Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Automated COVID-19 Detection From Exhaled Human Breath Using CNN-CatBoost Ensemble Model

In this letter, we propose a novel approach for detecting COVID-19 from exhaled breath. Recent studies have revealed that certain exhaled breath components can be used as biomarkers for detecting COVID-19. Breath-based analysis stands out among the various noninvasive ways of detection as it provides a simpler and more relaxed method of diagnosis. Low-cost diagnosis methods are required to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, such as COVID-19. A cost-effective sensing module consisting of an array of sensors is developed in this letter to measure the levels of acetone, methanol, isopropanol, and ethanol in the exhaled breath to detect COVID-19. For the best predictive performance, we have implemented a convolution neural network-categorical boosting (CNN-CatBoost) ensemble model, which classifies the test samples to make predictions. The proposed procedure correctly classified the samples with an accuracy of 96.15%. The results of the study suggest that the combinations of these four biomarkers, along with the proposed sensing module and deep learning technique, can serve as a trustworthy method for noninvasively detecting COVID-19.
Effect of the vacancy interaction on the antiphase domain growth process in a two dimensional binary alloy

The influence of diffusing vacancies on the antiphase domain growth process in a binary alloy is studied by Monte Carlo simulations. The system is modelled by means of a Blume-Emery-Griffiths hamiltonian with a biquadratic coupling parameter K controlling the microscopic interactions between vacancies. We obtain that, independently of K, the vacancies exhibit a tendency to concentrate on the antiphase boundaries. This gives rise to an effective interactions between movin interfaces and diffusing vacancies which strongly influences the domain growth process. One distinguishes three different behaviours: i) for K<1 the growth is anisotropic and can be described by algebraic laws with exponents lower than 1/2, ii) for K=1 we find standard Allen-Cahn growth and iii) for K>1 the growth is slown down but still curvature driven.
ANALYSIS OF A 17-YEAR OLD DUTCH OPEN-POLLINATED PROGENY TRIAL WITH QUERCUS ROBUR (L.)

Height, DBH, epicormics, stem straightness and forking have been recorded in an open-pollinated progeny trial at the age of 17 years from sowing. The material is of local Dutch origin and comprises 37 open-pollinated progenies of 6 plus-trees selected in each of 6 stands supplemented with 3 arboretum-progenies of Quercus petraea (Matt.) Lieb. Population-samples from each of the 6 base provenances as well as 17 additional Dutch provenances are included in the fully randomised blockexperiment with 24-plants plots. Significant provenance as well as family within provenance variation was detected in most situations. Especially high heritabilities were detected for stem straightness and epicormic formation. Low level of epicormic formation and high level of stem straightness is positively correlated with height, indicating favourable conditions for obtaining useful genetic gains for a combination of these traits.
Project hunt: an assessment of wildlife hunting practices by local community in Chizami, Nagaland, India

Hunting is suggested as a major threat to Indian wildlife, especially in the northeastern states. In Nagaland hunting has a traditional and cultural significance, which should be taken into consideration by conservation efforts. Limited information is available on this issue, and in order to establish a baseline for efforts aimed at education and implementation of conservation programmes, in this study we investigated various aspects of hunting practices in Chizami Village, Nagaland. Our study involved general voting by 868 people and detailed interviews of 80 hunters, and explores the demography of hunters, hunting areas, hunting preference for season and animals, methods of hunting, reasons for hunting and willingness to cease hunting. Our results indicate that education could be an important primer for initiating biological conservation efforts in Chizami and other areas.
Estimating attenuation and the relative information content of amplitude and phase spectra

Seismic attenuation affects both the amplitude and phase of seismic waves. Algorithms to estimate attenuation are split among those that use amplitude information (e.g., spectral-ratio method), those that use phase information (e.g., rise-time method), and those that use a combination of both (e.g., time-domain algorithms). In this study, I explore the relative information provided by amplitude and phase spectra. To do this, I show how the difference in phase spectra between waveforms recorded at two depth levels can be used to estimate attenuation. This phase-difference method is analogous to the method of spectral ratios, but uses phase information rather than amplitude information. Under the simplifying assumption that the noise in both log-amplitude and phase spectra can be modeled as uncorrelated Gaussian random variables with equal variance, the posterior variances in the attenuation estimates from the spectral-ratio and phase-difference methods can be compared directly. It turns out that over typic.
(In)Visibility of the Enslaved Within Online Plantation Tourism Marketing: a Textual Analysis of North Carolina Websites

