain intermediate views between multiple cameras. The depth information, which is required for the virtual view synthesis, was obtained using the segmentation-based stereo matching algorithm. For realtime rendering, our system was optimized using single instructions, multiple data (SIMD) technology. For efficient streaming, a novel method of combining the video with the depth information is proposed.
Transference and post-traumatic stress: combat veterans' transference to the Veterans Administration Medical Center.

In this paper I have discussed two types of transference manifestations to an institution; namely, the "VA Medical Center transference syndrome" (VATS) and the "VA medical center split transference syndrome" (VAST). Transference to an institution was identified as an important issue deserving the attention of psychotherapists and psychoanalysts. Two case studies illustrated the dynamics of these two transference phenomena. Moreover, as a consequence of exposure to traumatic war experiences in Vietnam, these two illustrative cases portrayed a strong tendency to splitting dynamics and fragmenting ego operations inherent in what has been referred to here as "post-traumatic borderline personality disorder" (p-TBPD). In the VATS case, the patient struggled with intense feelings of dissociated and repressed guilt over the five men killed and two severely wounded in Vietnam for which he believed himself to be responsible. Initially, the patient had denied he felt responsible and guilty over this tragic event; however, later as trust developed and intense paranoid defenses were attenuated, these painful memories were expressed in vivid detail. His affective attachment or transference to the VA Medical Center was an "instrumental transference" in that it served the purpose of giving him the sense of protection from his guilt-ridden ego and harsh, punitive superego. The task of the treatment was to first establish trust through emphasizing the "real" relationship and fostering the idealizing transference. Through the idealizing transference, the patient began to decathect from the VAMC as his sole protective object. With this patient the "real" relationship was essential in assisting him to relinquish his transference hold on the VAMC and embark on "the road to recovery" (Brende and Parson, 1985). The VAST case portrayed the situation in which the veteran "bifurcates" his transference responses--one to therapist, the other to the VAMC. As in the VATS case, it was essential to emphasize the real relationship, maintaining an active intervening stance, while fostering the idealizing transference. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
The massive star‐forming region G323.74−0.26

We report near-infrared molecular hydrogen and Brackettγ observations towards the massive star formation site G323.74- 0.26. The region contains an H II region, ∼ 30 arcsec across, and two Class II methanol maser sites, which are separate from the H II region. We show that the spectral type of the star powering the H II region is B0. We also show that at least one of the maser sites is powered by an infrared source that appears to be at least as luminous as the star responsible for the H II region. However, neither of the two stars associated with the methanol maser sites shows any signs of radio continuum emission above 0.2 mJy. For at least one of these maser sites, this shows a real deficiency in the radio continuum flux, which we suggest is an indication that the star is in an early stage of development, before its H II region becomes visible, or it is a multiple intermediate mass star system. A shocked molecular hydrogen outflow is seen extending from one of the maser sites towards the west and possibly in a fan shape, suggesting that the stars associated with the maser sites are indeed at a very early stage of evolution.
Prevalence and characteristics of peripheral neuropathy in hepatitis C virus population

Objective: To assess the prevalence of peripheral neuropathy (PN) and its correlation with cryoglobulinemia (CG) in an unselected, untreated referral hepatitis C virus (HCV) population. Patients and Methods: Two hundred and thirty four patients (120 women and 114 men) with untreated HCV infection were consecutively enrolled by seven Italian centres. Clinical neuropathy was diagnosed when symptoms and signs of peripheral sensory or motor involvement were present. Median, ulnar, peroneal, and sural nerves were explored in all patients and distal symmetric polyneuropathy was diagnosed when all explored nerves or both lower limb nerves were affected. Mononeuropathy and mononeuropathy multiplex were diagnosed when one nerve or two non-contiguous nerves with asymmetrical distribution were affected. Screening for CG was done in 191 unselected patients. Results: Clinical signs of PN were observed in 25 of the 234 patients (10.6%). Electrophysiological PN was found in 36 (15.3%). CG was present in 56/191 patients (29.3%). The prevalence of CG increased significantly with age (p<0.001) and disease duration (p<0.05). PN was present in 12/56 (21%) patients with CG and 18/135 (13%) without CG (p = NS). PN increased significantly with age (p<0.001) and logistic regression analysis confirmed age as the only independent predictor of PN (OR 1.10 for each year; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.15; p<0.001). Conclusions: Electrophysiological examination detected subclinical neuropathy in 11 patients (4.7%). Statistical analysis showed that CG was not a risk factor for PN whereas PN prevalence increased significantly with age.
Parasynaptic NMDA Receptor Signaling Couples Neuronal Glutamate Transporter Function to AMPA Receptor Synaptic Distribution and Stability

