Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Counteracting gradients of light and soil nutrients in the understorey of Mediterranean oak forests

Abstract. The forest canopy modifies the availability of resources (light, water, and soil nutrients) in the understorey. In this paper we analyze the relationships between woody canopy density, litter accumulation, and topsoil N and P availability in the understorey of two oak forests: one in southern Portugal and the other in southern Spain. Both forests persist on low-nutrient soils, particularly poor in P. We hypothesize that direct and indirect effects of the canopy overstorey cause opposite gradients in the availability of essential resources (light and key soil nutrients) in the understorey. In both studied forests we found significant relationships between the overall canopy density, light availability, topsoil litter accumulation, and the availability of N and P, which frequently limit plant growth. Path analysis (by Shipley’s d-sep method) showed that the available data were consistent with the proposed causal model. The average values of soil variables at the end quartiles of the light-availability gradient were compared. Results showed large differences in litter accumulation (~30×) and available-N and -P topsoil concentrations (~3×) in the Spanish forest (with the wider environmental gradient). Furthermore, P increased from the “very low” range to the “low” or even the “optimum” range of availability (according to standard plant growth criteria), which suggests potential effects on the growth of the understorey plant species. We conclude that the counteracting gradients of the essential resources – light and nutrients – in the forest understorey resulted from direct and indirect effects of the canopy overstorey, respectively. We suggest that these counteracting effects of the woody canopy on essential resources of different nature must be considered when interpreting the patterns of understorey plant populations and communities.
Kameragestützte räumliche Regelung von schnellen Roboterarmen

Der Artikel beschaftigt sich mit einer die Roboterdynamik berucksichtigenden verzogerungsfreien Integration von Korrekturtermen in programmierte Roboterbahnen. Es wird demonstriert, dass eine Standard-CCD-Kamera mit schneller Bildverarbeitung ausreicht, wahrend der Bewegung solche Korrekturen zu erfassen und ohne Reduzierung der Verfahrgeschwindigkeit mit hoher Genauigkeit auszufuhren. Im Experiment fahrt ein Roboter mit 0.7 m/s an einer gebogenen Rohre entlang. Eine seitlich vom Werkzeug mitgefuhrte Kamera vermisst neben der Lage der Rohre im Raum auch deren Form und erlaubt so - z. B. beim Auftragen von Kleber - die Einhaltung eines Trackingfehlers von etwa 1 mm. Das gesamte System benotigt auser der industriellen Robotersteuerung nur eine Kamera und einen einfachen FrameGrabber, ist also extrem kostengunstig realisierbar.
REFLECTION OF THE NAÏVE CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW IN THE ROMANCE, GERMANIC AND SLAVIC PHYTONYMIC LEXICON

The paper highlights the principles of naive world perception by Christian people reflected in the names of medicinal plants. Phytonyms contain information connected with history, culture and mentality of peoples. The cognitive analysis of phytonyms gives the possibility to reconstruct stages of world understanding by common people and to trace how it is being categorized via the medicinal plants‟ names.
Biological Effect of Aqueous Extract and Ethanolic Extract of Malva Leaves and some Antibiotics against some Local Pathogenic Bacteria

Malava is an important medicinal plant used as a remedy for cut wound, eczema, dermal infected wounds, bronchitis, and digestive problems. To evaluate the scientific basis for the use of the plant, the antimicrobial activity of different concentrations of aqueous and ethanolic malva leaves extract were investigated in vitro against five pathogenic bacteria (Proteus sp, Salmonell sp, Kliebsiella pneumoniae,Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aereus) The results indicated that all concentrations showed an antimicrobial activity against all the tested bacteria, the highest activities were against S.aureus,with the inhibition zone was (25 )mm ,(20)mm at (0.1)% ethanolic and aqueous con respectively . The biological activity of ethanolic and aqueous extract of malva leaves when compared with some antibiotic include: Tetracycline, Gentamycin, Ampicillin, Carbinicilin and Erythromycin. Antimicrobial of the lowest conc(0.01%) of malva leaves was better than all antibiotics against all tested pathogenic bacteria.
Vegetation and invertebrates at three geothermal areas in Iceland

The ecosystem of geothermal areas is poorly known both in Iceland and elsewhere. Information lack in general and studies that have been carried out in Iceland have mostly been descriptive. Knowledge about the ecosystem of these areas is an important consideration as these areas will be more and more important in the future, not only for energy extraction but also for recreation and conservation. A better understanding of these ecosystems is important as it may contribute to improved decisions in terms of utilization. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the distribution of vegetation and invertebrates in relation to physical and chemical parameters. Three geothermal areas in Iceland were selected for this study and the communities of vegetation and invertebrates and soil characteristics were studied along a soil temperature gradient. Results of this study indicate that soil temperature is a dominating environmental factor in explaining the distribution of different species at these sites, as well as soil characteristics. Species diversity and composition at warmer spots was different from the colder ones, but also there was a difference in pH and carbon content of the soil. Furthermore, a difference appeared among sites that are most likely due to different location, elevation and weather condition.
Governance Mechanisms in Spanish Financial Intermediaries