Tourism landscapes are constructed and marketed in selective ways that reaffirm long‐standing patterns of social power and inequality and thus influence whose histories and identities are remembered and forgotten. The purpose of this article is to conduct an analysis of plantation tourism marketing in North Carolina, measuring the degree to which the history of slavery and the enslaved are (in)visible within online promotional texts. Previous research has found that the slave experience is frequently ignored in promoting the Southern plantation, although the analysis of North Carolina has been limited in the past and no studies to date have examined the promotional images found on plantation websites. An analysis of 20 websites for historic plantations in North Carolina does not reveal a universal exclusion of the enslaved but it certainly shows an uneven treatment both in terms of the absolute number of textual references to slavery and the frequency of these references relative to other themes used in marketing the plantation landscape. Among those plantation websites that show a sensitivity to slave history, two discourses are employed that still run the risk of misrepresenting the enslaved even as they devote needed attention to this marginalized population. They are the discourse of the individual (a)typical slave, and the discourse of the good master/faithful slave. We conclude by highlighting two representational strategies used by some plantation websites that could serve as exemplars for other destinations inside the state and beyond. These strategies include documenting the different identities and histories of many slaves rather just a few, and discussing the hardships and resistance that often characterized the slave experience. The authors gratefully acknowledge the helpful comments of the article's two anonymous reviewers and the support of the Center for Sustainable Tourism at East Carolina University. Derek dedicates the article to his wife Donna and son Tyler. Arnold dedicates the article to his son A. J. and daughter Onyx.
The City is Flatter: Changing Patterns of Job and Labor Access in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, 1995-2005

This study describes the measurement of accessibility by automobile for the Minneapolis - Saint Paul (Twin Cities) region over the period from 1995 to 2005. In contrast to previous analyses of accessibility, this study uses travel time estimates derived, to the extent possible, from actual observations of network performance by time of day. A set of cumulative opportunity measures are computed with transportation analysis zones (TAZs) as the unit of analysis for 1995 and 2005. Analysis of the changes in accessibility by location over the period of study reveals that, for the majority of locations in the region, accessibility increased over this period, though the increases were not uniform. A "flattening" or convergence of levels of accessibility across locations was observed over time, with faster-growing suburban locations gaining the most in terms of employment accessibility. An effort to decompose the causes of changes in accessibility into components related to transportation network structure and land use (opportunity location) reveal that both causes make a contribution to increasing accessibility, though the effects of changes to the transportation network tend to be more location-specific. Overall, the results of the study demonstrate the feasibility and relevance of using accessibility as a key performance measure to describe the regional transportation system.
An integrated seismic-scale analysis of reservoir compartmentalisation on continental margins: the Espirito Santo Basin, SE Brazil

Deepwater continental margins constitute one of the ultimate exploration frontiers where giant oilfields have been discovered. These comprise reservoirs units affected by multi‐scale compartmentalisation resultant from stratigraphic, structural and/or diagenetic processes that compromise the lateral and/or vertical connectivity of permeable strata. A 3D seismic dataset from the deepwater Espirito Santo Basin (SE Brazil) was analysed to assess and quantify the architectural elements that influence the compartmentalisation of reservoir units. Mass‐Transport Deposits (MTDs) have growing importance on reservoir studies as they highly impact the compartmentalisation of contemporaneous reservoir‐prone turbidite strata. More significant compartmentalisation occurs in areas with higher MTD proportion, which are associated to wider dimensional ranges of laterally limited turbidites. However, salt diapirs constitute important barriers for MTD erosion, thus aiding the preservation of reservoir‐prone turbidites. The internal compositional heterogeneities and cohese strata on remnant and rafted blocks identified within the studied MTDs constitute important fluid flow or accumulation compartments, particularly when linked to underlying permeable faults. Submarine channels in Palaeocene and Neogene Units comprise important reservoir‐prone strata, thus it is crucial to understand their spatial distribution. Large channels are focused along the axis of salt‐withdrawal basins, whereas in sub‐units with numerous smaller channels these are laterally scattered across the basin. A new quantitative method used in this study shows that channel confluences and topographic confinement control significantly the density and spatial distribution patterns of submarine channels. A novel classification for submarine channel confluences is proposed, based on channel morphology and distribution of sediment facies within the tributaries. The key aim of this thesis was to undertake a seismic‐scale qualitative and quantitative analysis of the compartmentalisation of reservoir units on the Brazilian margin using methodologies that can be applied to other continental margins worldwide. As such, the results of this study can provide significant contributions for hydrocarbon exploration.
The permeability of a melting snow cover

