Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of soil freezing and thawing on vegetation carbon density in Siberia: A modeling analysis with the Lund‐Potsdam‐Jena Dynamic Global Vegetation Model (LPJ‐DGVM)

The current latitudinal gradient in biomass suggests a climate‐driven limitation of biomass in high latitudes. Understanding of the underlying processes, and quantification of their relative importance, is required to assess the potential carbon uptake of the biosphere in response to anticipated warming and related changes in tree growth and forest extent in these regions. We analyze the hydrological effects of thawing and freezing of soil on vegetation carbon density (VCD) in permafrost‐dominated regions of Siberia using a process‐based biogeochemistry‐biogeography model, the Lund‐Potsdam‐Jena Dynamic Global Vegetation Model (LPJ‐DGVM). The analysis is based on spatially explicit simulations of coupled daily thaw depth, site hydrology, vegetation distribution, and carbon fluxes influencing VCD subject to climate, soil texture, and atmospheric CO2 concentration. LPJ represents the observed high spring peak of runoff of large Arctic rivers, and simulates a realistic fire return interval of 100 to 200 years in Siberia. The simulated VCD changeover from taiga to tundra is comparable to inventory‐based information. Without the consideration of freeze‐thaw processes VCD would be overestimated by a factor of 2 in southern taiga to a factor of 5 in northern forest tundra, mainly because available soil water would be overestimated with major effects on fire occurrence and net primary productivity. This suggests that forest growth in high latitudes is not only limited by temperature, radiation, and nutrient availability but also by the availability of liquid soil water.
Adaptive Payoff Balance Among Mobile Wireless Chargers for Rechargeable Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless power transfer (WPT) based on mobile platforms, such as unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), has been recognized as a promised technique to prolong battery lifetime of resource-constrained wireless sensors in the Internet of Things (IoT) era. However, it is challenging to collaborate multiple mobile wireless chargers (MWCs) for coordinating heterogeneous energy requirements of massive rechargeable wireless sensors, where the efficient optimization of quantitative collaboration utility among MWCs is difficult. Hence, this article investigates the adaptive payoff balance among MWCs for rechargeable wireless sensor networks (RWSNs). First, the collaborative wireless powered system based on charging sectors control among MWCs is proposed. Then, the charging payoff function and the corresponding optimization problem for maximizing the minimum payoff are designed, and it is decomposed into two layers by the hierarchical decompose method to be solved quickly. In the bottom layer, the payoff of each MWC with the given charging sector is maximized by the convex optimization theory. According to the payoff feedback of the bottom layer, intelligent charging sectors allocation is realized by the deep reinforcement learning. The simulation results show that our algorithm can ensure efficient energy allocation of any single MWC, and the overall utility of collaborative wireless powered system on this basis can be optimized by rationally allocating charging sectors, which significantly improves the sustainability of RWSN.
AWLloss: Speaker Verification Based on the Quality and Difficulty of Speech

Speaker verification is a natural and effective biometric authentication method. This method may be more practical when trained using data from real, unconstrained scenarios. However, although the speech quality from real scenarios varies because of various adverse factors, including extreme noise and the lack of identity information, most models treat all speech samples equally. To tackle this deficiency, we propose adaptive weight loss (AWL), a function that assigns different weights to samples in accordance with their quality and difficulty based on our finding that speech quality is positively correlated with the L2 norm of speaker embedding. AWL directs the model's attention to high-quality difficult speech samples and ignores low-quality difficult samples as much as possible so that the model can learn well from speech data containing a lot of noise. Comprehensive experiments reveal that AWL significantly outperforms existing loss functions on both utilized public and noisy datasets.
Open-Set Recognition for Facial-Expression Recognition

We address distinguishing whether an input is a facial image by learning only a facial-expression recognition (FER) dataset. To avoid misclassification in FER, it is necessary to distinguish whether the input is a facial image. Unfortunately, collecting exhaustive non-face images is costly. Therefore, distinguishing whether the input is a facial image by learning only an FER dataset is important. A representative method for this task is learning reconstruction of only facial images and determining high-error samples between input images and reconstructed images as non-face images. However, reconstruction is difficult on facial images because such images contain detailed features. Our key idea to tackle the task without reconstruction is assuming that facial images will match several emotions, whereas non-face images will not match any emotion. Therefore, we propose a method for training a discriminator that determines whether the inputs and emotions match using counter-factual pairs in an FER dataset. A metric for the task is then obtained by taking into account each emotion in the posterior probability that inputs and emotions match, estimated by the discriminator. Experiments on the RAF-DB dataset vs. the Stanford Dogs dataset and AffectNet datasets showed the effectiveness of our method.
Foreign object detection of transmission line based on improved Yolov5