This paper examines the governance of Spanish Banks around two main issues. First, does a poor economic performance activate those governance interventions that favor the removal of executive directors and the merger of non-performing banks? And second, does the relationship between governance intervention and economic performance vary with the ownership form of the bank? Our results show that a bad performance does activate governance mechanisms in banks, although for the case of Savings Banks intervention is confined to a merger or acquisition. Nevertheless, the distinct ownership structure of Savings Banks does not fully protect non-performing banks from disappearing. Product-market competition compensates for those weak internal governance mechanisms that result from an ownership form which gives voice to several stakeholder groups.
Opening the Interregional Trade ‘‘Black Box’’: The C-Intereg Database for the Spanish Economy (1995—2005)

Recent literature on border effect has demonstrated that national trade (intra- as well as interregional trade) tends to be more intense than international trade. Unfortunately, owing to the dearth of information on interregional economic relations, this important aspect of the economy has remained relatively ignored. In this article, the authors have described the methodology and main results of the largest estimation of Spanish interregional trade (1995—2005) carried out as a part of the C-Intereg project. The results obtained highlight the importance of the internal trade and the validity of the gravity model. Although the estimation focuses on the Spanish economy, the methodology can easily be applied to other European Union (EU) countries. In the upcoming years, this innovative database will be further developed in all its dimensions (space, time, and sectors) to serve as a promising framework for the application of different techniques such as spatial interaction models or interregional input—output approaches.
Stabilizing a Rotary Inverted Pendulum Based on Logarithmic Lyapunov Function

The stabilization of a Rotary Inverted Pendulum based on Lyapunov stability theorem is investigated in this paper. The key of designing control laws by Lyapunov control method is the construction of Lyapunov function. A logarithmic function is constructed as the Lyapunov function and is compared with the usual quadratic function theoretically. The comparative results show that the constructed logarithmic function has higher numerical accuracy and faster convergence speed than the usual quadratic function. On this basis, the control law of stabilizing Rotary Inverted Pendulum is designed based on the constructed logarithmic function by Lyapunov control method. The effectiveness of the designed control law is verified by experiments and is compared with LQR controller and the control law designed based on the quadratic function. Moreover, the system robustness is analyzed when the system parameters contain uncertainties under the designed control law.
The relational space: designing new urban hinges in suspended edge places

The research on tentative strategies for designing spaces which reveal themselves asrelational, choral, shared, participated, gains new meanings and renovated urgenciesunder the changing conditions of contemporary architectures, landscapes and cities.Object of inquiry is the complex whole of transitional spaces, intermediate places,suspended fragments hovering among different morphological, historical, socialcontexts, expressing unexplored potentialities as new urban hinges. These mediatedjoint-spaces – acting as relational devices – provide the opportunity to reflect on theovercoming of the traditional theme of public urban space. Therefore the sustainedhypothesis resides in the turning of the idea of "relation" from a conceptual device –for the interpretation of space quality – into a strategic tool with multiplemethodological values, whose implications may be investigated through the concreteexperience of the project.Keywords: Relational Space; Architecture of Connections; Superimposition of Levels;Urban Hinges; Edge-Places; Strategic Devices.
ASPECTS OF THE YOUTH TRAVEL DEMAND

Youth travel represents an important and booming component of the tourism market. Its evolution is largely connected to the general d ynamic of tourism, and, at the same time, it also records its own trends generated by the action of s pecific factors. This paper presents a characterization of youth tra vel in terms of the size and structure of the specific demand in order to accurately and scie ntifically assess the tourism phenomenon from the perspective of its own features and of the futu re directions of development at European and international levels. In the second part of the pap er, we identified and characterized the forms taken by youth travel, determined by the extremely varied motivations of youth. Among the best known may be listed the following: educational tourism, v olunteer programs, "work and travel" programs, cultural exchanges, sports and adventure tourism.
Study of Neurocognitive correlates of Schizotypy Personality Clusters in healthy individuals

