Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inequality and Concentration in Farmland Size: A Regional Analysis for Western Europe

This paper uses regional data for Western Europe to explore relative and absolute farmland size inequality and farm size concentration, demonstrating that specific indicators provide somewhat differing country characterisations. The paper uses exploratory spatial data analysis techniques to measure the degree of spatial dependence in farm size at a NUTS2 level. Regional farm size clusters are identified, some of which straddle national borders. The results have policy implications, demonstrating that the association between land inequality and farm productivity and resistance to change in farm support structures may relate to pan national regional considerations more so than national concerns. The research is conducted at a NUTS3 level for the Italian case and these findings suggest that the level of spatial disaggregation is an important consideration.
Inflammation in hypertension

Purpose of reviewIn this review we summarize the recent evidence that highlights the involvement of low-grade inflammation in the development and pathophysiology of hypertension. Recent findingsEssential hypertension is characterized by increased peripheral vascular resistance to blood flow, due in large part to vascular remodeling. Vascular changes in hypertension are associated with mechanical and humoral factors that modulate signaling events, resulting in abnormal function, media growth, extracellular matrix deposition and inflammation. Recent evidence suggests that inflammation is present in the vasculature in animal models of hypertension. Inflammatory markers, such as C-reactive protein, are associated with vascular lesions in humans, and are predictive of cardiovascular outcome. In animal and human studies, pro-inflammatory components of the renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system have been demonstrated in large conduit and small arteries in the kidney and heart. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor activators are drugs with metabolic properties that have been demonstrated to exert anti-inflammatory effects on the vasculature, and there is now evidence that these actions may be protective for blood vessels. SummaryInflammatory processes are important participants in the pathophysiology of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. The identification of the mechanisms leading to the activation of inflammation should contribute to the development of specific therapeutic approaches to apply in hypertension and its complications.
Fiscal policy coordination in a monetary union at the zero lower bound

[eng] Following the 2008 Financial Crisis, Euro Area governments faced adverse economic environments: high ratios of public debt to GDP, depressed outputs and the prospect of monetary policy hitting the zero lower bound (ZLB). This article assesses to what extent the conduct of fiscal policy differs within a monetary union at the ZLB. Using a fiscal DSGE model with two regions (North and South) calibrated to replicate the conditions where, absent any additional shock, the Euro Area economy would have been stuck at the ZLB for three years starting in 2013, we show that cross-border spillovers from fiscal policy are substantially higher without monetary offset and increase with the extent of fiscal consolidation measures. Spillovers can amount up to half (resp. one sixth) of the domestic impact in the case of VAT-based (resp. spending-based) consolidations. Outside the ZLB, fiscal expansion in one region triggers monetary tightening which has negative effect in the whole union, and gives rise to gains from fiscal cooperation. At the ZLB however, national objectives tend to be closer and the coordinated policy is less consolidating. Moreover, cooperation encourages symmetric rather than asymmetric policies.
How do Different Encodings Influence the Performance of the MAP-Elites Algorithm?

The recently introduced Intelligent Trial and Error algorithm (IT&E) both improves the ability to automatically generate controllers that transfer to real robots, and enables robots to creatively adapt to damage in less than 2 minutes. A key component of IT&E is a new evolutionary algorithm called MAP-Elites, which creates a behavior-performance map that is provided as a set of "creative" ideas to an online learning algorithm. To date, all experiments with MAP-Elites have been performed with a directly encoded list of parameters: it is therefore unknown how MAP-Elites would behave with more advanced encodings, like HyperNeat and SUPG. In addition, because we ultimately want robots that respond to their environments via sensors, we investigate the ability of MAP-Elites to evolve closed-loop controllers, which are more complicated, but also more powerful. Our results show that the encoding critically impacts the quality of the results of MAP-Elites, and that the differences are likely linked to the locality of the encoding (the likelihood of generating a similar behavior after a single mutation). Overall, these results improve our understanding of both the dynamics of the MAP-Elites algorithm and how to best harness MAP-Elites to evolve effective and adaptable robotic controllers.
Epigenetic variation reflects dynamic habitat conditions in a rare floodplain herb

