Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Formula Fertilization Promotes Phoebe bournei Robust Seedling Cultivation

Phoebe bournei is a rare and endangered woody species and the success of its plantation development is dependent upon proper seedling cultivation. This study explored the regulation of N, P and K fertilizer and the interaction of these macronutrients on the growth of Phoebe bournei seedlings. To determine the optimum rate and ratio of N–P–K fertilizer in seedling cultivation, we used the unique “3414” incomplete orthogonal regression design to evaluate the effects of N–P–K fertilization on seedling morphological development. One-year-old Phoebe bournei bareroot seedlings were grown for one growing season under the defined fertilization regime, with their morphological development determined by measuring seedling attributes—root, stem, leaves and total biomass, root collar diameter and seedling height. These attributes were then combined to calculate the following indices: height-diameter ratio, shoot-root ratio and the seedling quality index (QI). Results showed that the N–P–K fertilizer had significant and beneficial effect on seedling cultivation. N effect was highest, followed by K and P. The three-way N×P×K interaction effect was strong, and the two-way interactions effect was highest for N×P, followed by P×K and N×K. At the “2” level of N (0.532 g·plant−1), P (P2O5, 0.133 g·plant−1), and K fertilizer (K2O, 0.356 g·plant−1), seedling growth and biomass accumulation were at their maximum. Unary, binary, and ternary quadratic fertilizer effect function equations of QI were established. Through comparative analysis, the ternary quadratic model was the optimal model and through a simulation–optimization, the optimal N–P–K fertilizer rates were 0.373~0.420 g·plant−1 (N), 0.086~0.106 g·plant−1 (P2O5), 0.243~0.280 g·plant−1 (K2O), with a N–P–K ratio of 1:0.20:0.43~1:0.65:0.75.
Efficacy and safety of Prunus mume and choline in patients with abnormal level of liver function test

<p class="abstract"><strong>Background:</strong> The objectives of the study were to determine the efficacy and safety of <em>Prunus mume</em> and choline in patients with abnormal liver function test. </p><p class="abstract"><strong>Methods:</strong> This open labelled, multi-centered observational study was done for a from May 2019 to December 2019. Patients of either gender, above 18 years of age having elevated levels of aspartate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase or gamma-glutamyltransferase were included in the study after taking informed consent. One to two tablets of revolic per day were given preferably in the morning with breakfast or as per instructions of the physician. Patient follow-ups were done at 2<sup>nd</sup> and 4<sup>th</sup> week after treatment. SPSS version 20.0 was used for analysis. Frequency and percentages and for quantitative data, mean, standard deviation, median and interquartile range were recorded. Wilcoxon signed ranks test was applied with p value of <0.05 as significant level. </p><p class="abstract"><strong>Results:</strong> Among 247 patients, male to female ratio was 2:1 with overall mean age of 42.8±12.6 years. Total bilirubin decreased from baseline to week-4 in treatment with <em>Prunus mume</em> extract and choline (p=0.04). Median and IQR of alanine transaminase levels also reduced substantially from 99 (52) to 42 (36.5) I/U. Aspartate aminotransferase levels significantly decreased from 78.5 (57) to 40 (29) I/U. Overall at the end of treatment on week-4, 26 (10.5%) patients experienced gastrointestinal distress, 25 (10.1%) anorexia, 14 (5.7%) excessive salivation and 29 (11.7%) patients experienced excessive sweating. </p><p class="abstract"><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study reported significant improvement in alanine transaminase and aspartate aminotransferase levels after treatment with <em>Prunus mume</em> extract and choline (revolic). It is safe and effective to use them for deranged liver functions tests. </p>
Designing a Chinatown anti-displacement map and walking tour with communication asset mapping

ABSTRACT This paper illustrates a design activism project that led to a co-designed ‘anti-displacement map’ and ‘walking tour’ in Chicago’s Chinatown. The work argues that one way to deploy urban design projects that consider the fears of displacement in gentrifying neighbourhoods is to integrate what aspects of the neighbourhood existing community actors value and promote advocacy for a future that these participants envision. The project accomplished these goals through ‘communication asset mapping’, an application centring on communicative spaces that are of value to existing communities and help to create the capacity for positive social change in the built environment.
Impact of Electric Vehicle Charging Strategy on the Long-Term Planning of an Isolated Microgrid

Isolated microgrids, such as islands, rely on fossil fuels for electricity generation and include vehicle fleets, which poses significant environmental challenges. To address this, distributed energy resources based on renewable energy and electric vehicles (EVs) have been deployed in several places. However, they present operational and planning concerns. Hence, the aim of this paper is to propose a two-level microgrid problem. The first problem considers an EV charging strategy that minimizes charging costs and maximizes the renewable energy use. The second level evaluates the impact of this charging strategy on the power generation planning of Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos, Ecuador. This planning model is simulated in HOMER Energy. The results demonstrate the economic and environmental benefits of investing in additional photovoltaic (PV) generation and in the EV charging strategy. Investing in PV and smart charging for EVs could reduce the N P C by 13.58%, but a reduction in the N P C of the EV charging strategy would result in up to 3.12%.
The Global E-waste Monitor 2020: Quantities, flows and the circular economy potential