Background and Objectives: Inconsistencies in the relationship between schizotypy dimensions and neurocognitive functions found in correlational studies may be clarified with the use of alternative methodological approaches. The aim of this study was to examine the existence of different profiles of schizotypal traits and their neurocognitive correlates in non-clinical subjects by means of cluster analysis. Methods: We examined seventy six healthy adults from the general population with a comprehensive neurocognitive battery and a schizotypal personality self-report. Results: Four neurocognitive factors were extracted: visuospatial, semantic evocation, verbal memory, and set-shifting. A three cluster model yielded the following clusters: "lowschizotypy", "positive schizotypy", and "negative/disorganized schizotypy". The positive and negative/disorganized schizotypy clusters showed poorer performance on semantic evocation compared with the low schizotypy cluster. Conclusions: We found different patterns of specific schizotypy features in a healthy adult community sample and these clusters presented differential performance in relation with the ability to evoke semantic information.
22‐Year survey of tropical convection penetrating into the lower stratosphere

A 22‐year survey of tropical convection penetrating into the stratosphere has been conducted using special subsets of the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project cloud data set. In addition to refined information about the geographic distribution of penetrating convective systems, these results show that penetrating convection occurs predominantly in the larger, organized, mesoscale convective systems, whereas smaller, unorganized convective systems rarely penetrate. Durations of penetrating events are longest for the largest systems, hurricanes and typhoons, generally exceeding one day.
Micro structural and static structural analysis of LM6/B4C and LM6/B4C/GR hybrid aluminium metal matrix composites

This research work was performed to interpret the fabrication and mechanical characteristics of LM6/B4C and LM6/B4C/Gr aluminium matrix composites. The aluminium matrix composites were manufactured by reinforcing B4C particles with varying wt % of 3, 5, 7 using stir casting technique. LM6/B4C 7% composite was made hybrid by adding 2% Graphite into it. The presence of graphite in such composites provide the self-lubricating effect, replacing conventional sliding contacts (bearings, sheaves, pistons, pulleys) with them. This also helps to reduce the lubricating oil and fuel consumption along with environmental benefits reducing energy wastage in industrial and automotive components. The properties of the composites were collated with the base alloy to analyse the enhancement in mechanical characteristics that had been transmitted by the reinforcement particles to the composites. The specimen microstructure was inspected using an optical microscope to ensure the uniform distribution of reinforcement particles in the matrix. The piston was modelled in CREO and using ANSYS 14.5 workbench static structural analysis of LM6 alloy, LM6/B4C composite and LM6/B4C/Gr hybrid aluminium composites are executed. Compared to LM6 alloy, better static structural properties were obtained in composites and hybrid composite.
Impact of farming non-indigenous scallop Argopecten irradians on benthic ecosystem functioning: a case-study in Laizhou Bay, China

The farming of the non-indigenous bay scallop Argopecten irradians in coastal waters generates large amounts of biodeposits that potentially change the trophic pathways and quality of the benthic food web at lower trophic levels such as meiobenthos. To understand the trophic link between faecal pellets of bay scallop and meiobenthos in the aquaculture area, we investigated the resource use of harpacticoid copepods and nematodes inside and outside of 3 bay scallop farms in Laizhou Bay (Bohai Sea, China) using natural abundance of stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes together with fatty acid profiling. Faeces were found to be enriched in delta N-15 compared to all other food sources, which made faecal matter traceable. The enriched delta N-15 in several meiobenthos at the farms, together with the mixing model results, indicated that faeces could be a new food source for most of harpacticoid copepods and some nematodes. The quantities and the pathways of assimilation differed between the copepod families, depending on their feeding behaviors and the receiving environment. Furthermore, due to the presence of higher levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids, in particular docosahexaenoic acid, the dominant copepod family Canuellidae that abundantly consumed scallop faeces showed enhanced nutritional quality compared with those in the control sites. Thus, aquaculture of non-indigenous bay scallops provided a food source that was directly and indirectly consumed by meiobenthos underneath the scallop farms and improved the quality of lower level consumers as a food item in the benthic food web.
Session Secured Attack Detection Scheme for Network Communication

: Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN) is the most rapidly growing branch of networking and data communication. With the rapid advancements of wireless communication and semiconductor technology, sensor network designed to operate autonomously to connect various other sensors (medical, position and geography) and appliances has become more robust and efficient. In this paper we realize a network consisting of intra-body and inter-body communication network. Each body is considered to be an Autonomous System (AS) capable of mobility and connectivity to every other Autonomous System (AS) with different Autonomous System Number (ASN). The later constitutes the inter-body communication system. This network when connected and tested would enable exchange of confidential and essential data of military personnel. The information in the network to be transmitted is encrypted by various encryption policies and algorithm. This would avoid the intruders from stealing TOP-SECRET data/information. GNS 3 tool is used for implementing routing and cryptography on the network.
Synthetic analogs of the non-heme iron center in superoxide reductase

