Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Changes in grassland ecosystem function due to extreme rainfall events: implications for responses to climate change

Climate change is causing measurable changes in rainfall patterns, and will likely cause increases in extreme rainfall events, with uncertain implications for key processes in ecosystem function and carbon cycling. We examined how variation in rainfall total quantity (Q), the interval between rainfall events (I), and individual event size (SE) affected soil water content (SWC) and three aspects of ecosystem function: leaf photosynthetic carbon gain (), aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP), and soil respiration (). We utilized rainout shelter‐covered mesocosms (2.6 m3) containing assemblages of tallgrass prairie grasses and forbs. These were hand watered with 16 I×Q treatment combinations, using event sizes from 4 to 53 mm. Increasing Q by 250% (400–1000 mm yr−1) increased mean soil moisture and all three processes as expected, but only by 20–55% (P≤0.004), suggesting diminishing returns in ecosystem function as Q increased. Increasing I (from 3 to 15 days between rainfall inputs) caused both positive () and negative () changes in ecosystem processes (20–70%, P≤0.01), within and across levels of Q, indicating that I strongly influenced the effects of Q, and shifted the system towards increased net carbon uptake. Variation in SE at shorter I produced greater response in soil moisture and ecosystem processes than did variation in SE at longer I, suggesting greater stability in ecosystem function at longer I and a priming effect at shorter I. Significant differences in ANPP and between treatments differing in I and Q but sharing the same SE showed that the prevailing pattern of rainfall influenced the responses to a given event size. Grassland ecosystem responses to extreme rainfall patterns expected with climate change are, therefore, likely to be variable, depending on how I, Q, and SE combine, but will likely result in changes in ecosystem carbon cycling.
Diversity of tick species biting humans in an emerging area for Lyme disease.

BACKGROUND Although most tick bites in humans in areas of the northeastern United States in which Lyme disease is highly endemic are due to Ixodes dammini, no study documents the frequency of I. dammini bites in low-prevalence or emerging areas for Lyme disease. Data on the proportion of tick bites in humans that are due to I. dammini in a region may have implications for public health policy and clinical management. METHODS A statewide survey of the tick species that parasitized humans in Maine was conducted during 1989 and 1990. Tick submissions from throughout the state were elicited through media announcements. All ticks that had been removed from humans were identified, and data were collected that included bite seasonality and geography and demographics of tick bite victims. RESULTS Of 709 ticks submitted, only 17% were I. dammini. Ixodes cookei, a vector for Powassan encephalitis, accounted for 34% of bites, and Dermacentor variabilis accounted for 45%. Other tick species were occasionally implicated. CONCLUSIONS The likelihood that a tick bite was due to I. dammini was lower in Maine than in areas in the northeastern United States in which Lyme disease is highly endemic. Other tick vectors, associated with diseases other than Lyme disease, were more frequently implicated. Regional tick bite surveys may prove useful in assessing the risk of Lyme disease following a tick bite.
Assessment of Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels in Children with Atopic Dermatitis: Correlation With SCORAD Index

BackgroundAtopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder with an immunologic basis. It may have negative medical and social impacts on a patient and his family. ObjectivesTo assess serum level of vitamin D among children with AD and determine its association with AD severity using the AD Scoring System Index. Study DesignA case-control study. Patients and MethodsTwenty-nine patients with AD in the age group between 2 and 12 years were enrolled in the study. The severity of the disease was determined by the AD scoring system. Thirty controls were recruited. Serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 [25(OH)D3] were tested using commercial automated chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay. ResultsThe mean value of vitamin D in children with AD was much lower than normal value, and there was a significant difference in the mean values of vitamin D between children with AD (5.4±1.9 ng/mL) and the controls (28.9±2.4 ng/mL). Serum 25(OH)D levels were found to be significantly higher in mild AD (14.6±3.5 ng/mL) compared with moderate (5.5±3.1 ng/mL) or severe AD (0.3±0.1 ng/mL); P<0.001. ConclusionPatients with AD have lower serum vitamin D levels than normal. Vitamin D deficiency might be related to the severity of AD.
Foreign Direct Investment Spillovers and Productivity Growth in Indonesian Garment and Electronics Manufacturing