This monitor provides the most comprehensive update of global e-waste statistics. In 2019, the world generated a striking 53.6 Mt of e-waste, an average of 7.3 kg per capita. The global generation of e-waste grew by 9.2 Mt since 2014 and is projected to grow to 74.7 Mt by 2030 – almost doubling in only 16 years.
THE ROLE OF ATTITUDES TOWARDS SALES IN PREDICTING SALES PERFORMANCE

Previous research has identified numerous employee’s individual differences that play a role in predicting success in sales work tasks. However, it seems that the role of attitudes towards sales and its relatedness to sales performance has not yet been in-vestigated, which was the aim of this study. This research was conducted on a sample of contact center agents who sell on a daily basis. We collected data on their demo-graphics, personality traits and attitudes towards sales. The information on agents’ objective monthly offer rate and sales performance across six months was provided by the employer. A series of hierarchical linear models showed that men sell more compa-red to women; that success in sales decreases over years of employment; that attitudes predict sales performance and that they are a better predictor then personality traits; and that offer rate does not mediate the relation of attitudes and closed sales. Further-more, the relation between attitudes and sales was not moderated by employee’s gen-der, level of education nor employment duration. These findings are interpreted in light of the theory of planned behavior.
Triple Pulse Test (TPT) for Characterizing Power Loss in Magnetic Components in Analogous to Double Pulse Test (DPT) for Power Electronics Devices

Power loss modelling of magnetic components becomes increasingly important in the design of modern power electronic converters, especially in the case of higher switching frequencies enabled by emerging wide-bandgap devices. While the modelling of the active power electronic devices is relatively mature and straightforward, the estimation of the passive magnetic component loss remains challenging, including both the core loss and winding (copper) loss. As indicated by recent studies, the accurate prediction of the core loss in power converters relies on rectangular-voltage-excited measurements. To characterize the core loss with high-frequency rectangular excitations and dc-biases, a Triple Pulse Test (TPT) has been proposed and is further extended in this paper. The TPT involves a discontinuous procedure and a bidirectional, half-bridge excitation circuit that supplies transitional high rectangular voltage and high current. The importance and practical considerations of achieving closed dynamic BH loops are discussed. The proposed TPT is analogous to the common Double Pulse Test (DPT) for power electronics devices in terms of the testing circuit, the measurement instruments, and the discontinuous procedure. Moreover, the winding loss characterization can also be achieved by the TPT, given the winding loss can be very difficult to predict especially for randomly wound components where analytical equations cannot be applied accurately. Eventually, a complete loss dataset for one magnetic component design (i.e. same core material, shape and winding arrangement) can be built from TPT, which can be utilized to accurately model the inductor loss in power converter applications.
The complete chloroplast genome of Heteromorpha arborescens (Apiaceae)

Abstract Heteromorpha arborescens has long been recognized and cultivated as an important medicinal plant. We reported its complete plastid genome for the first time and reconstructed its phylogenetic position. The complete plastid genome was 157,172 bp in length with a typical quadripartite organization: a large single-copy (LSC) region of 86,436 bp, a small single-copy (SSC) region of 18,222 bp, and two inverted repeat regions (IRa and IRb), each of 26,257 bp. A total of 130 functional genes were recovered, consisting of 85 protein-coding genes, 37 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes. The phylogenetic analysis suggested that H. arborescens is sister to other species except Cetella arborescens in Apiaceae with strong ultrafast support.
The potential protective role of gamma-irradiated vaccine versus Punica granatum treatment against murine trichinellosis

ABSTRACT Trichinellosis is a food-borne disease caused by the ingestion of meat infected with Trichinella spiralis encysted larvae. To interrupt the circle between human and animals, proper immunization and treatment of animals are needed. This study aimed to compare the impact of vaccination with gamma radiation-attenuated larvae with anti-helminthes activity of Punica granatum on its control. Sixty mice were divided into six groups as follows: normal control, infected control, vaccine control, vaccinated-challenged, treatment-control and infected-treated. Parasitological assessment and immunohistochemical expression of GATA-3 in muscle tissues were done. The serum level of 8-hydroxy-2-de-axyguanine, an oxidative stress marker, as well as flow cytometric analysis of splenic CD4+ and CD8+ subsets were determined. Results exhibited high significant reduction in the muscle larvae in both vaccinatedchallenged (72.5 %) and infected-treated group (56.3 %) with reduced 8-OHdG and CD4+ and CD8+ cells. Also, moderate expression of GATA-3 in infected-treated group and minimal or no expression in vaccinated-challenged was determined. It could be concluded that vaccination with radiation-attenuated larvae elicits immune protection against challenged infection. Also, treatment with Punica granatum has therapeutic activity against infection. However, better effect was achieved by irradiated vaccine so Punica granatum can be used as an adjuvant with vaccination for complete protection.
Effects of Graded Dietary Protein on Growth and Laying Performance of Pearl Guinea Fowl (Numida meleagris)