Variation of DNA methylation is thought to play an important role for rapid adjustments of plant populations to dynamic environmental conditions, thus compensating for the relatively slow response time of genetic adaptations. However, genetic and epigenetic variation of wild plant populations has not yet been directly compared in fast changing environments. Here, we surveyed populations of Viola elatior from two adjacent habitat types along a successional gradient characterized by strong differences in light availability. Using amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP) and methylation‐sensitive amplification polymorphisms (MSAP) analyses, we found relatively low levels of genetic (H′gen = 0.19) and epigenetic (H′epi = 0.23) diversity and high genetic (ϕST = 0.72) and epigenetic (ϕST = 0.51) population differentiation. Diversity and differentiation were significantly correlated, suggesting that epigenetic variation partly depends on the same driving forces as genetic variation. Correlation‐based genome scans detected comparable levels of genetic (17.0%) and epigenetic (14.2%) outlier markers associated with site specific light availability. However, as revealed by separate differentiation‐based genome scans for AFLP, only few genetic markers seemed to be actually under positive selection (0–4.5%). Moreover, principal coordinates analyses and Mantel tests showed that overall epigenetic variation was more closely related to habitat conditions, indicating that environmentally induced methylation changes may lead to convergence of populations experiencing similar habitat conditions and thus may play a major role for the transient and/or heritable adjustment to changing environments. Additionally, using a new MSAP‐scoring approach, we found that mainly the unmethylated (ϕST = 0.60) and CG‐methylated states (ϕST = 0.46) of epiloci contributed to population differentiation and putative habitat‐related adaptation, whereas CHG‐hemimethylated states (ϕST = 0.21) only played a marginal role.
Truncation of the human immunodeficiency virus-type-2 envelope glycoprotein allows efficient pseudotyping of murine leukemia virus retroviral vector particles.

The incorporation of human immunodeficiency virus-type-2 (HIV-2) envelope glycoprotein into murine leukemia virus (MuLV) particles was studied in a transient transfection packaging cell system. We observed that wild-type HIV-2 envelope protein or a frameshift mutant with 187 unrelated carboxyl-terminal residues did not allow the formation of infectious retroviral particles. In view of recent findings that an HIV-1 envelope protein variant with a shortened cytoplasmic domain was incorporated into MuLV particles, we constructed carboxyl-terminal truncations of the HIV-2 envelope protein. An envelope variant with 18 cytoplasmic amino acids formed only very few viral pseudotypes. The further removal of an additional 11 amino acids allowed the efficient pseudotyping of MuLV particles. As with the HIV-1 envelope protein, an HIV-2 envelope variant with 7 cytoplasmic amino acids was incorporated into functional MuLV particles. The pseudotyped vectors obtained are able to infect human CD4/CXCR4-expressing cells. Cell lines expressing human CD4 and other coreceptors could not be infected. This retroviral vector will prove useful for the study of HIV infection events mediated by the HIV-2 envelope glycoproteins, as well as for the targeting of CD4+ cells in the context of gene therapy of AIDS.
The Effect of Betaxolol on Ocular Blood Flow and Visual Fields in Patients with Normotension Glaucoma

Purpose This study investigated the effect of ophthalmic betaxolol, a ß, selective adrenoceptor antagonist, on ocular blood flow and visual function in patients with normotension glaucoma (NTG). Methods Thirty-six eyes of eighteen patients with NTG, but otherwise free of systemic disease, were included. Blood fibrinogen, sedimentation rates, Goldmann intraocular pressure, Humphrey automated perimetry, and color Doppler imaging were done at baseline and after one year of twice-daily bilateral topical ocular dosing with 0.5% betaxolol HCl. Results After treatment, the resistivity index of the ophthalmic artery was significantly reduced, and visual fields were significantly improved. The resistivity indexes of the central retinal artery and posterior ciliary artery were also reduced but did not achieve statistical significance. Intraocular pressure was significantly reduced. There was no change in blood fibrinogen and sedimentation rates. Conclusions These findings indicate that long-term treatment with ophthalmic betaxolol improves ocular hemodynamics by lowering the resistivity index of the ophthalmic artery and results in an improvement in the visual fields of patients with NTG. In view of this positive effect on blood flow and visual function, betaxolol is recommended in the management of patients with NTG.
Portfolio risk measurement based on value at risk (VaR)

