Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managing Remnant and Reemerging Common Reed (Phragmites australis) Infestations to Improve Treatment Efficacy and Mitigate Damage to Native Plants

Abstract Following large-scale herbicide spraying and burning on Assateague Island, a barrier bar island located in Maryland and Virginia, the invasive common reed (Phragmites australis) was largely reduced from vast monocultures to less dense patches interspersed within maritime shrublands. To improve the control of these remnant/reemerging infestations and limit further nontarget damage, we tested three new treatments: mechanical cutting followed by dripping imazapyr onto stems, cutting followed 2 wk later by the foliar spraying of regrowth, and simple cutting with and without the removal of Phragmites litter. All herbicide treatments and cutting paired with litter removal significantly reduced Phragmites coverage (P ≤ 0.01) when compared with untreated controls. Native plant coverage was significantly greater after the cut-stem treatment than after traditional foliar spraying (P ≤ 0.01) because of the former's reduced herbicide use and more direct contact limited to Phragmites stems; native coverage was also greater after litter removal than when litter remained (P ≤ 0.001). Cutting followed by stem applications of herbicide is an effective means of treating scattered common reed stands in sensitive habitats, and litter removal after cutting can provide native vegetation with an advantage at recolonization. Nomenclature: Imazapyr, common reed, Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. Management Implications: Common reed (Phragmites) infestations that are interspersed throughout a shrubland of native vegetation pose a unique set of challenges. The most widespread methods for treating Phragmites involve the aerial and ground spraying of herbicide, mechanical clearing, and prescribed fire, all of which are impractical and extremely destructive to nontarget vegetation in this environment. Cutting Phragmites with a brush cutter, hand clippers, or both tools, and dripping imazapyr directly onto 5 to 25% of cut stems greatly limits the damage to nontarget vegetation relative to foliar spraying of herbicide and is equally effective at reducing Phragmites cover. Cutting followed by foliar spraying of Phragmites regrowth is as effective as treating 50% of cut stems with herbicide both in reducing Phragmites cover and limiting nontarget species damage. When accompanied by litter removal, cutting can significantly reduce Phragmites cover and greatly improve native plant regeneration in areas where herbicide cannot be applied, such as near open water or within sensitive areas containing rare or federally listed plant species. Cutting followed by stem-spraying generally requires less herbicide relative to the other methods tested, even in spite of this treatment's higher requisite herbicide concentration. The two alternative methods of applying herbicide tested herein require the same or slightly more person-hours to implement (relative to foliar-spraying of established stands), but they have an enhanced efficacy and utilize less herbicide.
Bipolar heterothallism in B‐group isolates of Leptosphaeria maculans

Pairwise combinations were carried out between the eight isolates originating from each of three asci of the B-group of Leptosphaeria maculans. Some of the pairings produced mature pseudothecia when incubated on wheat straws at 18°C and under a 12-h photoperiod of blue light. Isolates within a given tetrad could be attributed to one of two sexual compatibility groups, on the basis of combinations of isolates leading to fertile crosses. Within each tetrad, mating type segregated in a 1:1 ratio, suggesting the existence of one mating type gene (MAT1) with two alleles MAT1-1 and MAT1-2. Under these same conditions, each individual isolate from an A-group ascus originating from Brassica juncea produced pseudothecia with one or other of two compatible A-group testers originating from B. napus. However, attempts to mate these eight A-group single-ascospore isolates with two B-group single-ascospore isolates of opposite mating types remained unsuccessful. This work is the first successful report of in vitro sexual reproduction between B-group isolates, and provides evidence for bipolar heterothallism in B-group isolates of L. maculans. The implications of this mating protocol for genetic studies of B-group isolates and the consequences of this work for the taxonomy of L. maculans are discussed.
THE EFFECT OF LESIONS OF THE HIND‐ AND MID‐BRAIN ON MICTURITION IN THE CAT