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary crude protein (CP) on growth and laying performance of indigenous Guinea fowls (Numida meleagris) in Ghana. A total of Sixty (60) grower pearl Guinea fowl made up of twelve (12) males and forty-eight (48) females were randomly selected and grouped into four made up of (4) females and one (1) male. The groups were each subjected to four experimental diets containing 16%, 18%, 20% and 22% crude protein (CP). A completely randomized design (CRD) was used for the experiment. The data collected were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using GenStat version 11.1 (2008). Least significant difference (LSD) at 5% was used to separate the means. The result showed that birds fed with diets Original Research Article Okyere et al.; JALSI, 23(6): 23-29, 2020; Article no.JALSI. 58576 24 containing 22% crude protein (CP) had the heaviest (P= .05) body weight and body weight gain and reached age at first egg earlier followed by birds fed with diets containing 18% CP, 20% CP and 16% CP respectively. Feed consumption increased with an increase in dietary crude protein. Body weight at first egg was highest (P= .05) among birds fed with diets containing 22% crude protein (CP) and lowest in 16% crude protein (CP). Birds fed with diets containing 20% and 22% crude protein (CP) had the highest (P= .05) hen-day and henhouse egg production, whiles 16% crude protein (CP) diet recorded the lowest. It was concluded that body weight, body weight gain and total feed intake of indigenous Guinea fowls increased with increasing dietary crude protein. It is recommended to farmers that, diets containing 22% crude protein (CP) is ideal for optimum productivity of indigenous Guinea fowls.
Expanding tropical forest monitoring into Dry Forests: The DRYFLOR protocol for permanent plots

Understanding of tropical forests has been revolutionized by monitoring in permanent plots. Data from global plot networks have transformed our knowledge of forests’ diversity, function, contribution to global biogeochemical cycles, and sensitivity to climate change. Monitoring has thus far been concentrated in rain forests. Despite increasing appreciation of their threatened status, biodiversity, and importance to the global carbon cycle, monitoring in tropical dry forests is still in its infancy. We provide a protocol for permanent monitoring plots in tropical dry forests. Expanding monitoring into dry biomes is critical for overcoming the linked challenges of climate change, land use change, and the biodiversity crisis.
Modelo difuso de calidad de servicios en un hotel de cuatro estrellas

In tourism service companies, the quality of services is vital, since good quality impacts better customer satisfaction and increases economic and marketing benefits for companies. Hotels are constantly searching for strategies to measure and improve the quality of services they provide to their clients. Under this idea, the present study develops a model for measuring the quality of services in the essential departments of a four-star hotel in Mexico City. The measuring instruments are analyzed with the fuzzy set technique and they are ordered using the analysis of the attributes evaluated through the AHP method is established, in addition to calculating the values of the alternatives with the highest positive affinity according to the TOPSIS method. The findings show the perceptions that customers have in the analyzed departments. The reception department is considered especially important followed by the food and beverage department. Finally, the case recommendations to improve the quality of services in the case study are presented.
Charged surface modifying macromolecules in polymer electrolyte membrane

Charged surface modifying macromolecule (cSMM) end capped with sulfonic group was prepared and blended into sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK). The modified membrane was characterized for polymer electrolyte membrane application; i.e. a SPEEK/cSMM blend membrane was compared to a SPEEK membrane and a Nafion 112 membrane for the thermal and mechanical stability, hydrophilicity and water uptake. Thermal and mechanical stability of the blend membrane were slightly reduced from that of the SPEEK membrane but still higher than that of the Nafion 112 membrane. The blend membrane showed an increase in hydrophilicity and water uptake as compared to the pristine membrane. The addition of cSMM has enabled the water uptake to be increased which is crucial to enhance the proton conductivity that of SPEEK. This study found that cSMM is a good candidate as an additive for SPEEK in improving its function as polymer electrolyte membrane.
Public Policy and Long-Term Trends in Inequality in Rural China