At synapses, two major processes occur concomitantly after the release of glutamate: activation of AMPA receptors (AMPARs) to conduct synaptic transmission and activation of excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) for transmitter removal. Although crosstalk between the receptors and EAATs is conceivable, whether and how the transporter activity affects AMPAR synaptic localization remain unknown. Using cultured hippocampal and cortical rat neurons, we show that inhibition of glutamate transporters leads to rapid reduction in AMPAR synaptic accumulation and total AMPAR abundance. EAAT inactivity also results in elevated internalization and reduced surface expression of AMPARs. The reduction in AMPAR amount is accompanied by receptor ubiquitination and can be blocked by suppression of proteasome activity, indicating the involvement of proteasome-mediated receptor degradation. Consistent with glutamate spillover, effect of EAAT inhibition on AMPAR distribution and stability is dependent on the activation of parasynaptically localized NR2B-containing NMDA receptors (NMDARs). Moreover, we show that neuronal glutamate transporters, especially those localized at the postsynaptic sites, are responsible for the observed effect during EAAT suppression. These results indicate a role for neuron-specific glutamate transporters in AMPAR synaptic localization and stability.
Mapping the Location of Wildfires in Alaskan Boreal Forests Using AVHRR Imagery

The results of a study using satellite imagery to map boreal forest fires in Alaska in 1990 and 1991 are presented. Composite AVHRR data detected more than 80% of fires greater than 2000 ha in size. Additionally, using a two season method, 78% of the area of all boreal forest fires in Alaska was mapped. This technique is considered to be an accurate way to detect forest fire scars and estimate area burned throughout the boreal forests, and could be very important in those regions where wildfire data are presently difficult or impossible to gather.
Resting state functional near infrared spectroscopy

The present study investigated the spatial-temporal variation of oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO), deoxygenated hemoglobin (Hb), blood volume (BV) and blood oxygenation (BO) concentration changes in the prefrontal cortex, measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) during resting state. We examined 36 healthy right handed subjects seating with their minds and body quiet and still, as well as their eyes closed for 5 minutes. The spatial mean concentration change of the four estimated parameters across subjects was found near zero; Moreover, the mean concentration changes across subjects for HbO and Hb were found to be more reduced than those of BV and BO. In addition, there were no statistically voxelwise significant differences for the mean concentration changes related to HbO, Hb, BV, neither BO; This finding strongly suggests for a spatial stability in the mean concentration changes during resting state.
Comment on “An integrated hydrologic Bayesian multimodel combination framework: Confronting input, parameter, and model structural uncertainty in hydrologic prediction” by Newsha K. Ajami et al.

[1] Uncertainty in the rainfall inputs, which constitute a primary forcing of hydrological systems, considerably affects the calibration and predictive use of hydrological models. In a recent paper, Ajami et al. [2007] proposed the Integrated Bayesian Uncertainty Estimator (IBUNE) to quantify input, parameter and model uncertainties. This comment analyzes two interpretations of the IBUNE method and compares them to the Bayesian Total Error Analysis (BATEA) method [Kavetski et al., 2002, 2006a]. It is shown that BATEA and IBUNE are based on the same hierarchical conceptualization of the input uncertainty. However, in interpretation A of IBUNE, the likelihood function, and hence the posterior distribution, are random functions of the inferred variables, which violates a standard requirement for probability density functions (pdf). A synthetic study shows that IBUNE-A inferences are inconsistent with the correct parameter values and model predictions. In the second interpretation, IBUNE-B, it is shown that a specific implementation of IBUNE is equivalent to a special Metropolis-Hastings sampler for the full Bayesian posterior, directly including the rainfall multipliers as latent variables (but not necessarily storing their samples). Consequently, IBUNE-B does not reduce the dimensionality of the sampling problem. Moreover, the jump distribution for the latent variables embedded in IBUNE-B is computationally inefficient and leads to prohibitively slow convergence. Modifications of these jump rules can cause convergence to incorrect posterior distributions. The primary conclusion of this comment is that, unless the hydrological model and the structure of data uncertainty allow specialized treatment, Bayesian hierarchical models invariably lead to high-dimensional computational problems, whether working with the full posterior (high-dimensional sampling problem) or with the marginal posterior (highdimensional integration problem each time the marginal posterior is evaluated). 2. Introduction
Improving Indigenous Technologies for Sustainable Land Use in Northern Mountainous Areas of Vietnam

