Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Integration of Multi-Sensor Data to Estimate Plot-Level Stem Volume Using Machine Learning Algorithms-Case Study of Evergreen Conifer Planted Forests in Japan

The development of new methods for estimating precise forest structure parameters is essential for the quantitative evaluation of forest resources. Conventional use of satellite image data, increasing use of terrestrial laser scanning (TLS), and emerging trends in the use of unmanned aerial systems (UASs) highlight the importance of modern technologies in the realm of forest observation. Each technology has different advantages, and this work seeks to incorporate multiple satellite, TLS- and UAS-based remote sensing data sets to improve the ability to estimate forest structure parameters. In this paper, two regression analysis approaches are considered for the estimation: random forest regression (RFR) and support vector regression (SVR). To collect the dependent variable, in situ measurements of individual tree parameters (tree height and diameter at breast height (DBH)) were taken in a Japanese cypress forest using the nondestructive TLS method, which scans the forest to obtain dense and accurate point clouds under the tree canopy. Based on the TLS data, the stem volume was then computed and treated as ground truth information. Topographic and UAS information was then used to calculate various remotely sensed explanatory variables, such as canopy size, canopy cover, and tree height. Canopy cover and canopy shapes were computed via the orthoimages derived from the UAS and watershed segmentation method, respectively. Tree height was computed by combining the digital surface model (DSM) from the UAS and the digital terrain model (DTM) from the TLS data. Topographic variables were computed from the DTM. The backscattering intensity in the satellite imagery was obtained based on L-band (Advanced Land Observing Satellite-2 (ALOS-2) Phased Array type L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar-2 (PALSAR-2)) and C-band (Sentinel-1) synthetic aperture radar (SAR). All satellite (10–25 m resolution), TLS (3.4 mm resolution) and UAS (2.3–4.6 cm resolution) data were then combined, and RFR and SVR were trained; the resulting predictive powers were then compared. The RFR method yielded fitting R2 up to 0.665 and RMSE up to 66.87 m3/ha (rRMSE = 11.95%) depending on the input variables (best result with canopy height, canopy size, canopy cover, and Sentinel-1 data), and the SVR method showed fitting R2 up to 0.519 and RMSE up to 80.12 m3/ha (rRMSE = 12.67%). The RFR outperformed the SVR method, which could delineate the relationship between the variables for better model accuracy. This work has demonstrated that incorporating various remote sensing data to satellite data, especially adding finer resolution data, can provide good estimates of forest parameters at a plot level (10 by 10 m), potentially allowing advancements in precision forestry.
Feinstruktur der Trigeminuskerne vom Haushuhn

The trigeminal nerve nuclei are examined light‐ and electron‐microscopically in the adult domestic fowl. The nucleus sen‐sibilis principalis nervi trigemini is formed by scarce, mediumsized, round‐to‐ovoid polygonal neurons. The Nissl bodies are concentrated around the nucleus and consist of short cisterns of the rough endoplasmic reticulum densely bordered with ribosomes. The nucleus tractus spinalis nervi trigemini extends to the first segments of the cervical cord. The rostral part of the nucleus is characterized by medium‐sized polygonal neurons. Their cell bodies are densely packed with coarse Nissl bodies. Small multiforme cell types with large nuclei frequently showing two nucleoli predominate in the caudal part. The motorical main portion, nucleus motorius nervi trigemini consists of medium‐sized as well as great polygonal neurons. The accessory portion, nucleus motorius dorsalis nervi trigemini, consists of medium‐sized polygonal neurons. Both nuclei show the typical motoneuron cytomorphology. In the neuropil, the axodendritic synapses can be differentiated into five types. Occasionally, densely packed glial lamellae and giant mitochondria occur.
PHYTOGENICS AS NEW CLASS OF FEED ADDITIVE IN POULTRY INDUSTRY

The aim of this study summarizes the experimental knowledge on efficacy, possible modes of activity and aspects of application of phytogenic products as feed additives for poultry. Feed additives are a group of feed ingredients that can cause a desired animal response in a non-nutrient role such as pH shift, growth or metabolic modifier. Many substances found in nature have a wide range of growth promoting, immunostimulatory or antimicrobial activity. Common feed additives used in poultry diets include antimicrobials, antioxidants, pH control agents and exzymes. Phytogenic are a relatively young class of feed additives and in recent years this feed additives have gained considerable attention in the feed industry. They are a wide variety of herbs, spices and products derived thereof and are mainly essential oils. Although, numerous reports have demonstrated antioxidative and antimicrobial and immune stimulation efficacy in vitro, respective experimental in vivo evidences is still quite limited. A limited number of experimental comparisons of phytogenic feed additives with antibiotics and acidifiers have suggested similar effects on the gut. Gut microflora has significant effects on host nutrition, health and growth performance by interacting with nutrient utilization and the development of gut system of the host. In addition, some phytogenic compounds seem to promote intestinal mucus production. However, a systematic approach toward the efficacy and safety of phytogenic compounds used as feed additives for poultry is still lacking.
Stomach analyses of Baltic salmon from 1959-1962 and 1994-1997 : possible relations between diet and yolk-sac-fry mortality (M74)