Abstract Inflows of foreign direct investment generate externalities that spill over to domestic firms and raise their productivity. This article examines the extent of spillover effects of foreign direct investment for firms in the highly disaggregated garment (ISIC 3221) and electronics industries (ISIC 3832) in Indonesia. Both are export-intensive industries, but differ greatly in technological sophistication and labour intensity. Changes in both the productivity level and rate of growth in each industry are decomposed into the effects of technological change, technical efficiency change and scale efficiency change and then the impacts of spillovers on each component and on total productivity are estimated. The findings suggest that foreign direct investment generates a positive effect on total productivity change, technical efficiency change, technological change, and scale efficiency change in the garment industry. In contrast, foreign direct investment contributes significantly negatively to total productivity, technological change and scale efficiency change, but has no significant effect on technical efficiency change in the electronics industry.
Spatialization of the Semantic Web

syntax for Horn-like rules. The SWRL as the form, antecedentconsequent, where both antecedent and consequent are conjunctions of atoms written a1^ . ^ an. Atoms in rules can be of the form C(x), P(x,y), Q(x,z), sameAs(x,y), differentFrom(x,y), or builtIn(pred, z1, ., zn), where C is an OWL description, P is an OWL individual-valued property, Q is an OWL data-valued property, pred is a datatype predicate URIref, x and y are either individual-valued variables or OWL individuals, and z, z1, . zn are either data-valued variables or OWL data literals. An OWL data literal is either a typed literal or a plain literal. Variables are indicated by using the standard convention of prefixing them with a question mark (e.g., ? x). URI references (URIrefs) are used to identify ontology elements such as classes, individual-valued properties and data-valued properties. For instance, the following rule asserts that one's parents' brothers are one's uncles where parent, brother and uncle are all individual-valued properties. parent(? x, ? p) ^ brother(? p, ? u)  uncle(? x, ? u) (1) The set of built-ins for SWRL is motivated by a modular approach that will allow further extensions in future releases within a (hierarchical) taxonomy. SWRL's built-ins approach is also based on the reuse of existing built-ins in XQuery and XPath, which are themselves based on XML Schema by using the Datatypes. This system of built-ins should also help in the interoperation of SWRL with other Web formalisms by providing an extensible, modular built-ins infrastructure for Semantic Web Languages, Web Services, and Web applications. Many built-ins are defined and some of most common built-ins can be found in (Horrocks et al., 2004). These built-ins are keys for any external integration. The research work develops spatial built-in for the integration of spatial data structure.
Prevalence and management of anemia in children, adolescents, and adults with inflammatory bowel disease

Background: Children and adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are more likely to have Crohn's disease (CD) than ulcerative colitis (UC) and their disease tends to be more extensive and severe than in adults. We hypothesized that the prevalence of anemia would therefore be greater in children and adolescents than in adults attending IBD outpatient clinics. Methods: Using the WHO age‐adjusted definitions of anemia we assessed the prevalence, severity, type, and response to treatment of anemia in patients attending pediatric, adolescent, and adult IBD clinics at our hospital. Results: The prevalence of anemia was 70% (41/59) in children, 42% (24/54) in adolescents, and 40% (49/124) in adults (P < 0.01). Overall, children (88% [36/41]) and adolescents (83% [20/24]) were more often iron‐deficient than adults (55% [27/49]) (P < 0.01). Multivariate logistic regression showed that both active disease (odds ratio [OR], 4.7 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.5, 8.8) and attending the pediatric clinic (OR 3.7; 95% CI, 1.6, 8.4) but not the adolescent clinic predicted iron deficiency anemia. Fewer iron‐deficient children (13% [5/36]) than adolescents (30% [6/20]) or adults (48% [13/27]) had been given oral iron (P < 0.05); none had received intravenous iron compared with 30% (6/20) adolescents and 41% (11/27) adults (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: Anemia is even more common in children than in older IBD patients. Oral iron was given to half of adolescents and adults but, despite similar tolerance and efficacy, only a quarter of children with iron‐deficient anemia. Reasons for the apparent underutilization of iron therapy include a perceived lack of benefit and concerns about side effects, including worsening of IBD activity. (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2012;)
Fungimycin, biogenesis of its aromatic moiety.

