Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fe(III) Precipitation and Copper Loss from Sulphate-Chloride Solutions at 150 °C: A Statistical Approach

The purification of hydrometallurgical process solutions by Fe(III) precipitation is a common and large-scale industrial operation. This step is notorious for valuable metal loss occurring with the iron precipitation product, which is usually directed to tailings. In this study, factors affecting Fe(III) precipitation and associated copper loss were studied in synthetic process solutions using statistical methods. The variables studied were: Initial acid concentration, retention time, seed addition, and initial Fe(III), Cu(II), and chloride concentrations. The importance of each variable and its interaction effects were studied against two responses, i.e., percent of Fe(III) precipitated as hematite and percent of Cu lost to solids. The results showed that a combination of high acid and moderate seeding was required to simultaneously achieve high proportions of Fe(III) precipitated as hematite and lower copper loss to the precipitates. High acid concentrations create low supersaturation for Fe(III), which minimizes the consequences of homogeneous nucleation and favors particle growth.
Cercospora beticola toxins. IX. Relationship between structure of beticolins, inhibition of plasma membrane H+-ATPase and partition in lipid membranes

Beticolins are yellow toxins produced by the fungus Cercospora beticola. The effect of one of them, beticolin-1, has been investigated on corn root plasma membrane H + -ATPase (EC 3.6.1.35) at different purification levels (plasma membrane fraction. partially, or highly purified enzyme). The results obtained demonstrated that (1) the purified proton pump was inhibited directly by low amounts of the toxin (I 50 =1.62 ± 0.18 μM), (2) the biological effects of beticolin-1 were similar to those of CBT (Cercospora beticola toxin). Furthermore, it was established that the efficiency of the different beticolins was clearly related to their ability to interact with the lipid bilayers, determined by fluorometric studies : the toxins that exhibited the lower I 50 (50% inhibitory concentrations) values were the molecules that had the lowest partition coefficient to liposomes.
Relationships Between the Parasitoid Hyposoter exiguae and the Cabbage Looper, Trichoplusia ni: Effects of Host Age on Developmental Rate of the Parasitoid

Effects of age of Trichoplusia ni (Hubner) on rate of development of Hyposoter exiguae (Viereck), a solitary endoparasitoid, and the relationships of parasitism to growth and developmental patterns of the host were determined. Hosts parasitized prior to the sixth day of age initially developed similarly to nonparasitized individuals, but from the 6th day parasitized larvae grew slower. The maximum weight of these larvae was about one-seventh that of nonparasitized individuals. Growth patterns of larvae parasitized after the sixth day of age are almost immediately observable. Parasitized individuals gain little or no weight as compared with normally developing larvae. The maximum weights of these larvae were one-fifth to one-third the weights of nonparasitized larvae. Parasitoid development time was significantly negative when correlated with host age. Those starting their development in 1-day-old hosts required 13.85 days to complete development, whereas parasitoids starting development in 10-day-old hosts required only 7.4 days to complete development. Developmental rate changes most dramatically from one- to four-day-old hosts, by more than four days. In hosts five-ten days old development differed by approximately one day.
Comparison of Fast Startle Responses between Two Elongate Bony Fish with an Anguilliform Type of Locomotion, the African Lungfish, Protopterus annectens, and the American Eel, Anguilla rostrata, and the Implications for the Underlying Neuronal Basis of Escape Behavior