The environment of the transmission line is complex and easy to attach foreign matter, which has always been one of the reasons for the safety hazards to the operation of the transmission line. In view of the current problem that the detection accuracy of the foreign matter on the transmission line needs to be improved, an improved transmission line foreign matter detection method based on the Yolov5 algorithm is proposed. Detection model. First, the RepVGG module is introduced into the feature extraction network to enhance the network feature extraction ability and improve the model reasoning speed; secondly, the ability of the network to identify important feature information is strengthened by integrating the attention mechanism module; finally, by adding the prediction layer and Soft-nms the algorithm processes the target prediction frame to improve the detection accuracy of the model. The experimental results show that the improved Yolov5 transmission line foreign object detection algorithm proposed in this paper has a mAP value of 4.1% higher than the conventional Yolov5, and it also has certain advantages in performance compared with the conventional target detection algorithm.
A Health Condition Indicator Localization Method for the Power Devices in Three-Phase Inverter

Health indicators are critical to the reliability assessment of power devices, and researchers have endeavored to research their online measurements in recent decades. However, most measurement circuits are connected to the terminals of power devices directly, which is not favored in industry due to intrusiveness. Although an advanced circuit was invented by connecting to the output terminals of inverters only, calling converter-level solution, it can only obtain the combination of ON-state voltage of power switches and forward voltage of diodes, impeding its application in the converters that require to obtain the health condition indicator of each power device. This article presents a separation solution for the health indicators of power switches and freewheeling diodes based on this converter-level measurement circuit, exploiting its potential in achieving the individual health indicator of all power devices in a three-phase inverter. It uses the output information of the converter-level measurement circuit and the triangular carrier in the controller of the three-phase inverter to realize the separation. Hence, it can extract the individual health indicators of all power devices in a three-phase inverter without adding extra hardware, expanding the application of the converter-level solution. The experimental testing is conducted with a down-scale inverter and the results prove the effectiveness of the proposed method.
High-Sensitivity C-reactive Protein and Intracranial Arterial Stenosis Predicted Recurrent Stroke and Dependence or Death in Minor Stroke or Transient Ischemic Attack

Aims: Inflammation is associated with vascular events. We aimed to investigate the relationship between high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) levels with and without intracranial arterial stenosis (ICAS) and the prognosis of patients with minor stroke or transient ischemic attack. Methods: We used data from the Clopidogrel in High-Risk Patients with Acute Nondisabling Cerebrovascular Events trial (derivation cohort) and the Third China National Stroke Registry (validation cohort). Patients were divided into four groups according to the dichotomy of hsCRP level and ICAS status. The primary outcome was new ischemic stroke within 90 days, and the secondary outcome was dependence or death (Modified Rankin Scale score of 3–6) at 90 days. The associations between hsCRP level with and without ICAS and risk of outcomes were analyzed using multivariate Cox regression and logistic regression models. Results: In the derivation cohort, compared with patients with nonelevated hsCRP levels and no ICAS, those with both elevated hsCRP levels and ICAS had increased risk of recurrent stroke (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 2.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.28–5.34;p=0.008) and dependence or death (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 7.58; 95% CI, 1.30–44.13;p=0.02). Consistent relationships of elevated hsCRP levels and presence of ICAS with recurrent stroke (adjusted HR, 1.67; 95% CI, 1.13–2.45;p=0.009) and dependence or death (adjusted OR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.23–2.84;p=0.003) were observed in the validation cohort. Conclusion: Concomitant presence of increased hsCRP levels and ICAS was associated with increased risk of stroke recurrence and dependence or death in patients with minor ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack.
Virus-Like Particles Assembled Using Respiratory Syncytial Virus Matrix Protein Elicit Protective Immunity in Mice