More than 30 ethnic groups are now living in northern mountainous regions, Vietnam, mainly relying on shifting cultivation with the fallow period being shortened from time to time. Naturally, soil fertility reduces from cycle to cycle, entailing the reduction of productivity. Large areas of moderately sloping lands suitable for upland agriculture have become bare after many cultivation-fallow cycles. The soils there have been severely degraded with more toxicity, low porosity, low water retention capacity and poor floral diversity. Normally, these lands cannot be used for food crop cultivation. So farmers in uplands have to rely on slash-and-burn practices for their livelihood. As there is no more forest with good soil in medium slopes, farmers go to cut forests in watershed, high slope lands and old forests up to the mountains' top. There are ecologically and environmentally very sensitive areas, so their destruction will inevitably cause hazardous consequences in the whole basin. Meanwhile, cultivation in these areas has low economic efficiency and sustainability because the crop yield may decrease very fast due to severe erosion as the higher the slope, the more serious erosion. Consequently living standards of highland farmers remain low and unstable.Sustainable farming on these lands in the perspective of a seriously deteriorated ecology and environmental is not an easy task. There have beenmany projects trying to help mountainous farmers get out of their vicious circle. However, due to different reasons, the results gained are low, and in some cases, things ceased to move after the projects phased out.During past few years, based on the farmer experiences, the Vietnam Agricultural Science Institute has cooperated with local and international partners to implement different projects in order to solve the problems by developing simple, easy and cheap cultivation technologies, which can be accepted and applied by local poor farmers for sustainable agricultural production. The first results of our activities of
Formally Modeling and Analyzing Data-centric Workflow using WFCP-net and ASK-CTL

Despite the abundance of workflow analysis techniques from control-flow perspective, there is hardly any method for workflow verification from data processing perspective. In this paper, we restrict the WFCP-net, a Colored Petri Net with WF-net structure, to formally describe the key business entities in a data-centric workflow model. Then, we use ASK-CTL logic to describe the workflow requirements on business data processing perspective. The model checking method is adopted into our verification approach, which can explore some of the business contraventions of data perspectives in the workflow models. The effectiveness of our works has been validated with the CPN Tools.
Analysis and System Combination of Phrase- and N-Gram-Based Statistical Machine Translation Systems

In the framework of the Tc-Star project, we analyze and propose a combination of two Statistical Machine Translation systems: a phrase-based and an N-gram-based one. The exhaustive analysis includes a comparison of the translation models in terms of efficiency (number of translation units used in the search and computational time) and an examination of the errors in each system's output. Additionally, we combine both systems, showing accuracy improvements.
Development of Issoria lathonia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) on zinc‐accumulating and nonaccumulating Viola species (Violaceae)

The larvae of Issoria lathonia L. feed in natural conditions on several Viola spp. , among which are the zinc‐accumulating Viola calaminaria (Gingins) Lej. and the nonmetal‐accumulating Viola tricolor L. To examine how I. lathonia caterpillars cope with the naturally high foliar zinc concentration of V. calaminaria, we compared the growth of caterpillars reared on leaves varying in zinc concentration. Larvae were fed in controlled conditions with V. calaminaria and V. tricolor grown on noncontaminated soil (i.e., two low‐Zn diets) and with V. calaminaria grown on zinc‐enriched soil (i.e., one high‐Zn diet). Larvae had a higher growth rate when fed with noncontaminated V. calaminaria compared to zinc‐enriched V. calaminaria, suggesting that zinc slows down larval growth. However, larvae consumed more leaves of zinc‐enriched V. calaminaria (+45%; estimated from fecal mass) compared with noncontaminated V. calaminaria, suggesting that zinc accumulation would not be advantageous to plants. Caterpillars reared on high‐zinc leaves regulate their internal zinc concentration through excretion of highly metal‐concentrated feces. When kinetics of growth on both low‐zinc diets were compared, it appeared that larval development was faster on noncontaminated V. calaminaria than on V. tricolor. This suggests that more nutrients or less feeding inhibitors in V. calaminaria account for fastest growth. Developmental rates on V. tricolor and on zinc‐enriched V. calaminaria were similar, despite the high leaf zinc concentration of the latter species. Together with the abundance of V. calaminaria on calamine soils, this may explain why the largest populations of I. lathonia develop on V. calaminaria in Belgium.
Bedrock fractures as seismic reflectors

This paper presents the interpretation of reflections from same very shallow fracture zones located at the depth of less than 250m and recorded in soundings carried out on bedrock outcrops and in boreholes. The resolution of the seismic reflection method is compared to the corresponding acoustic logs and other geophysical and geological investigations.
Direct Optimal Synthesis of a Microwave Bandpass Filter With General Loading Effect

This paper presents a direct approach to the synthesis of a general Chebyshev bandpass filter that matches to a frequency variant complex load. The approach is based on the power wave renormalization theory and two practical assumptions, which are: 1) the prescribed transmission zeros are stationary and 2) the reflection zeros are located along the imaginary axis. Three necessary conditions that stipulate the characteristic polynomials associated to the filter are derived through renormalization of the load reference impedances. It has been shown that these three conditions can only be satisfied by an ideal filter circuit model separated by a piece of interconnecting stub from the complex load. The length of the stub will be optimally designed in the sense that the designed filter will best match to the complex load over a given frequency range. The proposed method offers a deterministic, yet flexible way for optimally designing a diplexer or a multiplexer with a realistic loading effect. The effectiveness of the method is demonstrated by two design examples.