Sir: Fungimycin (syn: perimycin), an antr fungal heptaene macrolide produced b} Streptomyces coelicolor var. aminophilus was found to contain a novel amino sugar, perosamine1~3). At the same time it was shown to yield an aromatic ketone upon alkaline hydrolysis15. The chemical structure of the aromatic moiety has been elucidated as N-methyl-/>-aminoacetophenone4). In this communication, we wish to report the biogenetic origin of the N-methyl-^-aminophenyl moiety of fungimycin. Fungimycin fermentation was carried out in shake flasks with a medium containing (in grams per liter): corn-steep liquor, 60; Cerelose (technical glucose), 30 ; and Staley 4-S soybean meal, 205). The pH of the medium was adjusted with NaOH to 7.6 before sterilization. The culture was harvested after 6 days of fermentation in an incubator-shaker at 28°C, Provisions were taken to trap the metabolic CO2. Labeling of fungimycin was carried out by adding various 14C-precursors to the culture medium during fermentation. The antibiotic was isolated and purified by the following procedure : Fermentation broth was acidified with 0.1N H2SO4 to pH 4.5 and filtered with the aid of 6% (w/v) of Hyflo Super-Cel. The mycelium pad was then washed several timpQ witVi nridifipf] distilled water (pH 4.5), and extracted with a mixture of chloroform and 95% ethanol (1: 1, v/v). The extract was then purified by chromatography on silica gel thin-layer plates using CHCl3-EtOH-H2O (1 : 1 : 0.16, v/v/v) as the
Mechanics of solid tissue invasion by the mammalian pathogen Pythium insidiosum.

The relative significance of mechanical penetration versus the action of substrate-degrading enzymes during solid tissue invasion has not been established for any fungal disease. Pythium insidiosum is an oomycete fungus (or stramenopile) that causes a rare, but potentially lethal infection in humans and other mammalian hosts. Experiments with miniature strain gauges showed that single hyphal apices of this pathogen exert forces of up to 6.9 microN, corresponding to maximum pressures of 0.3 microN microm(-2) or MPa. Samples of cutaneous and subcutaneous tissue from fresh human cadavers displayed a mean strength (resistance to needle puncture) of 24 microN microm(-2), and a mean pressure of 30 microN microm(-2) was necessary to penetrate skin strips from slaughtered horses. These experiments demonstrate that P. insidiosum does not exert sufficient pressure to penetrate undamaged skin by mechanics alone, but must effect a decisive reduction in tissue strength by proteinase secretion.
Stability of lyotropic phases with curved interfaces

The diverse structural forms of lipid-water phases are representative of those found in many lyotropic and amphiphilic systems. These structures consist of interfaces which divide the material into hydrophobic and hydrophilic volumes. The net result of a very complex set of intermolecular interactions is that the interfaces behave as surfaces endowed with a spontaneous curvature and whose separations are subject to constraints of molecular lengths and component densities. Phase transitions which result in an abrupt change of the curvature of the interfaces may be understood phenomenologically as a competition between the elastic energy of bending the interfaces and energies resulting from the constraints of interfacial separation. The application of this approach is reviewed for transitions between lamellar, hexagonally packed cylindrical, close-packed spherical, and bicontinuous cubic structures of diacyl biomembrane lipids. It is shown that the structural dimensions and phase transitions of the lipid mesomorphs may be largely understood in terms of the phenomenological model. The existence of a spontaneous curvature associated with the lipid monolayers of bilayers implies that biomembranes exist in a state of compositionally controlled elastic stress which may provide a chemically nonspecific rationale for the types of lipids found in cell membranes. A discussion is given ofmore » the evidence that membrane proteins are functionally sensitive to the elastic stress. The article concludes with a summary of related outstanding problems. « less
World Smallest 0.34/spl mu/m~ COB Cell 1T1C 64Mb FRAM with New Sensing Architecture and Highly Reliable MOCVD PZT Integration Technology