Generally, the risk level of an investment is directly correlated with the returns to be earned by investors in the future. In current situation, it is difficult for investors, shareholders and financial managers to determine the total loss of their asset portfolio because standard deviation is insufficient to describe the actual total loss. Therefore, this research discuss on the concept of Value at Risk (VaR) which has been proven as one of the risk measurement instrument that is effective in describing the total loss of investment in exact currency that will be bear by the investors. VaR is defined as the maximum potential loss in a value of a portfolio over a defined period for a given confidence interval in normal market condition. The three approaches which are Delta Normal, Historical Simulation and Monte Carlo Simulation are used to calculate VaR for a hypothetical portfolio of a stock. The study finally shows that Monte Carlo Simulation approach is the most applicable and flexible in measuring Value at Risk as compared to the other two methods.Generally, the risk level of an investment is directly correlated with the returns to be earned by investors in the future. In current situation, it is difficult for investors, shareholders and financial managers to determine the total loss of their asset portfolio because standard deviation is insufficient to describe the actual total loss. Therefore, this research discuss on the concept of Value at Risk (VaR) which has been proven as one of the risk measurement instrument that is effective in describing the total loss of investment in exact currency that will be bear by the investors. VaR is defined as the maximum potential loss in a value of a portfolio over a defined period for a given confidence interval in normal market condition. The three approaches which are Delta Normal, Historical Simulation and Monte Carlo Simulation are used to calculate VaR for a hypothetical portfolio of a stock. The study finally shows that Monte Carlo Simulation approach is the most applicable and flexible in measuring Va.
A Robust Dissimilarity-Based Neural Network for Temporal Pattern Recognition

Temporal pattern recognition is challenging because temporal patterns require extra considerations over other data types, such as order, structure, and temporal distortions. Recently, there has been a trend in using large data and deep learning, however, many of the tools cannot be directly used with temporal patterns. Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) for instance are traditionally used for visual and image pattern recognition. This paper proposes a method using a neural network to classify isolated temporal patterns directly. The proposed method uses dynamic time warping (DTW) as a kernel-like function to learn dissimilarity-based feature maps as the basis of the network. We show that using the proposed DTW-NN, efficient classification of on-line handwritten digits is possible with accuracies comparable to state-of-the-art methods.
DNA of Cytomegalovirus Detected by PCR in Aqueous of Patient With Corneal Endotheliitis After Penetrating Keratoplasty

Purpose: Corneal endotheliitis often leads to severe endothelial dysfunction and can be caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV), varicella zoster virus (VZV), and other viruses (eg, the mumps virus). We report a case of corneal endotheliitis caused by cytomegalovirus (CMV) that developed after a penetrating keratoplasty. Methods: A complete ophthalmologic examination was performed on a patient with corneal endotheliitis that developed after a penetrating keratoplasty. To determine the cause of the endotheliitis, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to amplify the DNA of HSV, VZV, and CMV in samples of the aqueous humor. Results: Slit-lamp biomicroscopy showed a moderate stromal edema in the upper temporal part of the transplanted cornea along with keratic precipitates (KPs) arranged in a coin-shaped pattern. Repeated treatments with steroids and acyclovir were only temporarily successful. PCR detected the DNA of CMV in an aqueous sample, and the treatment was switched to topical and systemic application of ganciclovir. This resulted in the disappearance of the KPs and resolution of the stromal edema within 2 weeks. Conclusions: From the PCR results and the favorable response to ganciclovir, the corneal endotheliitis was most likely caused by cytomegalovirus in this case.
‘The study has taught me to be supportive of her’: empowering women and involving men in microbicide research

