Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE EFFECT OF WINTER FORAGE CROP AND ESTABLISHMENT METHOD ON N LOSSES DURING DAIRY PASTURE RENEWAL

There is concern about the fate of mineral nitrogen (N) in dairy systems, particularly from grazing of winter forages during pasture renewal. A field experiment was conducted on a poorly drained soil in Canterbury to investigate the effects of renewal via a crop of winter rape, or direct to pasture, on N losses. Two different tillage techniques to establish the crops were compared: intensive cultivation and direct drilling. Grazing effects on losses were compared by further splitting the plots. Additional treatments were: with and without treading, and with and without urine-amendment. Measurements made during the experiment included plant N, soil mineral N to 1 m, soil water content, and mineral N in porous cups at 1 m depth. Drainage was modelled using APSIM. Nitrate leaching losses ranged from 15–28 kg N/ha over the period of the experiment (March 2012–January 2013). In this experiment, where urinary N inputs were equal, winter nitrate leaching losses were higher from plots sown directly to ryegrass than from plots re-grassed via forage rape. A mass balance of N inputs less N measured in the plant, soil or lost through leaching accounted for 77–100% of the applied N. We speculate that a large proportion of the N we could not account for was lost through gaseous transformations of added N and that compaction in the treaded plots may have enhanced denitrification losses. The addition of urine caused a large increase in unaccounted for N losses, but had comparatively little effect on nitrate leaching. Tillage technique had no significant effect on yields or N leaching.
The process of conducting herbal medicine research through the clinical trials exemption scheme

The primary aims of this study were to develop research methodology in order to investigate the efficacy of herbal medicine in alleviating menopausal symptoms, and to prepare an application for submission to the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) to gain approval to run a randomised, double blind, placebo controlled clinical trial. A research protocol was developed which outlined the key stages of the study for subsequent review and approval by an ethics committee. An operations manual was developed to guide and instruct clinicians on how the study should be implemented. This required the development of case history notes, screening procedures, timetable flow charts and adverse event reporting cards specifically for this study. An original herbal formula was developed for this study based on a literature review of medicinal plants. A 54-page exemption from licences MLA-164 application was completed, which set out in detail the design of the study. The pharmacological properties of the medicinal plants were reviewed from the literature and listed in detail to satisfy the MCA's requirements for scientific evidence of efficacy and safety. Heavy metal analysis was performed for quality control purposes to examine the feasibility of being able to meet specification limits for metal contamination in medicinal herbs. This was conducted using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectroscopy on a total of 16 herb samples, eight samples of Hypericum perforatum L. and eight samples of Salvia officinalis L. from cultivation sites in the UK and Europe. Mean metal ion concentrations of lead, cadmium, mercury, copper, zinc, nickel and chromium were found to be below statutory limits and guidelines, and would therefore satisfy the requirements of an MLA- 164 application for metal contamination. High Performance Liquid Chromatography was performed using UV detector and Diode-Array detector systems to determine the suitability of each method to provide a `fingerprint' analysis of the medicinal herbs for the purposes of establishing plant authenticity. The diode-array analysis was superior to simple UV detector methodology because it was able to provide greater accuracy to determine the chemical group for some unknown constituents. However, neither system provided adequate phytochemical profiles to authenticate the medicinal plants. The research study provided a novel insight into the processes required for the design and implementation of a herbal medicine clinical trial, and has expanded the current knowledge of the requirements for completing a clinical trials application (MLA-164) to the MCA.
Four simple recommendations to encourage best practices in research software

Scientific research relies on computer software, yet software is not always developed following practices that ensure its quality and sustainability. This manuscript does not aim to propose new software development best practices, but rather to provide simple recommendations that encourage the adoption of existing best practices. Software development best practices promote better quality software, and better quality software improves the reproducibility and reusability of research. These recommendations are designed around Open Source values, and provide practical suggestions that contribute to making research software and its source code more discoverable, reusable and transparent. This manuscript is aimed at developers, but also at organisations, projects, journals and funders that can increase the quality and sustainability of research software by encouraging the adoption of these recommendations.
Efficient Geometric Matching with Polar Bounds for Aligning Star Field Images