1. Destruction of a small part of the brain just ventral to the internal edge of the superior cerebellar peduncle from the level of the middle of the motor nucleus of the fifth nerve behind to the level of the anterior end of the hind brain in front is followed by a permanent inability to empty the urinary bladder if the lesion is bilateral, but not if it is unilateral. 2. Destruction of the mid-brain from the ventral half of the side of the posterior end of the aqueduct outwards to just beyond the mesencephalic root of the fifth nerve is followed when the lesion is bilateral by a permanent loss of consciousness of wanting to micturate or defaecate, but does not impair the performance of either of these functions. 3. A lesion in the position of the last, but rather more extensive, produces frequency of micturition as well as the effects observed in 2. I am indebted to Professor J. P. Hill, F.R. S. , for allowing the photographs in figs. 3 to 6 to be taken in the Anatomical Department of University College.
Does personality impact the returns to cognitive skills?

This paper provides evidence on the relationship between individuals' cognitive abilities, their personality measured by the Big Five inventory and earnings. Using data from the Polish Follow-up Study to the Programme for International Assessment of Adult Competencies (postPIAAC) I find that the returns to cognitive skills depend on the personality of an individual: neurotic individuals experience significantly lower returns to their cognitive skills. Results also indicate that agreeableness and neuroticism are penalized significantly in the Polish labour market and that there is a positive relationship between conscientiousness and wages. Moreover, unlike previous literature, I find no substantial gender discrepancies in the personality associations with wages.
The Effect of Omega-3 Therapy on Induced Hyperacidity

1 Department of Medical Physiology, Kasr Al Ainy Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt 2 Department of Biochemistry, Kasr Al Aini Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt Corresponding Author Hader Ibrahim Sakr, MD Department of Medical Physiology, Kasr Al Ainy Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo Egypt Email: hadersakr209@yahoo.com, hadersakr@kasralainy.edu. eg Mobile phone: +201111616364 ABSTRACT Gastric hyperacidity is a serious health problem of global concern. This work was conducted to study the effect of chronic administration of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) on HCl secretion and stress-induced ulcer in male albino rats. Study groups included 24 rats divided into 2 main groups with 12 rats in each as follows: pyloric ligation group (A) and water immersion-induced gastric ulceration group (B). Each subgroup contained 6 rats. Among the parameters estimated in the studied groups were: free and total HCL secretion in group A, and ulcer score, ulcer index, percentage ulcer protection, histology of the stomach, eNOS enzyme activity, COX-2 enzyme activity, glutathione reductase enzyme gene expression, CCK gene expression and proton pump (H + /K + ATPase) gene expression in group B. RESULTS showed significant decrease in free and total acidity, ulcer score and index, COX-2 enzyme activity and Proton pump (H + /K + ATPase) gene expression among ω-3 fed rats compared with the results of the control group. On the other hand significant elevation was observed in the percentage ulcer protection, eNOS enzyme activity, glutathione reductase gene expression and CCK gene expression among omega-3 fed rats compared to control group. CONCLUSION, the present study revealed a protective effect of omega-3 PUFA on stress-induced gastric ulceration.
Immigration and Work Schedules: Theory and Evidence

