Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Analysis of C 4 Plants Deficient in the C 3 and C 4 Cycles

The basis for O2 sensitivity of C4 photosynthesis was evaluated using a C4-cycle-limited mutant of Amaranthus edulis (a phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase-deficient mutant), and a C3-cyclelimited transformant of Flaveria bidentis (an antisense ribulose-1,5bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase [Rubisco] small subunit transformant). Data obtained with the C4-cycle-limited mutant showed that atmospheric levels of O2 (20 kPa) caused increased inhibition of photosynthesis as a result of higher levels of photorespiration. The optimal O2 partial pressure for photosynthesis was reduced from approximately 5 kPa O2 to 1t o 2k Pa O 2, becoming similar to that of C3 plants. Therefore, the higher O2 requirement for optimal C4 photosynthesis is specifically associated with the C4 function. With the Rubisco-limited F. bidentis, there was less inhibition of photosynthesis by supraoptimal levels of O2 than in the wild type. When CO2 fixation by Rubisco is limited, an increase in the CO2 concentration in bundle-sheath cells via the C4 cycle may further reduce the oxygenase activity of Rubisco and decrease the inhibition of photosynthesis by high partial pressures of O2 while increasing CO2 leakage and overcycling of the C4 pathway. These results indicate that in C4 plants the investment in the C3 and C4 cycles must be balanced for maximum efficiency.
Return Predictability in International Financial Markets and the Role of Investor Sentiment

We investigate the predictability of stock returns in the financial market for a large panel of developed countries using investor sentiment, business-cycle variables and financial indicators within two panel regime-switching models, with threshold and smooth transition between regimes. We find strong evidence of predictability of long-term returns following the business cycles, but much weaker results for the short-run returns. During crisis times, investor sentiment and inflation become key factors in predicting stock returns. Different tests and goodness of fit measures point out that the use of regime-switching models is more appropriate than linear models. To our knowledge, this study is the first to examine the impact of investor sentiment on future returns for a large number of countries, the existing literature being mainly focused on the U.S. stock market.
Ankle-Brachial Index and Brachial-Ankle Pulse Wave Velocity in a Mexican Population of Healthy Individuals: A Reproducibility Research Study

Background: Ankle-brachial systolic pressure index, reflect arterial hemodynamics in lower extremity and therefore indicates the presence of peripheral arterial disease. On the other hand, an emerging method for assessing arterial stiffness is brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity. Automated devices, such as the “Vascular Profiler 1000” (VP1000) (Omron®, Kyoto, Japan), are currently available for measuring not only the brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity but also the ankle-brachial index, proving their utility in the diagnosis of peripheral arterial disease. Objective: This study assessed the agreement and reproducibility of non-invasive measurement of brachialankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and the ankle-brachial index (ABI) with the OMRON® VP1000 device, in a Mexican population of healthy individuals. Methods: The cross-sectional study was carried out in 36 healthy subjects (20 men and 16 women; average age was 20.6 ± 1.6 years, average BMI 23.5 ± 3.5 kg/m2, average waist circumference 82.5 ± 9.3 cm kg/m2) from Guadalajara, Mexico. The baPWV and ABI were measured with the VP1000 device, and all values were expressed as the average ± SD. The correlation between the first and second measurements was analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient and the Bland Altman method. All p-values were two-tailed, and p<0.05 was accepted as significant. Results: The right and left baPWV showed good correlation between the first and second measurements (r2Pearson=0.810, p<0.001 and r2 Pearson=0.831, p<0.001). The arterial ABI also showed good correlation between the first and second measurement (r2 Pearson=0.730, p<0.001 and r2 Pearson=0.599, p<0.001). The Bland-Altman plot of the first and second baPWV and ABI measurements demonstrated good agreement (mean difference -4.3 ± 39.43 cm/s and -0.0071 ± 0.43, respectively). Conclusion: The results obtained with the OMRON® VP1000 device, demonstrate high and significant correlation, as well as good agreement, between the first and second baPWV arterial stiffness and ABI values.
High-birefringence nematic liquid crystal for broadband THz applications

ABSTRACT Liquid crystals (LCs) have been studied extensively in the visible range for their dielectric tunability, and the characterisation in the terahertz (THz) range has gained increasing interest due to the need for active THz modulation and switching devices. In this paper, we use THz time-domain spectroscopy to measure the frequency-dependent birefringence and the absorption coefficient of a number of commercial and non-commercial nematic LCs, including E7, BL037, MDA-98-1602, LCMS-107, GT3-23001 and 1825, over a range of bias voltages at room temperature. Furthermore, several basic components of LC mixture are analysed to establish their contributions to birefringence and theoretical model is used to fit the absorption spectra. The large tunability and low loss measured for a range of samples show that the LCs are useful tunable dielectrics for compact, efficient and broadband THz devices. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
Situation Awareness, Mental Workload, and Trust in Automation: Viable, Empirically Supported Cognitive Engineering Constructs