For many autonomous satellites, maintaining current knowledge of their location and pose is critical to mission success. Whilst there exist mature solutions for positioning and attitude estimation in space, computer vision approaches are emerging as viable and cheaper alternatives. At the core of a vision-based satellite motion estimation system is registering the successive images taken in space. This is a challenging task due to the lack of visually salient features in star field images. In this research, we propose a novel technique for registering star field images. We formulate the task as a geometric matching optimisation problem, which is solved using branch-and-bound. Our main contribution lies in devising a novel polar bounding function that provides tighter bounds than existing methods. Our bounding function is also easy to evaluate, requiring no more computations than available bounding functions. As demonstrated on actual space images, both factors contribute to speed up geometric matching by a large degree. The proposed technique further illustrates the promise of vision-based sensors for space missions.
Robust Quadratic Regression Conic Optimization for Robust Quadratic Regression

This paper is concerned with the robust quadratic regression problem, where the goal is to find the unknown parameters (state) of a system modeled by a set of quadratic equations. In this problem, a subset of equations are subject to errors (noise values) of arbitrary magnitudes. We propose two penalized conic optimization methods based on semidefinite programming and second-order cone programming to address this problem. Different conditions are derived to guarantee the exact recovery of a solution of the nonlinear regression problem. The results are first developed for arbitrary deterministic models, and then refined for Gaussian models. The obtained conditions consist in bounds on the number of bad measurements each method can tolerate without producing a nonzero estimation error. It is proved that the proposed methods allow up to a half of the total number of measurements to be grossly erroneous. The efficacy of the developed methods is demonstrated in different case studies, including data analytics for a European power grid.
Title Racial Differences in the Association Between Preoperative Serum Cholesterol and Prostate Cancer Recurrence : Results from the SEARCH Database

Background: Black men are disproportionately affected by both cardiovascular disease and prostate cancer. Epidemiologic evidence linking dyslipidemia, an established cardiovascular risk factor, and prostate cancer progression is mixed. As existing studieswere conducted in predominantly non-black populations, research on black men is lacking. Methods: We identified 628 black and 1,020 non-black men who underwent radical prostatectomy and never used statins before surgery in the Shared Equal Access Regional Cancer Hospital (SEARCH) database. Median follow-up was 2.9 years. The impact of preoperative hypercholesterolemia on risk of biochemical recurrence was examined using multivariable, race-stratified proportional hazards. In secondary analysis, we examined associations with low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and triglycerides, overall and among men with dyslipidemia. Results: High cholesterol was associated with increased risk of recurrence in black [HRper10 mg/dL 1.06; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.02–1.11] but not non-black men (HRper10 mg/dL 0.99; 95% CI, 0.95–1.03; Pinteraction 1⁄4 0.011). Elevated triglycerides were associated with increased risk in both black and non-black men (HRper10 mg/dL 1.02; 95% CI, 1.00–1.03 and 1.02; 95% CI, 1.00–1.02, respectively; Pinteraction 1⁄4 0.458). There were no significant associations between LDL or HDL and recurrence risk in either race. Associations with cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides were similar among men with dyslipidemia, but low HDL was associated with increased risk of recurrence in black, but not non-black men with dyslipidemia (Pinteraction 1⁄4 0.047). Conclusion: Elevated cholesterol was a risk factor for recurrence in black but not non-black men, whereas high triglycerides were associated with increased risk regardless of race. Impact: Significantly contrasting associations by race may provide insight into prostate cancer racial disparities. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(3); 547–54. 2016 AACR.
FAIZAN RAZZAQ SIDDIQUI ANALOG BASEBAND BOARD DESIGN AND ARCHITECTURAL STUDIES FOR MILLIMETER WAVE BACKHAUL BEAMSTEERING RADIO IN 5G NETWORKS