Data from snow lysimeters in California and Vermont are used to find the saturated permeability of a melting snow cover in the range of 10–40 × 10−10 m2 depending on snow density. The unsaturated permeability increases as about the third power of liquid saturation. The gravity flow theory is shown to be an accurate representation of meltwater drainage from snow covers in two diverse areas even though the snow covers are treated as homogeneous units. The variation of saturated permeability with snow density occurs about as predicted by Shimizu's formula for dry snow, although ice layers decrease the permeability somewhat.
An experimental investigation of the interactions between reaction‐driven and stress‐driven melt segregation: 2. Disaggregation at high melt fraction

To investigate the coupling between stress‐driven melt segregation and reaction‐driven melt infiltration, we performed static annealing and torsional deformation experiments on couples constructed from a melt‐rich basaltic source and melt‐poor olivine + orthopyroxene + chromite + basalt sink. In this study (the second of two companion papers), the melt source is almost completely molten with ϕ = 0.8–0.9, well above the rheologically critical melt fraction. We deformed two geometries of source/sink couples with the source either as the core or the outer ring of a cylinder. Our experiments demonstrate (1) that deformation significantly enhances the rate of melt infiltration from the source into the sink and (2) that combined reaction and deformation promote greater strain localization than does deformation alone. Deformation and melt infiltration enhance disaggregation at the interface of the source and sink. The implication of these coupled interactions is that deformation and melt‐rock reaction may enhance the corrosion (or ‘stoping’) rates of the wall rocks of magma chambers and intrusions in the crust and upper mantle.
Institutions as the Fundamental Cause of Long-Run Growth

This paper develops the empirical and theoretical case that differences in economic institutions are the fundamental cause of differences in economic development. We first document the empirical importance of institutions by focusing on wo quasi-natural experiments" in history, the division of Korea into two parts with very different economic institutions and the colonization of much of the world by European powers starting in the fifteenth century. We then develop the basic outline of a framework for thinking about why economic institutions differ across countries. Economic institutions determine the incentives of and the constraints on economic actors, and shape economic outcomes. As such, they are social decisions, chosen for their consequences. Because different groups and individuals typically benefit from different economic institutions, there is generally a conflict over these social choices, ultimately resolved in favor of groups with greater political power. The distribution of political power in society is in turn determined by political institutions and the distribution of resources. Political institutions allocate de jure political power, while groups with greater economic might typically possess greater de facto political power. We therefore view the appropriate theoretical framework as a dynamic one with political institutions and the distribution of resources as the state variables. These variables themselves change over time because prevailing economic institutions affect the distribution of resources, and because groups with de facto political power today strive to change political institutions in order to increase their de jure political power in the future. Economic institutions encouraging economic growth emerge when political institutions allocate power to groups with interests in broad-based property rights enforcement, when they create effective constraints on power-holders, and when there are relatively few rents to be captured by power holders. We illustrate the assumptions, the workings and the implications of this framework using a number of historical examples. "
Seasonality testing for macroeconomic time series – comparison of X-12-ARIMA and TRAMO/SEATS procedures

Economic time series can be impacted by seasonal factors. If present but not identified, seasonality may lead to incorrect conclusions derived from the analysis. Seasonality is not always easily identifiable as time series are shaped by other factors as well, such as one-off events or natural disasters. There is a variety of methods to deal with seasonality in data. An attempt was made to compare the outcome of two popular methods: X-12-ARIMA and TRAMO/SEATS. They were applied to analyse seasonality for the business climate index in the construction industry in Poland. Both procedures were used to produce a seasonally adjusted series for the business climate index. Comparison of model’s diagnostics proved that TRAMO/SEATS performed slightly better for the analysed series within a chosen time range, which is consistent with some more general results found in the literature.
Seasonal prediction of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall using canonical correlation analysis of the NCMRWF global model products

In this study, canonical correlation analysis (CCA) has been used to statistically downscale the seasonal predictions of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) from a global spectral model. An extensive diagnostic study of the global model products and observed data for the period 1981–2008 indicates that while the predictions of rainfall anomalies have poor skill, the mean flow patterns are brought out reasonably well by the model. The model precipitation is found to be more strongly dependent on sea surface temperature over the Nino regions in the Pacific Ocean. However, the observed precipitation has a stronger links to winds at 850 hPa near the Somali coast than is evident in the model. On the basis of correlation maps, potential model predictors (specific humidity and zonal and meridional winds over different regions at different levels) are chosen for CCA for the prediction of ISMR. Using leave‐three‐out cross‐validation technique, canonical coefficients are computed using 25 years data (as training period) for CCA model. With this, predictions from the CCA model have also been prepared for the period of 1981–2005 to evaluate the performance. In addition to the above, predictions are made for four independent years (2006–2009). An improvement in skill of the composite forecasts (obtained using all the predictors) in terms of interannual variability is noticed over some parts of east‐ and northeast India as well as many parts of peninsular region especially over west coast of India. Copyright © 2012 Royal Meteorological Society
Cnns in land cover mapping with remote sensing imagery: a review and meta-analysis