This chapter examines long-term changes in rural household incomes, inequality, and poverty in China from the late 1980s to 2013, with a focus on changes in public policy and the structure of rural incomes from 2007 to 2013. Implementation of pro-rural (huinong) policies during the first decade of the 2000s marked a historic shift in public policy, which previously was heavily biased toward the urban areas. Rural income growth accelerated between 2007 and 2013 mainly because of an upsurge of wage earnings, asset income, and imputed rent from owner-occupied housing. The share of agricultural income in total income fell to a historic low. These shifts contributed to the increase in rural income inequality from 2007 to 2013. During this period rural poverty continued to decline. The implementation of pro-rural public policies after 2000 led to small but significant improvements in the redistributive impact of public transfers.
Wet sieving versus dry crushing: Soil microaggregates reveal different physical structure, bacterial diversity and organic matter composition in a clay gradient

Soil microaggregates contain particles of different sizes, which may affect their potential to store organic carbon (OC). A variety of methods can be used to isolate microaggregates from the larger soil structures, among which wet sieving approaches are widely employed. We developed a novel dry crushing method that isolates microaggregates along failure planes due to mechanical stresses rather than hydraulic pressures and compared the mechanical stability, OC contents and microbial community composition between dry‐crushed and wet‐sieved samples with contrasting clay contents. Dry‐crushed samples exhibited a higher stability and bacterial diversity compared to wet‐sieved samples. As a result, the dry‐crushed microaggregates had different size distributions when analysed dry and after wetting. In the dry state, dry‐crushed microaggregates were larger and contained more sand‐sized primary particles within the aggregate structures. The wetting of dry‐crushed aggregates caused a disintegration of larger microaggregates and sand‐sized primary particles into smaller microaggregates that contained finer particles. In the soils with lower clay contents, the diameter of dry‐crushed microaggregates was 40 μm larger due to more sand‐sized primary particles remaining within the aggregates. Depending on how much volume in microaggregates is occupied by large primary particles, the OC concentration increased in the soil with higher clay content. Wet‐sieved size fractions also showed a similar pattern of OC distribution, whereas more primary particles were observed outside of aggregates. Wet sieving approaches disperse the soil into OC‐rich aggregates and might be preferable if OC dynamics are investigated. Differences in bacterial community composition in dependence on clay content were more pronounced in dry‐crushed microaggregates. If intact aggregate architectures are of interest for the isolation of soil structural units, the presented dry crushing method might provide an advantageous alternative that also better preserves bacterial diversity.
Accelerating Evolutionary Design Exploration with Predictive and Generative Models. (Accélérer l'exploration de la conception par algorithme évolutionniste grâce à des modèles prédictifs et génératifs)

Optimization plays an essential role in industrial design, but is not limited to minimization of a simple function, such as cost or strength. These tools are also used in conceptual phases, to better understand what is possible. To support this exploration we focus on Quality Diversity (QD) algorithms, which produce sets of varied, high performing solutions. These techniques often require the evaluation of millions of solutions -- making them impractical in design cases. In this thesis we propose methods to radically improve the data-efficiency of QD with machine learning, enabling its application to design. In our first contribution, we develop a method of modeling the performance of evolved neural networks used for control and design. The structures of these networks grow and change, making them difficult to model -- but with a new method we are able to estimate their performance based on their heredity, improving data-efficiency by several times. In our second contribution we combine model-based optimization with MAP-Elites, a QD algorithm. A model of performance is created from known designs, and MAP-Elites creates a new set of designs using this approximation. A subset of these designs are the evaluated to improve the model, and the process repeats. We show that this approach improves the efficiency of MAP-Elites by orders of magnitude. Our third contribution integrates generative models into MAP-Elites to learn domain specific encodings. A variational autoencoder is trained on the solutions produced by MAP-Elites, capturing the common “recipe” for high performance. This learned encoding can then be reused by other algorithms for rapid optimization, including MAP-Elites. Throughout this thesis, though the focus of our vision is design, we examine applications in other fields, such as robotics. These advances are not exclusive to design, but serve as foundational work on the integration of QD and machine learning.
Practical Enhancement of User Experience in NVMe SSDs

When processing I/O requests, the current Linux kernel does not adequately consider the urgency of user-centric tasks closely related to user experience. To solve this critical problem, we developed a practical method in this study to enhance user experience in a computing environment wherein non-volatile memory express (NVMe) solid-state drives (SSDs) serve as storage devices. In our proposed scheme, I/O requests that originate from the user-centric tasks were preferentially served across various levels of queues by modifying the multi-queue block I/O layer of the Linux kernel, considering the dispatch method of NVMe SSDs. Our scheme tries to give as fast a path as possible for I/O requests from user-centric tasks among many queues with different levels. Especially, when the SSD is overburdened, it avoids the queues with many pending I/O requests and thus can significantly reduce the I/O latency of user-centric tasks. We implemented our proposed scheme in the Linux kernel and performed practical evaluations on a commercial SSD. The experimental results showed that the proposed scheme achieved significant enhancement in the launch time of five widely used applications by up to ~65%.