Purpose Heterologous virus-like particle (VLP) assembly involving influenza or the Newcastle disease virus matrix protein (M) has been extensively used to explore the efficacies of VLP vaccines against the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Here, we attempted to generate homologous RSV VLPs by expressing the pre-fusion (pre-F) or the glycoprotein (G) on the RSV M protein and evaluated their protective efficacy in mice. Methods We generated VLPs using the baculovirus expression system in Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) insect cells. Recombinant baculoviruses expressing the RSV pre-F, G, and M antigens were inoculated into Sf9 cells, and particles were self-assembled. Mice were immunized with either pre-F or G-expressing VLPs, and immune parameters were assessed to determine protection. Results Our findings show that successful VLP assembly can be achieved by utilizing recombinant baculoviruses expressing the RSV pre-F or G proteins with the native matrix protein. Mice immunized with either pre-F or the G antigen-expressing VLPs elicited robust serum-mediated virus neutralization. VLP immunization evoked Th1-biased RSV-specific antibody responses in the sera of mice. Following challenge infection with the RSV A2 strain, immunized mice experienced lesser eosinophil and IL-4 accumulation in the lungs, though a substantial increase in TNF-α secretion was observed from CD4+ T cells. Interestingly, splenic antibody-secreting cell responses were substantially enhanced against RSV F antigen, but not against the RSV G antigen following immunization and challenge infection. Immunizing mice with the VLPs significantly inhibited pulmonary histopathology development, as indicated by the diminished inflammatory immune cell influx and mucin secretion. Conclusion Combined, these vaccine-induced immune responses contributed to successfully inhibiting the RSV replication in the lungs of mice and demonstrated that RSV VLP assembly using insect cell-derived homologous RSV matrix protein is a feasible approach.
Self-Referential Processing and Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Reward devaluation theory posits that depressed individuals avoid and devalue positivity, suggesting that they may hold fewer positive self-schemas. Previous meta-analytic reviews have supported this theoretical framework regarding positivity but have not assessed for self-referential stimuli. Self-referential encoding and recall tasks assess for self-schemas and thus provide further insight into how depressed individuals process self-referential positivity. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine the extent to which depressed individuals differ in processing self-referential positivity and negativity and whether this processing differs when depressed individuals think of others (i.e., other-referential). Results indicate that depressed individuals recall and endorse fewer self-referential positive words than negative words and fewer self-referential positive words than other-referential positive words than nondepressed individuals. These findings support reward devaluation theory and suggest that conceptualizing self-referential processing in depression as merely based on negativity biases can overlook crucial information about how depressed individuals devalue self-referential positive information.
The preliminary study of diabetic retinopathy detection based on intensity parameters with optical coherence tomography angiography

In this study, the diagnostic abilities of intensity parameters of optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) images in the early detection of diabetic retinopathy (DR) were determined. 78 normal healthy eyes, 10 diabetic eyes with mild non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR), and 10 diabetic eyes with moderate NPDR were employed. Four retinal vascular plexuses were generated by using OCTA, which included the nerve fiber layer vascular plexus (NFLVP), superficial vascular plexus (SVP), intermediate capillary plexus (ICP) and deep capillary plexus (DCP). The parafoveal zone in each OCTA image was divided into four sectors which were the superior, temporal, inferior, and nasal sectors. Five intensity parameters including the mean, median, variance, skewness, and kurtosis of intensities were calculated for each sector. The factor of aging was evaluated among normal healthy subgroups. The diagnostic abilities of intensity parameters were evaluated between normal healthy subjects and diabetic patients with DR. Our results showed that the variance of intensities in superior sector in ICP achieved the highest AUROC value of 0.95 with the sensitivity of 0.87 and the specificity of 1.000 when comparing the diabetic patients with the mild NPDR to normal healthy subjects. The mean intensity in superior sector in ICP achieved the second highest AUROC value of 0.95 with the sensitivity of 0.90 and the specificity of 0.90 when comparing the diabetic patients with the moderate NPDR to normal healthy subjects. The proposed approach could offer a simple way to differentiate diabetic patients with early DR from normal healthy subjects without performing the relatively complicated image processing techniques.
Synthesis and Evaluation of 99mTc-Labelled 2-Nitroimidazole Derivatives with Different Linkers for Tumour Hypoxia Imaging

When developing novel radiopharmaceuticals, a linker moiety between the chelator and targeting vector can have a crucial influence on adjusting the affinity of the tracer and its biodistribution in organisms. To develop novel 99mTc-labelled hypoxia imaging radiotracers, in this study, five isocyanide-containing 2-nitroimidazole derivatives with different linkers (L1, L2, L3, L4 and L5) were synthesised and radiolabelled with technetium-99m to obtain five stable 99mTc-complexes ([99mTc]Tc-L1, [99mTc]Tc-L2, [99mTc]Tc-L3, [99mTc]Tc-L4 and [99mTc]Tc-L5). Corresponding rhenium analogues of [99mTc]Tc-L1 were synthesised and suggested the structures of these 99mTc-complexes would be a monovalent cation with a technetium (I) core surrounded by six ligands. [99mTc]Tc-L1 is hydrophilic, while the lipophilicities of [99mTc]Tc-L2, [99mTc]Tc-L3, [99mTc]Tc-L4 and [99mTc]Tc-L5 are close. In vitro cell experiments showed that all five novel 99mTc-complexes had higher uptake in hypoxic cells compared with aerobic cells, which indicates the complexes have good hypoxia selectivity. The biodistribution of the five 99mTc-complexes in S180 tumour-bearing mice showed that they all had certain uptake in the tumours. Among them, [99mTc]Tc-L1 had the highest tumour-to-muscle (4.68 ± 0.44) and tumour-to-blood (3.81 ± 0.46) ratios. The introduction of polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains effectively reduced the lipophilicity and decreased uptake by the liver, intestine and blood but also increased clearance from the tumours. In vivo metabolic studies showed [99mTc]Tc-L1 kept intact and remained stable in tumour, blood and urine at 2 h post-injection. The results of SPECT imaging showed that [99mTc]Tc-L1 had significant tumour uptake at 2 h post-injection, but there was still high uptake in abdominal organs such as the liver and kidney, suggesting that this complex needs to be further optimised before being used for tumour hypoxia imaging.
Theoretical optimization of the working properties of spatial thermoradiative cells using the Carnot efficiency