In recent years, Baltic Sea salmon Salmo solar have suffered high larval mortality (M74) which can be cured by thiamine treatment. Analyses of long term mortality records (1928-1998) from two salmon hatcheries suggest that before the 1970s M74 did not occur, or was less frequent. This indicates that varying M74 did not cause the long-term fluctuations of Baltic salmon catches in this period. The frequency of M74 has been correlated positively to the abundance of the salmon's primary prey, sprat Sprattus sprattus. Sprat, herring Clupeu harengus and three-spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus dominated the diet in both the periods of study, 1959-1962 and 1994-1997. The mean size of consumed sprat was significantly smaller in 1994- 1997 compared with 1959-1962. Herring and, to a lesser extent, three-spined stickleback increased in the diet of salmon, while sprat appeared to constitute a smaller part of the diet in 1994-1997. The cause of M74 and the thiamine deficiency involved remains unknown, but is thought to be related to changes in thiamine or thiaminase content in forage fish, winter-feeding of salmon or general changes in the pelagic food web, caused by overfishing or eutrophication.
Effects of the Nematode Parasite Camallanus cotti on Sexual and Non-Sexual Behaviors in the Guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

Since the publication of Hamilton and Zuk's model of sexual selection there have been many studies on the effects of parasite infection on host mate choice and sexual behavior. In this paper I discuss the effects of nematode parasites on sexual behavior in the guppy and the parallel effectson non-sexual behavior. This more general approach allows a test of the hypothesis that sexual displays are particularly selected to reveal parasite infection in the host.
Effects of Organic Selenium on the Physiological Response, Blood Metabolites, Redox Status, Semen Quality, and Fertility of Rabbit Bucks Kept Under Natural Heat Stress Conditions

Heat stress can impair the general health of rabbit bucks by disturbing physiological homeostasis with negative consequences in animal welfare and remarkable decline in reproductive performance. Selenium (Se) can control a number of vital biological processes. Thus, the effects of organic selenium (OSe) supplementation on the blood metabolites, redox status, semen quality, testicular histology, seminal plasma protein profile, and fertility of rabbit bucks kept under natural heat stress conditions were studied. Adult V-line male rabbits were fed a basal diet supplemented with 0.3 mg OSe/kg dry matter (DM) diet (OSe, n = 9) or not (control, CON, n = 9) for 12 weeks. The results showed that rabbits fed the OSe diet had 73.68 and 68.75% higher (P < 0.05) OSe concentrations in the blood serum and seminal plasma, respectively, than rabbits fed the CON diet. The OSe diet significantly decreased the rectal temperature and respiration rate and significantly increased the blood serum concentrations of total protein, albumin, glucose, and glutathione peroxidase compared to the CON diet. Rabbits fed the OSe diet had lower reaction times (12.53 vs. 5.84 s, ± 0.79, P < 0.01) and higher total functional sperm counts (116.74 vs. 335.23 × 106/ml, ± 24.68, P < 0.001) and percentages of integrated sperm membranes (60.38 vs. 79.19%, ± 1.69, P < 0.01) than rabbits fed the CON diet. Rabbits fed the OSe diet had higher (P < 0.01) contents of seminal plasma total protein, albumin, alanine transaminase, fructose, and total antioxidant capacity and lower (P < 0.001) malondialdehyde (MDA) levels than those fed the CON diet. Rabbits fed the OSe diet had sperm cells with higher levels of integrated DNA than those fed the CON diet. The seminal plasma of rabbits fed the OSe diet contained four new proteins, with molecular weights of 19.0, 21.5, 30.0, and 44.0 kDa. The kindling rates, litter size, and weight at birth of females mated with males fed the OSe diet were significantly higher than those of females mated with males fed the CON diet. In summary, the inclusion of 0.3 mg OSe/kg DM diet of naturally heat-stressed rabbit bucks countered the negative impacts of elevated environmental temperature on physiological homeostasis, semen quality, and fertility.
Coastal dune mobility over the past century: A global review