We develop a theoretical framework to analyze the effects of immigration on native job amenities, focusing on work schedules. Immigrants have a comparative advantage in production at, and lower disamenity cost for nighttime work, which leads them to disproportionately choose nighttime employment. Because day and night tasks are imperfect substitutes, the relative price of day tasks increases as their supply becomes relatively more scarce. We provide empirical support for our theory. Native workers in local labor markets that experienced higher rates of immigration are more likely to work day shifts and receive a lower compensating differential for nighttime work.
Associations between the Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio and Diabetic Complications in Adults with Diabetes: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is an inexpensive and easily measurable laboratory index indicating systemic inflammation, while the application of many other inflammatory markers has been limited in daily clinical practice. However, large population studies about investigating the associations of the NLR level with diabetic complications including cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases (CVD), diabetic kidney disease (DKD), and diabetic retinopathy (DR) in the same population were limited. The aim of our study is to evaluate the associations between the NLR level and the prevalence of CVD, DKD, and DR in adults with diabetes simultaneously. Methods A cross-sectional survey of 4,813 diabetic adults was conducted in seven communities in China. Persons underwent several medical examinations, including the measurement of anthropometric factors, blood pressure, routinely analyzed leukocyte characteristics, glucose, lipid profiles, urine albumin/creatinine ratio, and fundus photographs. Results Compared with the first quartile of the NLR level, the odds of having CVD was significantly increased by 21% for participants in the highest quartile (OR 1.21; 95% CI 1.00, 1.47) (P for trend < 0.05). Similarly, the prevalence of DKD among participants in the highest quartile of the NLR level was significantly increased by 150% (OR 2.50; 95% CI 1.95, 3.19) (P for trend < 0.05). However, no association was found between the NLR level and the prevalence of DR (P for trend > 0.05). These associations were all fully adjusted. Conclusions A higher NLR level was associated with an increased prevalence of CVD and DKD, other than DR, in diabetic adults.
To Keep Close or to Let Loose: Recipe for Sustainable Quality Dyad

This study’s objective was to determine factors that that sustain a quality dyad. Leaders are known to consciously and sub consciously form two groups; in-group and outgroup members. Studies have revealed that in-group members work overtime and perform extra duties and in turn, get favours from the leaders including career mobility and access to information, among other favours. Literature is unclear on how these groups are formed and this paper embarked on finding out the recipe of the formation and sustainability of a quality dyad. It was hypothesised that being a male member, trust and competence are not recipes of a high-quality relationship. Descriptive survey was employed; a population of 19 leaders were responding to questions about their 169 employees who report to them directly. Primary data was collected using semi-structured questionnaires.122 pairs of leaders and their direct reports was the response rate (72.2%). Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data. The hypothesis was tested using logistical regression technique. The results showed that competence and trust are the recipe for an inclusion into the in-group of a leader. Gender, on the other hand, was not a recipe for a sustainable quality dyadic relationship. It is recommended that employees should ensure high level trustworthiness and competence for them to be kept close by the leader. The paper suggests that more variables can be considered as recipes for the quality dyadic relationship. These findings add significant value on both theory, policy and practice.
University of Groningen [Zr-89]Zr-cetuximab PET/CT as biomarker for cetuximab monotherapy in patients with RAS wild-type advanced colorectal cancer

Purpose One-third of patients withRASwild-type mCRC do not benefit from anti-EGFRmonoclonal antibodies. This might be a result of variable pharmacokinetics and insufficient tumor targeting. We evaluated cetuximab tumor accumulation on [Zr]Zrcetuximab PET/CT as a potential predictive biomarker and determinant for an escalating dosing strategy. Patients and methods PET/CT imaging of [Zr]Zr-cetuximab (37 MBq/10 mg) after a therapeutic pre-dose (500 mg/m ≤ 2 h) cetuximab was performed at the start of treatment. Patients without visual tumor uptake underwent dose escalation and a subsequent [Zr]Zr-cetuximab PET/CT. Treatment benefit was defined as stable disease or response on CT scan evaluation after 8 weeks. Results Visual tumor uptake on [Zr]Zr-cetuximab PET/CT was observed in 66% of 35 patients. There was no relationship between PET positivity and treatment benefit (52% versus 80% for PET-negative,P = 0.16), progression-free survival (3.6 versus 5.7 months, P = 0.15), or overall survival (7.1 versus 9.4 months, P = 0.29). However, in 67% of PET-negative patients, cetuximab dose escalation (750–1250 mg/m) was applied, potentially influencing outcome in this group. None of the second [Zr]Zr-cetuximab PET/CTwas positive. Eighty percent of patients without visual tumor uptake had treatment benefit, making [Zr]Zr-cetuximab PET/CT unsuitable as a predictive biomarker. Tumor SUVpeak did not correlate to changes in tumor size on CT (P = 0.23), treatment benefit, nor progression-free survival. Cetuximab pharmacokinetics were not related to treatment benefit. BRAF mutations, right-sidedness, and low sEGFR were correlated with intrinsic resistance to cetuximab. Conclusion Tumor uptake on [Zr]Zr-cetuximab PET/CT failed to predict treatment benefit in patients with RAS wild-type mCRC receiving cetuximab monotherapy. BRAFmutations, right-sidedness, and low sEGFR correlated with intrinsic resistance to cetuximab.
Data Mining in Higher Education System and the Quality of Faculty Affecting Students Academic Performance: A Systematic Review