We develop an endoreversible scheme for thermoradiative cells where the thermodynamic variables are functionals of the Carnot efficiency of the reversible part of the model. The new description enlarges previous embodiments since it includes new thermodynamic properties (total entropy and ecological function) that depend on the temperatures of the hot and cold reservoirs assisting the conversion. The new model is used to find optimal working conditions of spatial thermoradiative cells where the converter gets the heat from the radiative emission of Earth and rejects energy to colder space. Our calculations show that optimal working points can be found using the total entropy or the ecological function. In the last part of the paper, we compare our results with those found in previous works using models that do not consider the entropy losses.
Application of Variable Speed Limits along the Trans Canada Highway in Banff National Park

The Federal Government is proceeding with the twinning of the Trans Canada Highway from the Castle Mountain Interchange to the Alberta/BC border within Banff National Park. This section of highway is approximately 35 kilometers in length and will tie in to the existing twinned section of the Trans Canada Highway at the Castle Mountain Interchange. In conjunction with the twinning of the Trans Canada Highway, Parks Canada is considering deployment of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) within the park in an effort to improve the operation and safety performance of the highway. One such initiative focuses on the application of a variable speed limit. This paper will report on a literature review that has been undertaken to understand issues associated with variable speed limit applications.
Foliar transcriptomes reveal candidate genes for late blight resistance in cultivars of diploid potato Solanum tuberosum L. Andigenum Group

Characterization of major resistance (R) genes to late blight (LB) –caused by the oomycete Phytophthora infestans– is very important for potato breeding. The objective of this study was to identify novel genes for resistance to LB from diploid Solanum tuberosum L. Andigenum Group (StAG) cultivar accessions. Using comparative analysis with a edgeR bioconductor package for differential expression analysis of transcriptomes, two of these accessions with contrasting levels of resistance to LB were analyzed using digital gene expression data. As a result, various differentially expressed genes (P ≤ 0.0001, Log2FC ≥ 2, FDR < 0.001) were noted. The combination of transcriptomic analysis provided 303 candidate genes that are overexpressed and underexpressed, thereby giving high resistance to LB. The functional analysis showed differential expression of R genes and their corresponding proteins related to disease resistance, NBS-LRR domain proteins, and specific disease resistance proteins. Comparative analysis of specific tissue transcriptomes in resistant and susceptible genotypes can be used for rapidly identifying candidate R genes, thus adding novel genes from diploid StAG cultivar accessions for host plant resistance to P. infestans in potato.
Site preparation for red oak plantation establishment on old field sites in southern Indiana

Little research has been conducted on the use of mechanical site preparation or fertilization in the Central Hardwood Region. Many hardwood plantings, particularly oak plantings, on old field sites in the region have resulted in high rates of mortality, stem die-back, and slow early-growth rates. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of mechanical site preparation techniques and fertilization on the early survival and growth of northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.) seedlings planted on an old field site in southern Indiana. The study was initiated in the Spring of 1993 on a severely eroded old field site, which had a history of successive plantation failures. The treatments included all possible combinations of subsoiling, tillage, and fertilization. Each treatment combination was replicated four times. Subsoiling was accomplished to a 45 - 50 cm depth. Conventional tillage consisted of a three bottom moldboard plow followed by disking to a tillage depth of approximately 25 cm. Fertilization consisted of 336 kg nitrogen/ha, 98 kg phosphorus/ha, 93 kg potassium/ha, 224 kg calcium/ha, 56 kg magnesium/ha, 112 kg sulfur/ha, and 560 kg lime/ha. Seedling survival, diameter and height growth, root growth parameters, and foliage nutrient concentrations were measured. Deer browsing was also monitored. After one growing season, survival exceeded 99% over all treatments. Fertilization produced a 47% and 60% increase in height and diameter growth, respectively, over the unfertilized treatments. Subsoiling and tillage did not appear to significantly increase tree stem growth. Fertilized seedlings had higher foliar N concentrations, dark green foliage and 2.1 growth flushes during the first growing season compared to the yellow-green foliage and the 1.2 growth flushes produced by unfertilized seedlings. Fertilized trees were favored by the deer for browse, but resprouted vigorously following browsing. Nitrogen was the main factor limiting tree growth. Fertilization enhanced height growth by inducing multiple growth flushes throughout the growing season. Because the results of this study are preliminary, treatment effects will be monitored through the establishment phase of the plantation.