The mobility of coastal dunes is characterised by bio-geomorphological responses related to change in boundary conditions, particularly sediment supply, wind and vegetation cover, as well as human activities. There remains uncertainty regarding the relative importance of these drivers on dune mobility at a global scale. In this study, trends and dominant drivers of coastal dune mobility are synthesised through the literature review focusing on shifts in dune mobility over the last century (1870–2018). In total, 176 individual dunes, with 55 dunes from the Europe-Mediterranean area, 23 from Africa, 30 from North America, 23 from South America, 20 from Oceania and 23 from Asia, are reviewed in this work. The results show that there is a worldwide trend of dune stabilisation, with 93% (164 out of 176) of the reviewed sites showing a loss of bare sand area due to an increase in vegetation cover and urbanisation expansion. Multiple factors have contributed to the stabilisation process, including (a) land-use change such as the change of traditional farming practises, coastal urbanisation and tourism development; (b) dune stabilisation projects; (c) sediment decline caused by the riverine and coastal constructions; and (d) change in climate (i.e. the decrease in windiness, and the increase in temperature and rainfall) and storms. Our results suggest human intervention played a dominant role in altering dune mobility for most dunes during the past century, while climate and storms are also important drivers, especially for dune sites with limited human activities.
Food breakdown in an avian herbivore: who needs teeth?

The extent to which domestic geese (Anser anser) break down grass, with their fast gut passage rate, limited chemical digestion of cell walls, and the use of a gizzard, rather than a precise cutting apparatus, such as teeth, was investigated. Whether the gizzard is the primary site of grass breakdown, to what extent grass is broken down in the guts of geese and whether the final size is affected by the initial ingested particle size were all factors considered. At two discrete times geese were fed grass that had been cut into different lengths. The resultant particle size in the excreta was measured using an image-analysis system. The extent of grass breakdown in different sections of the gut was also measured using image analysis on the gut contents of geese killed after receiving a further meal of grass. The gizzard was found to be the only site of particle size reduction and the post-gizzard digesta particle size was remarkably consistent. This suggested that there was a critical particle size under which the gizzard retained the grass for further processing. The critical particle size, however, appeared to be overridden when there was a backlog of food caused by ineffective processing. This mechanism, in general, would ensure the achievement of consistent processing regardless of the initial ingested particle size, while also allowing geese to take advantage of abundant food sources when available. It was also found that the geese more effectively processed the larger, rather than the smaller, grass particles. Dissecting the geese after ingestion of a further meal of large grass particles revealed that the latter were aligned within the oesophagus along their long axis as they entered the gizzard. This enabled the gizzard to strip the mesophyll and palisade layers from the vascular and sclerenchyma bundles. The long axis of the small particles was the width of the grass blade, which probably prevented this stripping of the cells, as the vascular and sclerenchyma bundles would have been fed into the gizzard at right angles to the gizzards’ main action. The ineffective processing of plant material that cannot be appropriately aligned in the gizzard has implications as to why there are few folivorous birds, as it is possible that the gizzard cannot effectively mechanically process dicotyledonous plant material with its reticulated veins.
Research on Intelligent Question and Answering Based on a Pet Knowledge Map

This paper proposes a framework for constructing pet knowledge maps. The schema concept layer is designed and built top-down, and the data layer is constructed from knowledge extracted from semi-structured and unstructured data. In the aspect of entity extraction of unstructured data, a symptom-named entity recognition method combining a Conditional Random Field (CRF) and a pet symptom dictionary is proposed. The method uses a symptom dictionary to identify text and obtain semantic category information. The CRF combines semantic information to recognize and extract symptom entities. Experimental results show the effectiveness of the method. This paper proposes a framework for an intelligent question answering system based on a pet knowledge map. By constructing a named entity dictionary, the problem is abstracted
Is there a difference between the poor and non-poor? A disaggregated demand analysis for fish in Bangladesh

Abstract This study examines the fish consumption pattern of households in Bangladesh. We use data of the national Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) to develop a demand model disaggregated by fish types and income groups. We apply a two-step censored regression model to estimate the price and income elasticities. Results show that poor and non-poor households consume similar types of fish. However, poor households rely more on fish as their primary source of animal protein. As income increases, the fish consumption of the poor rises more than for the non-poor. Additionally, fish price increase will lead to a deterioration of their nutritional conditions. In terms of fish species, the study finds that carps, pangasius, barbs and tilapia, mainly sourced from aquaculture, and small catfish, mainly sourced from capture fisheries, are the most frequently consumed fish species for the households in Bangladesh. The paper also finds that aquaculture has good potential to compensate for the decline of fish supply from inland capture fisheries.
Anfíbios do Estado de São Paulo, Brasil: conhecimento atual e perspectivas

The last list of species of the state of Sao Paulo State was updated and totaled 236 species of amphibians, 230 of which are anurans and six are caecilians. Bokermannohyla gouveai and Sphaenorhynchus surdus were removed from this list, because they did not occur in the State of Sao Paulo. The number of anuran species recorded comprise 27% of the species richness of the country and an increase by 31% in the number of species recorded for the state since 1998. Thus, despite the State of Sao Paulo be the Brazilian region where the anurans have been most studied, these data show that the number of known species tends to increase in the next years. We have identified two major geographical gaps of inventory: the southwest of the state, especially in the Paranapanema river basin and the northeast region, mainly at the border between the States of Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo. Although both have been sampled recently, information is still lacking. The current state of knowledge and perspectives in the areas such as taxonomy, systematics, ecology and conservation are evaluated.
Influence of energy restriction and pre-incubation holding period of eggs on fertility and hatchability in aged broiler breeders.