Higher education plays a very important role in the global scenario in the present day situation. Basic education has become a preliminary requirement. Since the education rate is increasing day by day and competition for placement is increasing in the campus, the quality of the potential faculty also plays a very important role in carving the student’s future. Hence, the present study considers the various factors of faculty which affects the quality of the students produced to the global market. In the present paper the personal and professional credentials of five potential faculties are considered. The result analysis for the subjects they have handled for four consecutive years is collected. An effort is made to map the faculty credentials with the outcome produced. The inferences are drawn based on the performance of students.
Phenotypic selection in a population of Crepis tectorum ssp. pumila (Asteraceae)

A 3-year demographic study was conducted to reveal targets of selection on morphology and life history in a population of Crepis tectorum ssp. pumila, a winter annual plant confined to calcareous grasslands (alvars) on the Baltic island of Oland (south Sweden). I calculated the selection differential to describe the change in the mean value of a character due to selection and used multiple regression analyses to partition the direct effect of selection on the trait from indirect responses of selection on other traits. Rosette leaf number, a convenient measure of plant size, was strongly correlated with both viability and fertility (fitness). There was also a strong relationship between fitness and the extent to which the plants expressed traits characterizing this particular taxon. Multiple regression analyses indicated direct selection favouring plants with deeply lobed leaves and a densely branched stem, two distinctive traits of ssp. pumila believed to be adaptive in the alvar habitat. Only stem height.
Machine Learning on Embedded Systems: An Exploratory Study on Gas Chromatography Analysis Presented at Pittcon 2020

This paper proposes a novel approach of utilizing Machine Learning (ML) models for embedded systems. This is demonstrated through the deployment of an ML model on a Gas Chromatography (GC) system, used for natural gas analysis. Unlike other schools of research that treat the analysis of chromatograms as image classification problems, this study treats chromatograms as time-series inputs. The trained model is ported to C programming language and deployed on an embedded system. Experimental results demonstrate the superior accuracy and robustness achieved by this ML based approach, when compared to the traditional analysis using heuristic algorithms. The execution time of the ML model on the embedded system is also found to be on par with analysis using heuristic algorithms .
Asymptotic Behavior of Brownian Tourists

where f(x) = g(x)x/‖x‖ and g is real valued. When g is a nonegative, Xt is a continuous analogue of a process invented by Diaconis and studied by Pemantle (1988a,b) so stealing a metaphor from that paper (and changing the sign) we can think of Xt as the trajectory of a tourist who wants to stay away from places she has visited before. For a more serious physical motivation one can think of Xt as describing a growing polymer in which newly added units are repelled by existing ones. As a polymer model, (1.1) has two serious weakness: (i) the repulsion does not prevent self–intersections, and (ii) while real polymers can rearrange themselves to minimize energy, ours cannot. However, in contrast to Edward’s model (see Westwater (1980a)) the existence of the process presents no problem. It is easy to verify that (1.1) has a pathwise unique strong solution. Furthermore, one can hope that results about the end to end displacement of our polymer will give some insight into the behavior of more realisitic models. In this paper we will be concerned with the asymptotic behavior of Xt as t → ∞. The reader will see this problem presents some interesting mathematical challenges. Most of our results are confined to one dimension but the first one is general.
Honey Bees: Species protection with genetic engineering