Faizan Razzaq Siddiqui: Analog Baseband Board Design and Architectural Studies for Millimeter wave Backhaul Beam-steering radio in 5G networks. Tampere University of Technology Master of Science Thesis, 72 pages, May 2016. Master’s Degree Program in Electrical Engineering. Major: Wireless Communication. Examiners: Olli-Pekka Lunden, Professor Mikko Valkama. Supervisors in Nokia Bell Labs: Juha Nurmiharju, Pekka Wainio.
Cone Beam Computed Tomography ( CBCT ) As A Diagnostic Aid In A Case Of Unicystic Ameloblastoma : A Case Report

Ameloblastoma is a rare, benign epithelial odontogenic tumor. This odontogenic neoplasm was first detailed and described by Falkson in 1879. Most common site of origin is posterior mandibular body ramus region. It resembles the cells of the enamel-forming organ. We present a case which demonstrates use of cone beam computed tomography in the diagnosis of large unicystic ameloblastoma in a 35 year-old female patient.
Using agents to simulate a tourist market in an educational game

The full implementation of European policies on Entrepreneurship Education requires an effective change in teaching programmes at the different educational levels. Recent developments in the serious game sectorshow how simulation games allow studentsto tacklecomplex situations through learning by doing. In the last few years,some researchers have suggested simulatingmarket dynamics by using the agent based approach. Consequently, a serious game has been designed and implemented within the framework of the European project “Posso . Non Posso . Vado! PNPV Project Rev.2 (I can . I cannot . I go! ), whichaims to introduce and foster an entrepreneurial mindset among young people. After a brief overview ofthe blended learning model and the layered structure of the game,the paper describes the interactions between the agents and their behavior, these being the key elements in the design of the market simulation model. Keywords—EducationalGames, Soft -Agent, Business Games, Entrepreneurship Education, Tourism Market
Rates of Convergence in Semiparametric Mixture Models

Rates of Convergence in Semiparametric Mixture Models Hemant Ishwaran Yale University 1993 The semiparametric mixture model has density f(x | θ,Q) = ∫ f(x | θ, η) dQ(η), where θ is a real vector, sometimes referred to as the structural parameter, and Q is an unknown distribution commonly referred to as the mixing distribution. The thesis considers the problem of estimation for θ with Q playing the role of a nuisance parameter. The problem of estimation for θ in the semiparametric mixture model has generally focused on the question of efficiency. Van der Vaart (1988) and Pfanzagl (1990) show that when the type of mixing behavior is constrained it is possible to state efficiency results as local asymptotic minimax (LAM) theorems and convolution theorems. These results implicitly presuppose the existence of a Op ( n−1/2 ) estimator for θ. However, it is not always clear that the structural parameter is estimable at aOp ( n−1/2 ) rate. Carroll and Hall (1988) and Zhang (1990) show that when θ is known, the mixing distribution in a location mixture model is typically estimable only at very slow rates. It is possible, therefore, for the difficulty in estimating the mixing distribution to create problems, as well, in the estimation for θ. Rates of convergence for estimators of θ are defined in a locally uniform sense to incorporate a minimax approach to estimation. Le Cam (1973) and Donoho and Liu (1987) describe a general approach for determining lower bounds for uniform rates of convergence which is adapted to the mixture setting. The thesis presents a general class of mixture models for which the structural parameter can only be estimated at rates slower than Op ( n−1/2 ) . A new Fourier technique is used to determine explicit lower bounds for rates of convergence in location-mixture models, where estimation is for an unknown scale parameter. The theory is illustrated by application to two well known models: the mixture model formed by constrained mixing over the mean of a normal density with unknown variance, and the Weibull mixture model as studied by Heckman and Singer (1984). Rates of Convergence in Semiparametric Mixture Models A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Yale University in Candidacy for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Hemant Ishwaran May, 1993
Utilization of Online Public Access Catalogue ( OPAC ) at the Lagos State Polytechnic Library in Nigeria