by WREN HILLIARD CHEATUM (Under the Direction of Todd C. Harrop) ABSTRACT Reactive oxygen species, such as superoxide, are associated with many diseases including cancer, diabetes, and atherosclerosis. In order to protect against the presence of reactive oxygen species, organisms have evolved mechanisms to detoxify superoxide mediated by the enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and superoxide reductase (SOR). SOR is a nonheme iron enzyme present in anaerobic and microaerophilic biological systems that is utilized for the detoxification of superoxide via its one-electron reduction to form hydrogen peroxide. The present work describes the synthetic analogs of the active site of SOR through the utilization of neutral, nitrogenous ligands in combination with exogenous thiolate ligands about an iron center in order to mimic the histidine and cysteine residues of the enzyme. The varying nitrogenous ligands include pyridine and imidazole substituents as the nitrogen donor. The synthesis and characterization of theses model systems contributes to the understanding of the mechanism of SOR.
The Short and Longer Term Potential Welfare Impact of Global Commodity Inflation in Tanzania

This paper uses a computable general equilibrium model to assess the welfare impact of commodity price inflation in Tanzania and possible tax policy responses in the short, medium, and long term. The results suggest that global commodity inflation since 2006 may have had a significantly negative impact on all Tanzanian households. Most of the negative impact comes from the rise in the price of oil. In contrast, food price spikes are potentially welfare improving for all Tanzanian households in the medium to long run. In comparison with nonpoor households, poor households in Tanzania may be relatively shielded from global commodity inflation because they derive a larger share of their incomes from agricultural activity and consume less oil-intensive products. Finally, the results suggest that tax policies encouraging greater agricultural production and consumption may help to reduce poverty. In contrast, policies discouraging agricultural production (such as export bans) bear the risk of increasing poverty in the long run. However, such policies would only effect at the margin (in one direction or the other) the likely impact of global commodity inflation on poverty.
Planning Activities in Software Testing Process: A Literature Review and Suggestions for Future Research

Software testing process consists of activities that implemented after it is planned and including to document related testing activities. Test processes must be applied necessarily for able to clearly see the quality of software, the degree of reliability, whether it is ready for delivery, the degree of effectiveness and remains of how much testing. One of the most important phase of these processes is test planning activities. Test planning activities directly affects the project's success in software projects. In this study, software testing process, and test planning activities carried out in this process was first clearly demonstrated by the literature review. Later, a basic software testing process and test planning process were determined and explained step by step. In this way, it was aimed to give a different and deep perspective to the test planning activities and to raise awareness on the topic. As a result of the research, it was seen that the test planning activities are not applied adequately at present, software testers, experts or researchers do not have enough knowledge about the details of the method, and this situation causes very serious negative results in the delivery and cost in software projects. Finally, the topic was discussed in detail, and some conclusions and recommendations were given for the personnel in the field of software testing. In this point, the study is expected to contribute the literature.
Enhanced Metaheuristic Algorithms for the Identification of Cancer MDPs

Cancer research revolves around the study of diseases that involve unregulated cell growth. This direction facilitated the development of a wide range of cancer genomics projects that are designed to support the identification of mutated driver pathways in several cancer types. In this research, a maximum weight submatrix problem is used to identify the driver pathway in a specific type of cancer. To solve this problem, we propose two new metaheuristic algorithms. The first is an improved harmony search (IHS) algorithm and the second is an enhanced genetic algorithm (EGA). Results show that EGA enables better performance and entails less computational time than does conventional GA. Furthermore, the new IHS offers a higher number of suggested gene set solutions for mutated genes than does the standard genetic algorithm.
Atlantic warm pool, Caribbean low‐level jet, and their potential impact on Atlantic hurricanes

The Atlantic Warm Pool (AWP) is a large body of warm water (warmer than 28.5°C) that appears in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and the western tropical North Atlantic during the summer and fall. Located to its northeastern side is the North Atlantic Subtropical High (NASH) that produces the easterly trade winds in the tropics. The trade winds carry moisture from the tropical North Atlantic into the Caribbean Sea where the flow intensifies forming the Caribbean Low‐Level Jet (CLLJ). This paper finds that the easterly CLLJ is maximized in the summer and winter, whereas it is minimized in the fall and spring. The semi‐annual feature of the CLLJ results from the semi‐annual variation of sea level pressure in the Caribbean region associated with the east‐west excursion of the NASH. The AWP's impact is to weaken the summertime NASH, especially at its southwestern edge and thus weaken the easterly CLLJ. The weakening of the easterly CLLJ, in conjunction with the AWP‐induced change of upper‐level wind, reduces the tropospheric vertical wind shear that favors hurricane formation and intensification during August–October.