Cognitive engineering needs viable constructs and principles to promote better understanding and prediction of human performance in complex systems. Three human cognition and performance constructs that have been the subjects of much attention in research and practice over the past three decades are situation awareness (SA), mental workload, and trust in automation. Recently, Dekker and Woods (2002) and Dekker and Hollnagel (2004; henceforth DWH) argued that these constructs represent “folk models” without strong empirical foundations and lacking scientific status. We counter this view by presenting a brief description of the large science base of empirical studies on these constructs. We show that the constructs can be operationalized using behavioral, physiological, and subjective measures, supplemented by computational modeling, but that the constructs are also distinct from human performance. DWH also caricatured as “abracadabra” a framework suggested by us to address the problem of the design of automated systems (Parasuraman, Sheridan, & Wickens, 2000). We point to several factual and conceptual errors in their description of our approach. Finally, we rebut DWH's view that SA, mental workload, and trust represent folk concepts that are not falsifiable. We conclude that SA, mental workload, and trust are viable constructs that are valuable in understanding and predicting human-system performance in complex systems.
Empathising and Systemising in Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria

Background: Recent studies have highlighted the co-occurrence of gender dysphoria (GD) in adolescence and Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASC). Systemising and empathising are two psychological dimensions linked to ASC. People with ASC score below average on the Empathy Quotient (EQ) and average or above average on the Systemising Quotient (SQ). Based on the results of previous studies we predicted that if the young people with GD shared aspects of the ‘broader autism phenotype’, their EQ would be lower, and their SQ would be the same or higher, compared to controls of their natal gender. Methods: This preliminary study examined systemising and empathising in adolescents with GD using parent report questionnaires. 35 parents of adolescents with GD aged 12-18 attending the Gender Identity Development Service (London) took part. Parents of 156 typically developing adolescents aged 12-18 were used as a control group. The parents were asked to complete the Adolescent EQ and SQ. Results: The mean EQ score of both the female-to-male, and male-to-female GD group was found to be significantly lower than typically developing females, but similar to that of control males. There was no significant difference on the SQ between the gender dysphoric groups and either female or male controls. Conclusion: This study shows that on average adolescents with GD, specifically those who are female-to-male, have lower empathy than controls. For this group of adolescents it may be helpful to offer psychological interventions that improve their communication skills and their ability to take on board other people’s views, to support their development. This may enable them to make better informed decisions regarding treatment and physical intervention options during adolescence and beyond.
Raman analysis of single-walled carbon nanotube grown from spin-coated cobalt catalyst at different temperatures

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) were grown from spin coated Co catalyst thin films using the alcohol catalytic chemical vapor deposition (ACCVD) method for different CVD processing temperatures and at a fixed 15 min CVD processing time. The presence of SWCNT was confirmed by Raman radial breathing mode peak confirmation. The Raman intensity of G band over D band for the as-grown SWCNTs was decreased with increasing CVD processing temperatures. Raman intensity analysis in the radial breathing mode region shows a relatively wide distribution of SWCNTs grown for all CVD processing temperatures, but, owing similar trend of G band and D band intensity decrement as increasing the CVD processing temperatures. In this paper, it was suggested that Co catalyst poisoning and SWCNT burning occurred when the CVD processing temperature was more than 700 0C. The structural properties of the SWCNTs grown have been investigated by Raman spectroscopy with 532 nm laser excitation.
Advances in AFM Imaging Applications for Characterizing the Biophysical Properties of Amyloid Fibrils

Although the formation mechanism of amyloid fibrils in bodies is still debated, it has recently been reported how amyloid fibrils can be formed in vitro. Accordingly, we have gained a better understanding of the self-assembly mechanism and intrinsic proper‐ ties of amyloid fibrils. Because the structure of amyloid fibrils consists of nanoscaled insoluble strands (a few nanometers in diameter and micrometers long), a special tool is needed to study amyloid fibrils at length. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is supposed to be a versatile toolkit to probe such a tiny biomolecule. The physical/chemical properties of amyloid fibrils have been explored by AFM. In particular, AFM enables the visualization of amyloid fibrillation with different incubation times as well as the concentrations of the formed amyloid fibrils as affected by fibril diameters and lengths. Very recently, the minute structural changes and/or electrical properties of amyloid fibrils have been made by using advanced AFM techniques including dynamic liquid AFM, PeakForce QNM (quantitative nanomechanical mapping), and Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). Herein, we summarize the biophysical properties of amyloid fibrils that are newly discovered with the help of those advanced AFM techniques and suggest our perspectives and future directions for the study of amyloid fibrils.
Prevalence and Antimicrobial-Resistance of Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Blood Culture in University Hospital, Turkey