A comparative anatomical and behavioral approach was used to elucidate the role of medullary networks associated with Mauthner cells (M-cells) in determining the type of fast startle responses of elongate bony fish with an anguilliform type of locomotion. The M-cell initiates fast startle responses in goldfish and is thought to initiate such responses in other fish as well [Wilson, 1959; Eaton et al., 1977; Currie and Carlsen, 1987; Currie, 1991]. Goldfish M-cells have a specialized structure, termed an axon cap, that surrounds their axon hillock-initial segment region and is critical for the control of M-cell excitability. The M-cell axon cap is present in some elongate fish such as the African lungfish (Protopterus, Lepidosireniformes) and absent in others such as the American eel (Anguilla, Anguilliformes). The lungfish startle response is characterized by a rotation of the head and upper trunk, similar to the initial phase of the goldfish (Carassius, Cypriniformes) startle response. The American eel, on the other hand, displays a withdrawal-type startle response. We hypothesize that the withdrawal-type startle response of the American eel results from the absence of inhibitory networks associated with the M-cell axon cap. The correlation of the absence of an axon cap and a withdrawal-type startle response may be a general feature of all Anguilliformes and elongate ray-finned fish with an anguilliform type of locomotion.
Organising an early phase of academic engagement: a case study of interactions between engineering and equestrian sports

ABSTRACT This paper explores the underlying processes of initiating academic engagement, seen from the university perspective. We do so through a longitudinal case study, of the university, Chalmers, and specifically around the engineering subjects, and the development of such relationships with a sector with few such traditions, namely equestrian sports. In terms of how the chosen university has worked to initiate academic engagement, we find, in contrast to existing literature, how, what we call researcher-teachers, primarily used students to engage with a variety of external organisations, rather than relying on research excellence. University management offered support and made small investments. In terms of perceived benefits, the researcher-teachers, university managers and students all stressed positive reputational benefits, especially attracting female students into engineering and diffusing engineering knowledge in society. Acknowledging the limitations of our study, three propositions for future research are to conceptualise the university as providing knowledge-intensive services, to explore the potential involvement of university management, and to articulate different phases of academic engagement.
Confirmation Bias in the Era of Mobile News Consumption: The Social and Psychological Dimensions

Abstract Confirmation bias is the predisposition to only consume the news, or what appears to be news, that confirms our pre-existing attitudes and beliefs, e.g. anti-vaxxers reading only anti-vaccination material. This plays out, for example, in reading only the news/postings that fit our political or social leaning. It is done to avoid cognitive dissonance as well as eventual disfavor from our social network. Confirmation bias is an important element supporting the diffusion of false news via digital platforms. It is important that we understand the underlying cognitive as well as the social mechanisms and dynamics, e.g. can the news of COVID-19 disrupt or eventually further entrench the cognitive and social dynamics of anti-vaxxer individuals and groups?
A Note on the Gender Reservation Wage Gap in Developing Countries

This is the first paper to document the existence of a gender reservation wage gap in developing countries. We find a 22.6% gender reservation wage gap, a gap that is much larger than current estimates for developed countries. Assets play the largest role in closing this gap, whereas adult height widens the gap among the poor.
Trans-Encapsidation of Flock House virus with Tobacco Mosaic virus Structural Proteins

Flock House virus (FHV) encodes a viral polymerase supporting autonomous replication of the FHV genome which makes it an attractive candidate for viral transgene expression studies and targeted RNA delivery into host cells. As FHV viral genome size is strictly limited by native FHV capsid, the goal of this study was to determine if this restriction could be eliminated by inserting a non-native viral packaging signal from Tobacco Mosaic virus (TMV) to allow for trans-encapsidation by TMV coat. FHV was adapted to express enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) and several FHV-GFP expressing clones were generated from which full length RNA transcripts were generated. Fluorescent microscopy was used to confirm GFP expression after FHV-GFP RNA transfection into baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cells. The TMV origin of assembly (OA) was introduced into the most robust GFP expressing FHV construct and GFP expression was used to ensure functional FHV RNA 1 activity. RNA from the best clone, FHV-C2-GFP-OA, was then mixed with TMV coat protein and monitored for encapsidation. The production of TMV-like rod shaped nanoparticles indicated that FHV-GFP-OA RNA can be encapsidated in vitro by purified TMV coat protein. This is the first demonstration of replication-independent but specific encapsidation/packaging of the FHV genome by heterologous plant viral structural proteins while maintaining FHV genome replication capacity.
Purification of Spinal Motoneurons from Chicken and Rat Embryos by Immunopanning