ABSTRACT Convolutional neural network (CNN) comprises the most common and extensively used network in the field of deep learning (DL). The design of CNNs was influenced by neurons, like a traditional neural network. CNN has fundamental advantage over earlier works since it can detect in an automatic way critical features without the need for human intervention. CNNs have been widely employed in various applications, including land cover classification. Multiple CNN architectures have been introduced over the previous decade. Applications rely on model architecture to improve their performance. The CNN architecture has undergone several alterations up to this day. Several CNN architectures have been introduced in the literature, depicting strong and weak points. This review article presents an overview of the development of convolutional neural networks as they are described in state-of-the-art literature, including remote sensing books, journals, and conferences. Following a thorough assessment of current CNN case studies in land cover mapping through statistical analysis, informative results pertaining to the implemented CNN architecture are presented including relevant findings such as the framework that was utilized, highlighting the most popular choices among the users. It has to be noted that there is not a miraculous CNN model, and the statistical findings reflect the latest developments. Finally, current issues and innovative aspects are addressed.
Glaciation and deglaciation mechanisms in a coupled two-dimensional climate—ice-sheet model

Abstract A two-dimensional model which links the atmosphere, the mixed layer of the ocean, the sea ice, the continents, the ice sheets and their underlying bedrock has been used to test the Milankovitch theory over the last glacial—interglacial cycle. It was found that the orbital variations alone can induce, in such a system, feed-backs sufficient to generate the low-frequency part of the climatic variations over the last 122 kyear. These simulated variations at the astronomical time-scale are broadly in agreement with ice volume and sea-level reconstructions independently obtained from geological data. Imperfections in the simulated climate were the insufficient southward extent of the ice sheets and the too small hemispheric cooling during the last glacial maximum. These deficiencies were partly remedied in a further experiment (Gallée and others, in press) by using the time-dependent CO2 atmospheric concentration given by the Vostok ice core in addition to the astronomical forcing. For this second experiment, the main mechanisms and feedbacks responsible for the glaciation and the deglaciation in the model are discussed here.
LINC00861 inhibits the progression of cervical cancer cells by functioning as a ceRNA for miR-513b-5p and regulating the PTEN/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been discovered to serve important roles in a variety of types of cancer, including cervical cancer. The low expression of lncRNA long intergenic non-protein coding RNA 861 (LINC00861) is related to poor prognosis in ovarian cancer. However, the effects and underlying mechanisms of LINC00861 in cervical cancer remain largely unknown. The present study aimed to examine the role of LINC00861 in the development and progression of ovarian cancer and its underlying mechanisms. The expression levels of LINC00861 and microRNA (miR)-513b-5p were analyzed using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR analysis. Cell proliferation, migration and invasion were measured by using Cell Counting Kit-8, colony formation, wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. A luciferase assay was used to determine whether miR-513b-5p targeted LINC00861 and PTEN. The expression of protein was measured by using western blot assay. The results of the present study discovered that LINC00861 expression levels were significantly downregulated in cervical cancer tissues and CaSki and ME-180 cell lines. Downregulated LINC00861 expression levels were identified to be associated with an advanced-stage, lymph node metastasis and the poor survival of patients with cervical cancer. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis revealed that the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway was significantly enriched in cervical tumors expressing low expression levels of LINC00861 compared with tumors expressing high levels of LINC00861. The overexpression of LINC00861 reduced cervical cancer cell proliferation, migration, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) processes, upregulated PTEN protein expression levels and downregulated phosphorylated (p)-AKT and p-mTOR protein expression levels. The regulatory relationship between LINC00861, microRNA (miR)-513b-5p and PTEN was validated using a dual luciferase reporter gene assay. PTEN expression levels were significantly downregulated in the miR-513b-5p mimic group and significantly upregulated in the miR-513b-5p inhibitor group compared with the mimic NC and inhibitor NC in both cell lines. Furthermore, LINC00861 was suggested to serve as a competing endogenous RNA by sponging miR-513b-5p and consequently upregulating the expression levels of PTEN in cervical cancer cells. The expression of PTEN, the phosphorylation of Akt and mTOR and and the EMT phenotype were rescued following co-transfection with LINC00861 and miR-513b-5p mimics. In conclusion, the findings of the present study indicated that the LINC00861/miR-513b-5p axis may inhibit the progression of cervical cancer cells through the PTEN/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway to suppress the EMT process.