This paper aimed at presenting the results of a survey conducted to determine the effective use of Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) at the library of Lagos State Polytechnic Ikorodu. The study adopted survey research design. Four hundred copies of the structured questionnaire were distributed randomly to staff and students of the Polytechnic in Ikorodu campus for the 2011/2012 academic session. Out of the four hundred copies of questionnaire distributed 91.14% of the respondents identified the use of OPAC while 8.86% signified that they don't use the OPAC to access Library collections. The data collated were analyzed using frequency distribution table and simple percentage. Some of the problems observed from the study in the use of OPAC at the library include: lack of awareness amongst the library users community, lack of instruction in the use of software package, shortage of terminals, instability of electricity supply among others. Hence, the study recommends among others, the need for continuous instructions for library users on how to search information materials within the library using the OPAC.
Elevated Atmospheric CO 2 and Strain of Rhizobium Alter Freezing Tolerance and Cold-induced Molecular Changes in Alfalfa ( Medicago sativa )

† Background and Aims The objective of the study was to assess the impact of elevated CO2 in interaction with rhizobial strains on freezing tolerance and cold-induced molecular changes in alfalfa. † Methods Alfalfa inoculated with two different strains of rhizobium (A2 and NRG34) was grown and cold acclimated (2 weeks at 2 8C) under either 400 (ambient) or 800 mmol mol (elevated) CO2. † Key Results Plants acclimated under 400 mmol mol CO2 were more freezing tolerant than those maintained under 800 mmol mol. Cryoprotective sugars typically linked with the acquisition of freezing tolerance such as sucrose, stachyose and raffinose increased in roots in response to low temperature but did not differ between CO2 treatments. Similarly high CO2 did not alter the expression of many cold-regulated (COR) genes although it significantly increased the level of transcripts encoding a COR gene homologous to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphatedehydrogenase (GAPDH). A significant effect of rhizobial strain was observed on both freezing tolerance and gene expression. Plants of alfalfa inoculated with strain A2 were more freezing tolerant than those inoculated with strain NRG34. Transcripts of COR genes homologous to a pathogenesis-related protein (PR-10) and to a nucleartargeted protein were markedly enhanced in roots of alfalfa inoculated with strain A2 as compared with strain NRG34. Transcripts encoding the vegetative storage proteins (VSPs) b-amylase and chitinase were more abundant in roots of non-acclimated plants inoculated with strain NRG34 than with strain A2. † Conclusions Taken together, the results suggest that elevated CO2 stimulates plant growth and reduces freezing tolerance. The acquisition of cold tolerance is also influenced by the rhizobial strain, as indicated by lower levels of expression of COR genes and sustained accumulation of VSP-encoding transcripts in alfalfa inoculated with strain NRG34 as compared with strain A2.
An immunohistochemical study of NFE 2 L 2 , KEAP 1 and 8-hydroxy-2 '-deoxyguanosine and the EMT markers SNAI 2 , ZEB 1 and TWIST 1 in metastatic melanoma

role of redox balance regulators in metastatic melanomas, but there is some evidence for a link between epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cellular redox status. Methods: We compared the immunohistochemical expression of nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 (NFE2L2), Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (KEAP1), 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), TWIST1, SNAI2 and ZEB1 between primary melanomas and metastases in a cohort of 23 nevi, 66 malignant melanomas and 22 metastases. Results: Nuclear NFE2L2 expression was higher (p=0.003) and cytoplasmic KEAP1 lower (p=0.026) in metastatic lesions than at primary sites. Nuclear NFE2L2 expression was associated with the presence of distant metastases (p=0.040) and with nuclear TWIST1 expression (p=0.002). Patients having both NFE2L2 and TWIST1 expression in nuclei had an extremely poor prognosis (p=0.0003). In multivariate analysis nuclear TWIST1 expression was an independent predictor of a poorer prognosis (HR 2.99, 95% CI 1.17-7.69; p=0.023) and the invasive TWIST1/ZEB1 phenotype showed poorer melanoma-specific survival (HR 7.28, 95% CI 2.23-23.77; p=0.001). Nuclear expression of 8-OHdG (p=0.001) was lower at metastatic sites than in primary lesions. Conclusions: EMT signalling and the KEAP1/NFE2L2axis are likely to be involved in metastatic spread of malignant melanoma and also appear to have potential interactions.
A novel two-step procedure to expand Sca-1 + cells clonally