Materials and Methods: Total 1456 blood culture bottles were sent to Microbiology Laboratory of between January-2013 and December-2014. All bottles were placed into Automated Blood Culture System. After the positive bottles were detected by machine, the bacteria were identified and antibiotic susceptibility tests were performed by using both Microorganism Identification System and KirbyBauer Disk Diffusion method.
An Architecture for Wireless Communication Systems using Li-Fi technology

 Abstract — The abundant usage of mobile devices and applications consumes heavy radio spectrum. This has led the current world to use an alternative method of wireless radio communication. Hence, a new technology Light-Fidelity (Li-Fi) has been introduced recently for this purpose. In this paper, we have proposed an architecture which uses Li-Fi technology for communication without having much effort for replacing the existing communication infrastructure. The performance of the proposed architecture is analyzed by carrying out the simulation work consolidating our claim that the use of Li-Fi technology in the data communication increases the data transfer rate.
Assessment of competition indices of an unlogged oriental beech mixed stand in Hyrcanian forests, Northern Iran

Amiri M, Naghdi R. 2016. Assessment of competition indices of an unlogged oriental beech mixed stand in Hyrcanian forests,Â Northern Iran. Biodiversitas 17: 306-314. Studying on structural dynamics of natural forest ecosystems is an important subject in closeto-natureÂ silvicultureÂ andÂ theÂ pertainingÂ tendingÂ operations. Â TheÂ objectiveÂ ofÂ thisÂ researchÂ wasÂ toÂ analyzeÂ theÂ competitionÂ indicesÂ ofÂ theÂ treeÂ species and some structural characteristics in an unlogged mixed-beech natural forest stand located in Shastkalate forest, Northern Iran. To do so, the required data was collected from a 16ha (400A—400 m2) permanent plot established in 2006. The characteristics of the trees including species, DBH, total height, stem height, crown diameter, and the distance between the stems were measured and recorded. The results indicated that alder and wild service have the highest and lowest DBH, respectively, and also beech species comprises almost half of the basal area as well as the total volume of the stand trees. The results of competition effect on the distribution of the given species tree stems and also on low (â‰¤30 cm),Â medium (35-50 cm),Â large (55-70), and very large (>75 cm) diameter classesÂ showed that the competition existing among individual trees decreased as their respective distances, DBH, and crown area enhanced by the increase in distance, such that the highest (R2adj= 0.79)Â and the lowest (R2adj= 0.38)Â values of competition indices (e.g. Stand density and Relative Spacing index) were, respectively, observed in â‰¤30 cm and >75 cm diameter classes. The data of the present research, as well, indicated that a more appropriate competition index can be selected by increasing the number of the variables applied in competition indices such as considering the distance among stems, DBH, crown area, and height. As a whole, in the present study the distance-dependent competition indices (e.g. distance-weighted size ratios and Daniel et al)Â presented better results.
Interacting dark energy: generic cosmological evolution for two scalar fields

We study the cosmological evolution of two coupled scalar fields with an arbitrary interaction term VT(ϕ,φ) in the presence of a barotropic fluid, which can be matter or radiation. The force between the barotropic fluid and the scalar fields is only gravitational. We show that the dynamics is completely determined by only three parameters λi,i = 1,2,3. We determine all critical points and study their stability. We find six different attractor solutions depending on the values of λi and we calculate the relevant cosmological parameters. We discuss the possibility of having one of the scalar fields as of dark energy while the other could be a scalar field redshifting as matter.
Map ( b ) Delta Debugging ( c ) Data Provenance

Developing Big Data Analytics workloads often involves trial and error debugging, due to the unclean nature of datasets or wrong assumptions made about data. When errors (e.g., program crash, outlier results, etc.) arise, developers are often interested in identifying a subset of the input data that is able to reproduce the problem. BIGSIFT is a new faulty data localization approach that combines insights from automated fault isolation in software engineering and data provenance in database systems to find a minimum set of failureinducing inputs. BIGSIFT redefines data provenance for the purpose of debugging using a test oracle function and implements several unique optimizations, specifically geared towards the iterative nature of automated debugging workloads. BIGSIFT improves the accuracy of fault localizability by several orders-of-magnitude (∼103 to 107×) compared to Titian data provenance, and improves performance by up to 66× compared to Delta Debugging, an automated fault-isolation technique. For each faulty output, BIGSIFT is able to localize fault-inducing data within 62% of the original job running time.
Measure-based diffusion kernel methods