Abstract Existing methods for enrichment or purification of motoneurons from embryonic spinal cord are based on a variety of biological characteristics that distinguish motoneurons from many or all of the surrounding cells. Those most widely used, based on density gradient centrifugation or on FACS sorting of retrogradely labeled motoneurons, paved the way for several important in vitro studies of motoneuron development. However, they tend either to be labor-intensive or not to give complete purification of motoneurons. We describe here two new methods that allow purification of motoneurons from 5-day chicken embryos and 15-day rat embryos, respectively. They are based on the specific expression by motoneurons of extracellular epitopes recognized by generally available monoclonal antibodies, Sd in the case of the chicken embryo and 192-IgG (against the low-affinity neurotrophin receptor) on rat motoneurons. Immunopanning using these antibodies, coupled when necessary with centrifugation in metrizamide gradients, reproducibly yields populations of neurons that are >90% enriched for neurons expressing the appropriate antigen and other independent motoneuron markers. The immunopanning techniques have several practical and theoretical advantages over other methods and allow high yields of pure motoneurons to be obtained rapidly without the use of special apparatus. The most appropriate method for motoneuron purification in a given situation depends on the nature of the scientific problem to be addressed; the solution in many cases will be a combination of the available techniques.
Do southern African songbirds live longer than their European counterparts

Understanding life history evolution in tropical and southern hemisphere birds has been hindered by a paucity of knowledge of key life history traits and this is particularly true of African songbirds. Here we use a unique long-term mark-recapture data set collected over 16 years in Malawi (latitude 16°S) to estimate adult survival rates for 28 African passerine species. Survival of these and 11 other African songbirds (taken from the literature) showed a bi-modal distribution with annual survival of insectivores and nectarivores (bulbuls, thrushes, warblers and sunbirds) averaging 72% (quartiles 63-80%) compared to 54% (50-62%) in granivores (weavers, finches and canaries). The mean adult life expectancy of African insectivores and nectarivores (3.1 yr) was more than twice that of related European insectivores (1.4 yr) and nearly twice that of African granivores (1.6 yr). These marked differences in survival were highly significant after controlling for body mass and phylogeny. Among African songbirds there was a strong negative correlation between adult survival and clutch size with granivores laying relatively large clutches and living relatively short lives. We hypothesize that these differing life history trade-offs reflect variation in the seasonality of food resources whereby survival rates of northern temperate songbirds may be limited by food availability and cold weather during winter, while survival of southern African granivores may be limited by the influence of a variable and unpredictable rainfall regime on seed availability.
Positional differences in anticipation timing, reaction time and dynamic balance of American football players

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare the coinciding anticipation timing (CAT), reaction time and dynamic balance performances of American football players according to their playing positions. Material: Thirty-five American football players, who train at least 3 days a week, and compete in Universities Protected Football 1st League, participated in this study, voluntarily. The players were divided into two playing positions: offensive (17 players, mean age: 20.76 ± 1.30 years) and defensive (18 players, mean age: 21.94 ± 2.87 years). The CAT at different stimulus speeds (6 mph, 12 mph), reaction time (visual, auditory, mixed), and dynamic balance performance (anterior-posterior, medial-lateral, perimeter lenght) were measured in the laboratory environment. The CAT, reaction time, and dynamic balance performance of players were determined by Bassin Anticipation Timer, Newtest 1000, and Technobody Prokin-200, respectively. Results: The data obtained were analyzed in SPSS (20.0) program. Firstly, the raw data for CAT performance (6mph, 12 mph) were converted to absolute error score. According to Shapiro-Wilk test result, the all data showed normal distribution. Independent Sample t test was used to determine the differences between the two playing positions. In addition, the effect size between the two playing positions was calculated in parameters with showing significant differences, and Cohen’s d (1988) values were taken into account. Compared with the defensive players (20.15±3.81 ms), the absolute error scores at fast stimulus speeds (12 mph) of offensive players (17.45±3.48 ms) was found to be significantly lower (t(33) =-2.181, p=. 036). The visual reaction time of offensive players (318.11± 17.47 ms) was significantly shorter than defensive players (340.58± 32.60 ms, t(26322) =-2.560, p=. 017). In terms of dynamic balance parameters such as perimeter lenght, anterior-posterior, and medial-lateral, there was no statistically significant difference between the playing positions (p>0.05). Conclusions: Perceptual-cognitive characteristics such as CAT, and reaction time performance differ according to the playing positions, and this difference may be related to the physical, and cognitive demands required by their playing positions.
Incidental capture of diamondback terrapin by crab pots