Resident cardiac stem cells (CSCs) are characterized by their capacity to self-renew in culture, and are multi-potent for forming normal cell types in hearts. CSCs were originally isolated directly from enzymatically digested hearts using stem cell markers. However, long exposure to enzymatic digestion can affect the integrity of stem cell markers on the cell surface, and also compromise stem cell function. Alternatively resident CSCs can migrate from tissue explant and form cardiospheres in culture. However, fibroblast contamination can easily occur during CSC culture. To avoid these problems, we developed a two-step procedure by growing the cells before selecting the Sca1+ cells and culturing in cardiac fibroblast conditioned medium, they avoid fibroblast overgrowth.
Nutrient Metabolism Dietary Guar Gum Improves Insulin Sensitivity in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats

Although dietary recommendations for diabetics stress the need for increased carbohydrate and dietary fiber, the effectiveness of dietary fiber in improving insulin sensitivity remains controversial. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of a soluble fiber (guar gum) and an insoluble fiber (wheat bran) on insulin sensitivity in streptozotocin-induced (STZ) diabetic rats. Consequently, the rats were divided into two groups and one half were rendered diabetic with streptozotocin. The STZ diabetic and nondiabetic rats were further randomized and fed a diet containing dietary fiber (7 g/100 g diet) from either guar gum or wheat bran. The hyperinsulinemic clamp technique, combined with infusion of the glucose analog, 2-deoxyglucose (2DG), was utilized to examine insulin sensitivity. Bran-fed STZ diabetic rats were significantly (P õ 0.001) hyperglycemic, which was ameliorated by guar gum. Insulin-mediated glucose disposal was increased by the guar diet compared with the bran diet in both the STZ diabetic rats [17.7 { 2.2 vs. 11.8 { 2.4 mL/(kgrmin), P õ 0.05] and the nondiabetic rats [20.5 { 2.8 vs. 15.5 { 1.5 mL/(kgrmin), P õ 0.05]. The accumulation of 2DG in peripheral muscles reflected the changes in insulin sensitivity with a trend for increased 2DG uptake in the majority of analyzed tissues in rats fed the guar diet, both nondiabetic and STZ diabetic, compared with the bran-fed rats. Accompanying these alterations in insulin sensitivity, guar gum suppressed food intake in the hyperphagic diabetic rats by 20% (P õ 0.001). The present results demonstrate the effectiveness of guar gum in improving insulin sensitivity in STZ diabetic rats and suggest that reduced food intake may be an important mechanism of action of guar in hyperphagic diabetic rats. J. Nutr. 127: 359–364, 1997.
Aalborg Universitet Beam-Steerable Microstrip-Fed Bow-Tie Antenna Array for Fifth Generation Cellular

The design and performance of mm-wave phased array antenna for 5G mobile broadband communication systems has been provided in this manuscript. The antenna is designed on a N9000 PTFE substrate with 0.787 mm thickness and 2.2 dielectric constant and 65×130 mm overall dimension. Eight elements of bow-tie antennas have been used at the top-edge region of mobile phone PCB. The antenna elements fed by microstrip lines are designed to operate at 17 GHz. The simulated results give good performances in terms of different antenna parameters. In addition, an investigation on the distance between antenna elements has been done.
A Multi-Scale Fully Convolutional Networks Model for Brain MRI Segmentation

Accurate segmentation for brain magnetic resonance (MR) images is of great significance to quantitative analysis of brain image. However, traditional segmentation methods suffer from the problems existing in brain images such as noise, weak edges and intensity inhomogeneity (also named as bias field). Convolutional neural networks based methods have been used to segment images; however, it is still hard to find accurate results for brain MR images. In order to obtain accurate segmentation results, a multi-scale fully convolution networks model (MSFCN) is proposed in this paper. First, we use padding convolutions in conv-layer to preserve the resolution of feature maps. So we can obtain segmentation results with the same resolution as inputs. Then, different sized filters are utilized in the same conv-layer, after that, the outputs of these filters are concatenated together and fed to the next layer, which makes the model learn features from different scales. Both experimental results and statistic results show that the proposed model can obtain more accurate results.