A commonly used approach for analyzing massive high dimensional datasets is to utilize diffusion-based kernel methods. The kernel in these methods is based on a Markovian diffusion process, whose transition probabilities are determined by local similarities between data points. When the data lies on a low dimensional manifold, the diffusion distances according to this kernel encompass the geometry of the manifold. In this paper, we present a generalized approach for defining diffusion-based kernels by incorporating measure-based information, which represents the density or distribution of the data, together with its local distances. The generalized construction does not require an underlying manifold to provide a meaningful kernel interpretation but assumes a more relaxed assumption that the measure and its support are related to a locally low dimensional nature of the analyzed phenomena.
Computational Methods for Analysis of Transcriptional Regulations

Understanding the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation is a key step to understanding many biological processes. Many computational algorithms have been developed to tackle this problem by identifying (1) the binding motifs, (2) binding sites and (3) regulatory targets of a given transcription factors. In this paper we survey the scope of currently used methods and algorithms for solving each of the above subproblems. We also focus on the newer sub-area of machine learning (ML) methods, which have introduced a framework for a new set of approaches to solving these problems. The connections between these machine learning algorithms and conventional position weight matrix (PWM)-based algorithms are also highlighted, with the suggestion that ML algorithms can often generalize and expand the capabilities of existing methods.
Temperature-dependent characterization of optical fibres for distributed temperature sensing in hot geothermal wells

This study was performed in order to select a proper fibre for the application of a distributed temperature sensing system within a hot geothermal well in Iceland. Commercially available high temperature graded index fibres have been tested under in situ temperature conditions. Experiments have been performed with four different polyimide-coated fibres, a fibre with an aluminium coating and a fibre with a gold coating. To select a fibre, the relationship between attenuation, temperature and time has been analysed together with SEM micrographs. Based on these experiments, polyimide fibres have been chosen for utilization. Further tests in ambient and inert atmosphere have been conducted with two polyimide-coated fibres to set an operating temperature limit for these fibres. SEM micrographs, together with coating colour changes have been used to characterize the high temperature performance of the fibres. A novel cable design has been developed, a deployment strategy has been worked out, and a suitable well for deployment has been selected.
AES 2005 International Conference keynote address1

My thanks to the Conference Organising Committee for inviting me to give a keynote address that refl ects on evaluation practice and on this year’s conference. Such invitations are often expected to give rise to congratulatory statements and exhortations to go forth and do good evaluation work until we meet again. However, in this, the year of TV series such as Grumpy Old Men and Grumpy Old Women, I decided to take the opportunity to be a grumpy old evaluator, but a grumpy old evaluator that does hold much hope for the future of our practice (and just a few exhortations).
The Probiotic and Adherence Properties of Lactobacillus reuteri Pg 4 Expressing the Rumen Microbial β -

This study was conducted to evaluate the potential of the transformed Lactobacillus reuteri Pg4 (T-Pg4) harboring the β-glucanase gene as a poultry probiotic. The probiotic properties of the T-Pg4 strain were evaluated in vitro by their adherence capability and acid and bile salt tolerance, and were evaluated in vivo by their survival and adhesion in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of specificpathogen-free (SPF) chickens. The results showed that the T-Pg4 strain exhibited resistance to acidic conditions and contact with bile salt, and adhered efficiently to the crop and intestinal epithelial cells of chickens in vitro. The T-Pg4 strain also could survive and colonize the gastrointestinal epithelium of the experimental SPF chickens in vivo. In addition, radial enzyme diffusion was used to demonstrate that the Lactobacillus spp. randomly isolated from the GIT of the SPF chickens fed T-Pg4 possessed β-glucanase secretion capability. These findings have demonstrated that the transformed L. reuteri Pg4 survives transit through the stomach and intestine, and may secrete β-glucanase in the chicken GIT. Therefore, it is suggested that this organism could be used as a multifunctional poultry probiotic. (
Catastrophic Thresholds: A Synthesis of Concepts, Perspectives, and Applications

Research reported in this feature identifies a convergence of interpretations regarding the threshold dynamics of complex ecological systems. This convergence has arisen from a diverse set of investigations addressing rangeland ecosystem dynamics, disease transmission, and fluctuations in the populations of insect pests. Effective application of the threshold concept to ecosystem management will require development of more robust linkages between non-equilibrium theory and protocols to identify triggers that initiate threshold conditions, feedback loops that establish system resilience, and developmental trajectories and attributes of potential alternative stable states. Successful implementation of these theory/ application linkages has the potential to underpin an operational framework of resilience-based ecosystem management that is founded upon the identification of structural indicators that are correlated with vulnerability or proximity to thresholds, rather than threshold identification per se. Several investigations indicate that thresholds are strongly influenced by scale; multiple cross-scale interactions demonstrate the need for greater knowledge and analyses to address scale-dependent processes, i.e., critical scales and scaling laws. This feature emphasizes the relevance of thresholds and non-equilibrium dynamics in multiple natural resource management applications and in so doing demonstrates the need for a more comprehensive and integrated ecological framework capable of quantitatively assessing dynamics at multiple scales to inform management and policy recommendations for optimal management and risk assessment.