We have successfully demonstrated a 0.34mum2 COB cell 1T1C 64Mb FRAM at 150nm technology node. The minimum signal window between data "1" and data "0" of 64M bit cells was evaluated to 300mV at 85degC, 1.6V VDD. This wide signal window was achieved by introducing advanced anneal technology and optimized capacitor layout, from which the variation of individual cell charge was greatly improved, along with robust 2-D stack capacitor technologies such as 70nm thick MOCVD PZT technology with SRO electrode. In addition, a new reference cell scheme for 1T1C architecture, the multi-reference cell equalizing scheme (MRCE), greatly improved the variation of the reference cell signal for sufficient 1T1C sensing margin. As a result, no single bit failure was found in our 1T1C 64Mb FRAM after 500hour bake at 150degC
A functional analysis of the myelinated fibres of the superior laryngeal nerve of the rat

The main features of the distribution of the sensory and motor fibres from the vagus into the laryngeal nerves are well known and have been established by histological methods (DuBois & Foley, 1936, 1937). Some of the sensations subserved by fibres in the superior laryngeal nerve have been determined by electrical stimulation of the nerve in man (Ogura & Lam, 1953). Less is known of those afferents which do not give rise to sensation, and the numerous studies which have demonstrated reflex effects of stimulation of the superior laryngeal nerve (e.g. Sj6blom, 1915; Johnson, 1935; Andersson, Landgren, Neil & Zotterman, 1950; Doty, 1951) do not directly indicate the type of afferent involved.
A probabilistic algorithm for manipulation planning under continuous grasps and placements

An important skill of autonomous robots is the ability to carry out manipulation tasks. The solution to a manipulation problem generally consists in a sequence of elementary paths where an object is moved by a robot or it stays at a stable placement while the robot performs a re-grasping motion. Most existing planners require a finite set of configurations to achieve this task decomposition. We recently proposed an approach to automatically compute such intermediate configurations from continuous sets of stable placements and possible grasps of the movable object. This paper describes an improved algorithm based on this approach. It also presents several complex manipulation problems that illustrate the efficiency of the planner.
Is an entertainment robot useful in the care of elderly people with severe dementia?

OBJECTIVE An entertainment robot was used as occupational therapy instead of animal-assisted therapy to avoid any danger or injury to the patient and maintain cleanliness. This study compared the effectiveness of a robot animal, AIBO, with a toy. METHOD AIBO is made of metal and responds to spoken commands. We demonstrated AIBO to severely demented elderly people living in a geriatric home and observed their reactions. RESULTS The most frequent reactions to AIBO consisted of looking at, communicating with, and caring for AIBO. The patients recognized that AIBO was a robot. However, once we dressed AIBO, the patients perceived AIBO as either a dog or a baby. Nevertheless, the presentation of AIBO resulted in positive outcomes for the severe dementia patients, including increased communication between the patients and AIBO. CONCLUSION AIBO was clearly an effective rehabilitation tool in the treatment of severely demented patients.
Hydration Rate of Obsidian