Two-hundred eighty-one diamondback terrapins (195♂, 86♀) were captured in baited and unbaited crab pots during premolt crab capture studies in South Carolina. Sampling was conducted four consecutive days each week from mid April to mid November, 1979, in the Ashley River estuary, and daily from April to July, 1980 and 1981, in the Wando River estuary. Fifty-five percent of the total were captured in April, and 32% in May. Males outnumbered females 2.3∶1, but this ratio may reflect crab pot entrance bias which restricted entry of large females. Median plastron length of females was 121 mm (range 76–175) and that for males 100 mm. (range 79–128); only two male terrapins equalled or exceeded the minimum legal size limit of 127 mm. Few captured terrapins were drowned when crab pots were checked daily, and it is estimated that capture mortality amounted to 10%. Terrapin catch per baited crab pot averaged 0.16 daily in April and May. Incidental terrapin capture by 743 commercial crabbers (fiscal year 1982 numbers) in South Carolina during April and May was estimated at 2,853 daily, and mortality was estimated at 285. These estimates are exclusive of mortalities resulting from lost pots. The impact of crabbing activities is believed to pose no threat to the terrapin population at current levels of commercial terrapin harvest. Because female terrapins mature at the minimum legal size, no segment of the egg laying population is protected except seasonally. If direct harvest of terrapins ever approaches that of the early twentieth century, then it is recommended that legal size limits be changed to protect a segment of the mature female population.
Sticky Traps for Monitoring Phytophagous Mirids (Hemiptera: Miridae) in an Apple Orchard in Southwestern Quebec

Rectangular cardboard sticky traps placed at a height of 0.5 m on apple trees captured adults of Lygus lineolaris , Lygocoris communis , Lygidea mendax , and Heterocordylus malinus as they appeared in the orchard, but were set too low to catch adults of Campylomma verbasci present in the orchard. The mean numbers of L. communis captured on traps set at 0.5, 1.5, and 2.5 m above the ground were not significantly different. These traps are useful for detecting the presence of L. lineolaris early in the spring and for monitoring incoming adults of the other species in a sprayed orchard.
Alfred P. Sloan, Jr. Prize biology, oncology, and RNA splicing

ANCER CELLS differ from their normal counterparts C in that they express a subset of genes differently. The increases and decreases in levels of cellular proteins give rise to loss of growth control, the lack of complete differentiation, and the malignant invasion of adjacent tissue typically associated with cancer. Such changes in gene expression are probably not the result of individual mutations in the promoters of the genes whose products are increased or decreased but are more likely due to the stimulation of coordinated programs of gene regulation that are associated with cell division and cell differentiation.
EFFECT OF ROAD ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF AMPHIBIANS IN WETLAND AREA - TEST WITH MODEL-AVERAGED PREDICTION