Honey bee colonies – superorganisms under stress Industrial agriculture has put enormous strain on honey bee colonies. Amongst other things, honey bees are exposed to diverse toxins largely due to the spraying of crops. Other factors include a frequent lack of suitable flowering plants. Additionally, all of these factors can contribute to increasing parasitic infestation. In short: honey bee habitats have been changed so severely that the survival of honey bees is under threat. Investigations into honey bee colonies in Africa do indeed suggest that harmful environmental influences have an enormous effect on resistance to Varroa mites (Muli et al., 2014).
Consciousness and Spatial Navigation

One of the essential gifts that humans possess is the ability to orientate, a feature that is also included as a “survival pack” for animals. As birds can fly back to their nests after a long journey for food, we humans are also able to make our way back home after a long day of work. Our brain has the ability to capture spatial cues and store them into mini-neural circuits so as to guide us to the desired place. What would life be like if individuals had absolutely no idea about where they were, how to reach a certain place for food, or something as simple as going back home? If you were asked to describe your way back home, you would most probably point in the direction of your apartment and use various visually striking landmarks (such as corner shops, water fountain, or even traffic lights) to serve as cues to further complement the explanation. These landmarks form a conscious repertoire for reaching a desired place. However, what if that question was asked when you had high blood alcohol content? At that stage, your conscious level drops, and so is your ability to recall those familiar visual cues from your working
A Survey on Automatic Parameter Tuning for Big Data Processing Systems

Big data processing systems (e.g., Hadoop, Spark, Storm) contain a vast number of configuration parameters controlling parallelism, I/O behavior, memory settings, and compression. Improper parameter settings can cause significant performance degradation and stability issues. However, regular users and even expert administrators grapple with understanding and tuning them to achieve good performance. We investigate existing approaches on parameter tuning for both batch and stream data processing systems and classify them into six categories: rule-based, cost modeling, simulation-based, experiment-driven, machine learning, and adaptive tuning. We summarize the pros and cons of each approach and raise some open research problems for automatic parameter tuning.
Estimation of implicit discount rates for the long and very long future: an application to climate change impacts on coastal tourism

This paper presents the results of a choice experiment survey to derive the discount factor that tourists implicitly consider in the process of valuation of different policies aimed at adapting to the three most important climate-induced environmental changes in the coast of Mallorca, Spain. The study includes two different split samples framed at two different time horizons, depending on whether the benefits of these policies are enjoyed by tourists in the long or in the very long future. Results show how critical the choice of discounting model is for the social profitability analysis of policies oriented to avoiding time persistent environmental problems.
Egg sex ratio and paternal traits: using within-individual comparisons

Empirical studies of sex ratios in birds have been limited due to difficulties in determining offspring sex. Since molecular sexing techniques removed this constraint, the last 5 years has seen a great increase in studies of clutch sex ratio manipulation by female birds. Typically these studies investigate variation in clutch sex ratios across individuals in relation to environmental characteristics or parental traits, and often they find no relationships. In this study we also found that clutch sex ratios did not vary in relation to a number of biological and environmental factors for 238 great tit Parus major nests. However, interesting sex ratio biases were revealed when variation in clutch sex ratios was analyzed within individual females breeding in successive years. There was a significant positive relationship between the change in sex ratio of a female's clutch from one year to the next and the relative body condition of her partner. Females mating with males of higher body condition in year x + 1 produced relatively male-biased sex ratios, and the opposite was true for females mated with lower condition males. Within-individual analysis also allowed investigations of sex ratio in relation to partner change. There was no change in sex ratios of females pairing with the same male; however, females pairing with a new male produced clutches significantly more female biased. Comparisons of clutch sex ratios within individuals may be a powerful method for detecting sex ratio variation, and perhaps female birds may indeed manipulate egg sex but require personal contextual experience for such decisions. Copyright 2002.