Recognising that women often have little control over most HIV-prevention methods, including condoms, researchers have made efforts to develop new bio-technological interventions, such as microbicides, that could allow women greater autonomy in HIV-prevention decision making. In many situations, women are unable to negotiate condom use with their partners, meaning that they could be better protected through the use of an effective microbicide. This paper uses qualitative data from the Microbicide Development Programme 301 (MDP301) microbicide trial in Johannesburg, South Africa. Data is taken from in-depth interviews with male partners of female trial participants (n = 28), six focus-group discussions involving male partners of trial participants (n = 4) and female participants (n = 2). Data show that men's involvement in microbicide research ranges from a disinterest in trials to the desire to actively take part in and promote research that affects the health of themselves and their partners. Results showed that some participants were reluctant to disclose trial involvement and product use to their partners, making identifying men as potential research participants problematic. This paper considers how to involve men in microbicide research without undermining women's sense of empowerment and ownership of the trial and the product that is being tested.
Ensemble fuzzy c-means clustering algorithms based on KL-Divergence for medical image segmentation

Image segmentation plays an important role in medical imaging for clinical purposes. In this paper, an image segmentation method using the ensemble of fuzzy clustering is proposed, in which we classify the pixels in an image according to heterogeneous clustering methods, and then combine the clustering results by a KL-Divergence based fuzzy clustering algorithm to provide the final image segmentation results. Experimental results show that the proposed method performs better than some existing clustering-based methods in medical image segmentation problems.
Chromosome aberrations and cell inactivation induced in mammalian cells by ultrasoft X‐rays: correlation with the core ionizations in DNA

Purpose: To study the frequency of chromosome aberrations induced by soft X‐rays. To see if the core ionization of DNA atoms is involved in this end‐point as much as it appears to be in cell killing. Materials and methods: V79 hamster cells were irradiated by synchrotron radiation photons iso‐attenuated in the cell (250, 350, 810 eV). The morphological chromosome aberrations detected in the first post‐irradiation cell division (dicentrics and centric rings) were studied by Giemsa staining. Results: The chromosome aberrations at 350 eV were, respectively, 2.6±0.8 and 2.1±0.8 times more numerous than at 250 and 810 eV for the same average dose absorbed by the nucleus. These relative effectivenesses are comparable with the ones already measured for cell killing. Moreover, they roughly vary such as the relative numbers of core ionizations (including in the phosphorus L‐shell) produced in DNA and its bound water (water being involved only at 810 eV through the oxygen atoms). In particular, they reproduce the characteristic twofold enhancement at 350 eV, above the carbon K threshold. Conclusions: Correlations suggest that the core ionization process is likely a common and essential mechanism initiating both chromosome aberration and cell killing end‐points at these photon energies.
JNK‐interacting protein 3 associates with Toll‐like receptor 4 and is involved in LPS‐mediated JNK activation

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is recognized by Toll‐like receptor (TLR) 4 and activates NF‐κB and a set of MAP kinases. Here we have investigated proteins associated with the cytoplasmic domain of mouse TLR4 by yeast two‐hybrid screening and identified JNK‐interacting protein 3 (JIP3), a scaffold protein for JNK, as a TLR4‐associated protein. In mammalian cells, JIP3, through its N‐terminal region, constitutively associates with TLR4. The association is specific to JIP3, as the two other JIPs, JIP1 and JIP2, failed to bind TLR4. In HEK 293 cells exogenously expressing TLR4, MD2 and CD14, co‐expression of JIP3 significantly increased the complex formation of TLR4–JNK and LPS‐mediated JNK activation. In contrast, expression of C‐terminally truncated forms of JIP3 impaired LPS‐induced JNK activation in a mouse macrophage cell line, RAW264.7. Moreover, RNA interference of JIP3 inhibited LPS‐mediated JNK activation. In RAW264.7 cells, JIP3 associates MEKK‐1, but not with TAK‐1. Finally, JIP3 also associates with TLR2 and TLR9, but not with TLR1 or TLR6. Altogether, our data indicate the involvement of JIP3 in JNK activation in downstream signals of some TLRs.
Improving Viability of Electric Taxis by Taxi Service Strategy Optimization: A Big Data Study of New York City