We studied the effects of roads on presence of Plateau brown frogs (Rana kukunoris Nikolsky, 1918) and Tibetan frogs (Nanorana pleskei Gunther, 1896) in temporary pools of Sedges dominated wetland area in eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The road is seven meter-wide, asphalt-paved with daily traffic rate about 400 vehicles. The temporary pools hold water only in summer with surface area of about 2 m(2). We used logistic regression models, a theoretic information approach, and model averaging to test the effects of distance from road and depth, area and pH of pools on distribution of frogs in terms of presence/absence in 180 small pools located at 10 to 150 m from the road edge. Observed data showed that presence probabilities of both species declined in the vicinity of roads, starting at approximately 100 m away from the road edge. Model averaging based on AICc (Sigma omega(i) = 95% confidence) indicated that both distance from road edge and its quadratic term were important predictors for explaining presence of both amphibians. Model-averaged prediction based on 95% confidence model set also revealed non-monotonic increasing curve relationships between presence probability of both amphibians and distance from road edge, even when other habitat variables were held constant. These results indicated that the road-effect zone for both amphibians extended 100 in on side of the wetland roads along which we sampled. Additionally, the results showed that water depth and water pH of pools positively influenced presence of Tibetan frogs and had highest contribution to the models. In contrast, water depth influenced presence of Plateau brown frogs negatively. It was indicated that environmental variables influence the presence of the two species of amphibians in different ways.
Reliable Loan Information System Using Eager Replication

Replication is the process of sharing information so to ensure consistency between redundant resources, such as software or hardware components. One of the challenges in database replication is to introduce replication without severely affecting performance. Because of this difficulty, current database products use lazy replication, which is very efficient but can compromise consistency. As an alternative, eager replication guarantees consistency but most existing protocols have a prohibitive cost. In the distributed systems community, software-based replication is seen as a cost-effective way to increase availability. Depending on the application, data to be replicated may be stored in a file or a file collection, a database or a database table, or an object stored in a file or in a database. This system is applied eager replication method for loan databases in loan organizations. This system can support reliable replicated data for the loan system between replicated databases.
Analytical Model for Cogging Torque Calculation in Surface-Mounted Permanent Magnet Motors With Rotor Eccentricity and Magnet Defects

This article proposes a novel analytical model which combines subdomain method and magnet equivalent circuit (MEC) method to predict the cogging torque of surface-mounted permanent magnet (SPM) motors with rotor eccentricity and magnet defects in any slot-pole combination cases. Firstly, the general solution of open-circuit magnetic field distribution in a slotless SPM motor with magnet defects is derived. Then, the motor is divided into several subdomains along the air-gap circumferential direction to consider the non-uniform air-gap caused by rotor eccentricity, where the air-gap lengths of each subdomain are considered to be uniform. Finally, the methods of conformal mapping and MEC combined with equivalent current is used to consider the effect of slotting and saturation, which is beneficial to improve the calculation precision. The magnetic field distributions and cogging torque calculated by the proposed model are consistent with the results of finite element analysis (FEA). Compared with the FEA, the proposed model can perform fast calculations of air-gap flux density and cogging torque under rotor eccentricity and magnet defects for SPM motors, which can be utilized for optimizing the motor towards fault tolerance.
Bacterial Chemotaxis: A Primitive Sensory System

Bacteria are the simplest, most primitive creatures, and human beings are the most complex. Yet humans resemble bacteria in fundamental ways--they share the same genetic code, with ATP as the universal energy currency and glycolysis and the citric acid cycle as the central metabolic pathway. From time immemorial humans have tried to understand their own biological functions. In the last 20 years, we have made much progress, chiefly by studying more "manageable" organisms, like bacteria or cells in tissue culture, in order to discover the basic principles. Perhaps the very essence of human functioning is connected with the ability to receive information from the environment, process it, and respond appropriately. Since bacteria also sense their environment, process the information, and move accordingly, I believe there is an evolutionary connection between this behavior and human functioning. Bacteria carry out chemotaxis, a process by which they travel toward higher concentrations of certain nutrients, like amino acids and sugars. Their flagella propel them through the medium, and normally they swim smoothly, then tumble. Tumbling is uncoordinated, chaotic motion, which randomly reorients the bacterium for the next