The hydration rates of 12 obsidian samples of different chemical compositions were measured at temperatures from 95� to 245�C. An expression relating hydration rate to temperature was derived for each sample. The SiO2 content and refractive index are related to the hydration rate, as are the CaO, MgO, and original water contents. With this information it is possible to calculate the hydration rate of a sample from its silica content, refractive index, or chemical index and a knowledge of the effective temperature at which the hydration occurred. The effective hydration temperature can be either measured or approximated from weather records. Rates have been calculated by both methods, and the results show that weather records can give a good approximation to the true EHT, particularly in tropical and subtropical climates. If one determines the EHT by any of the methods suggested, and also measures or knows the rate of hydration of the particular obsidian used, it should be possible to carry out absolute dating to � 10 percent of the true age over periods as short as several years and as long as millions of years.
Modeling the Effects of Anthropogenic Habitat Change on Savanna Snake Invasions into African Rainforest

Abstract: We used a species‐distribution modeling approach, ground‐based climate data sets, and newly available remote‐sensing data on vegetation from the MODIS and Quick Scatterometer sensors to investigate the combined effects of human‐caused habitat alterations and climate on potential invasions of rainforest by 3 savanna snake species in Cameroon, Central Africa: the night adder (Causus maculatus), olympic lined snake (Dromophis lineatus), and African house snake (Lamprophis fuliginosus). Models with contemporary climate variables and localities from native savanna habitats showed that the current climate in undisturbed rainforest was unsuitable for any of the snake species due to high precipitation. Limited availability of thermally suitable nest sites and mismatches between important life‐history events and prey availability are a likely explanation for the predicted exclusion from undisturbed rainforest. Models with only MODIS‐derived vegetation variables and savanna localities predicted invasion in disturbed areas within the rainforest zone, which suggests that human removal of forest cover creates suitable microhabitats that facilitate invasions into rainforest. Models with a combination of contemporary climate, MODIS‐ and Quick Scatterometer‐derived vegetation variables, and forest and savanna localities predicted extensive invasion into rainforest caused by rainforest loss. In contrast, a projection of the present‐day species‐climate envelope on future climate suggested a reduction in invasion potential within the rainforest zone as a consequence of predicted increases in precipitation. These results emphasize that the combined responses of deforestation and climate change will likely be complex in tropical rainforest systems.
Role of Kasahara Dashemani Vati in Kasa and Vyadhikshamatva in children with special reference to recurrent respiratory tract infections

The present single-centered randomized control trial (RCT) was carried out with the prime aim of assessing the effect of Kasahara Dashemani Vati (trial drug) on Kasa and Vyadhikshamatva in the children suffering from recurrent respiratory tract infections and comparing it with the efficacy of Indukanta Vati. The clinical trial included 40 patients belonging to age group of 3-12 years. The drugs were administered in a daily dose fixed as per "Clark′s Rule" along with honey for duration of 60 days. The effect of treatment on the signs and symptoms of Kasa was assessed on the 15 th day, whereas the effect on Vyadhikshamatva was assessed on the 60 th day. The patients were under follow-up for a period of 60 days after completing the treatment course for evaluation of any recurrence. Effect of the therapy on the individual signs and symptoms of Kasa, laboratory parameters, immunoglobulin (Ig) biomarkers, status of Atura Bala, and prevention of recurrence during follow-up period were the parameters used to assess the overall effect of therapy. The observed data were subjected to appropriate statistical analysis for testing the statistical significance. Kasahara Dashemani provided relief in all symptoms of Kasa irrespective of Doshic involvement and on the parameters of Atura Bala. All the changes were statistically highly significant. The control group also showed similar effects which were statistically highly significant. The trial group was found to have a direct influence on serum Ig status. No patient has reported any adverse drug reactions during the treatment and follow-up periods.
A Fluid Control Problem in Queueing Networks with General Service Times

We consider a queueing network with several customer classes and several service pools, each consisting of many statistically identical servers. The service requirement of each customer is assumed to be generally distributed and is allowed to depend on both the customer class and the service pool. Customers may also abandon while waiting in queue, with exponentially distributed patience time. For each class, the holding cost per unit time is given as a convex function of the corresponding queue length. It is shown that, under an overload condition and under a certain fluid scaling, the problem of identifying an optimal dynamical scheduling that minimizes the long average holding cost, can be reduced to solving a simple deterministic problem.