Electrification of transportation is critical for a low-carbon society. In particular, public vehicles (e.g., taxis) provide a crucial opportunity for electrification. Despite the benefits of eco-friendliness and energy efficiency, adoption of electric taxis faces several obstacles, including constrained driving range, long recharging duration, limited charging stations, and low gas price, all of which impede taxi drivers’ decisions to switch to electric taxis. On the other hand, the popularity of ride-hailing mobile apps facilitates the computerization and optimization of taxi service strategies, which can provide computer-assisted decisions of navigation and roaming for taxi drivers to locate potential customers. This paper examines the viability of electric taxis with the assistance of taxi service strategy optimization, in comparison with conventional taxis with internal combustion engines. A big data study is provided using a large data set of real-world taxi trips in New York City (NYC). Our methodology is to first model the computerized taxi service strategy by Markov decision process, and then obtain the optimized taxi service strategy based on NYC taxi trip data set. The profitability of electric taxi drivers is studied empirically under various battery capacity and charging conditions. Consequently, we shed light on the solutions that can improve viability of electric taxis.
Image Deblurring Using Fast Best Kernel Retrieval

In this paper, we propose a kernel estimation algorithm using fast best kernel retrieval (FBKR) from spectral irregularities to achieve the deblurring. In daily life, when people take a photograph by any kinds of camera equipment, image motion blur caused by camera motion often happens. Camera motion during exposure will produce a blurred image, this kind of blur is often non-liner mode. Motion blur always causes the decline of image quality, as long as the users using the hand-held photography equipment often have a similar experience. Based on this reason, reconstructing a clear image from blurred image is the main objective in this paper. Reconstruction is an ill-pose problem. In current motion blur estimation algorithms, these algorithms usually use the recursive method to estimate motion blur kernel. However, recursive process is quite time-consuming. In order to enhance time-consuming, in this paper, based on iterative phase retrieval algorithm and normalized sparsity measure, we propose a fast and effective blur kernel retrieval algorithm, which can find the best kernel in a short time. Experiments verify that our method can effectively reduce the execution time and obtain the best motion blur kernel to deblur a deblurred image and keep the quality of image deblurring.
Adverse effects of psychosocial work factors on blood pressure: systematic review of studies on demand-control-support and effort-reward imbalance models.

OBJECTIVES A growing body of research has investigated the adverse effects of psychosocial work factors on blood pressure (BP) elevation. There is now a clear need for an up-to-date, critical synthesis of reliable findings on this topic. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the adverse effects of psychosocial work factors of both the demand-control-support (DCS) and effort-reward imbalance (ERI) models on BP among men and women, according to the methodological quality of the studies. METHODS To be eligible, studies had to: (i) evaluate at least one psychosocial work factor, (ii) evaluate BP or hypertension, (iii) comprise ≥100 workers, (iv) be written in English or French, and (v) be published in a peer-reviewed journal. RESULT A total of 74 studies were included. Of these, 64 examined the DCS model, and 12 looked at the ERI model, with 2 studies considering both models. Approximately half the studies observed a significant adverse effect of psychosocial work factors on BP. A more consistent effect was observed, however, among men than women. For job strain, a more consistent effect was also observed in studies of higher methodological quality, ie, studies using a prospective design and ambulatory BP measures. CONCLUSIONS A more consistent adverse effect of psychosocial work factors was observed among men than women and in studies of higher methodological quality. These findings contribute to the current effort of primary prevention of cardiovascular disease by documenting the psychosocial etiology of elevated BP, a major cardiovascular risk factor.