The effects of controlled energy restriction and duration of pre-incubation egg holding on fertility, hatchability and hatch losses were evaluated in aged broiler breeders (64 wk). The energy (ME) required for maintenance, activity, growth and anticipated egg production was calculated and offered to a control group (283-471 kcal/kg) from 21-64 weeks of age. In three other groups, ME was quantitatively reduced either by 20% (SER; severe energy restriction) or 10% (MER; moderate energy restriction) and increased by 10% (EEF; excess energy feeding) over the control group (CER; controlled energy restriction). Each diet was offered to 130 pullets in individual cages, and the quantity of ME increased with age. At the end of 64 weeks, fertile eggs were collected from each dietary group for 11 consecutive days and grouped under 4 holding periods based on the length of storage (2, 5, 8 or I 1 d). The influence of energy regimes, egg holding intervals and their interaction was evaluated on fertility, hatch losses and hatchability. Broiler breeders maintained on SER regime (231-419 kcal/d) produced maximum number of eggs (993) followed by MER (819), CER (624) and EEF (438) during the 11-day period. The percent fertility and hatchability was significantly (p<0.05) higher in SER and MER groups compared to CER and EEF. However, energy regimes did not influence the loss in egg weight during pre-incubation storage, shell weight, shell thickness or hatch losses as dead germs and dead in shell. The improvement in hatchability in SER and MER groups appeared to be closely related to higher fertility and lower embryonic mortality. Holding of eggs for 11 days showed a linear loss in egg weight with the length of storage, but did not influence the fertility and hatch losses. The percent hatchability on eggs set was maximum when storage period was restricted to 5 days. The interaction between energy regimes and egg holding periods exhibited better hatchability results with SER regime when eggs were held for 5 days. Response to MER was not different from SER. It was obvious that energy restriction during production period had a positive influence on egg number, fertility and hatchability in aged breeders. At 64 weeks of age, holding of fertile eggs for 5 days prior to incubation was adequate for optimum hatchability in breeders.
Efeito do raleio de frutos sobre o dano de Bonagota cranaodes (Meyrick, 1937) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) em cultivares de macieira

The effect of fruit thinning on apple leafroller Bonagota cranaodes (Meyrick, 1937) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) damage was evaluated in commercial orchards of Fuji and Gala cultivars. At harvest, appies produced in clusters of two, three or four fruits and isolated ones were evaluated for percentage of pest damage. A positive correlation between lhe number of fruits per cluster and percentage of appie leafroller damage was observed. The injury to fruits was higher during late season cultivar Fuji (harvested in April) than early season Gala (February). Fruits produced in isolated floral buds were significativelly less damaged by the pest than in cluster, indicating that is possible Io use apple thinning to reduce apple leafroller damage in commercial orchards.
Surface Modification of TFC-PA RO Membrane by Grafting Hydrophilic pH Switchable Poly(Acrylic Acid) Brushes

The grafting of pH-responsive poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) brushes was carried out on the surface of a commercial TFC-PA membrane using surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). Poly(t-butyl acrylate) was polymerized through the SI-ATRP method followed by its acid hydrolysis to form PAA hydrophilic polymer brushes. Surface morphology, permeation flux, salt rejection, and pore sizes were investigated. The contact angle for water was reduced from 50° for a pristine membrane to 27° for the modified membrane due to a modification with the hydrophilic functional group and its brush on membrane surfaces. The flux rate also increased noticeably at lower pH values relative to higher pH for the modified membranes, while the flux remains stable in the case of pristine TFC-PA membranes. There is slight transition in the water flux rate that was also observed when going from pH values of 3 to 5. This was attributed to the pH-responsive conformational changes for the grafted PAA brushes. At these pH values, ionization of the COOH group takes place below and above to influence the effective pore dimension of the modified membranes. At a lower pH value, the PAA brushes seem to permit tight structure conformation resulting in larger pore sizes and hence more flux. On the other hand, at higher pH values, PAA brushes appeared to be in extended conformation to induce smaller pore sizes and result in less flux. Further, pH values were observed to not significantly affect the NaCl salt rejection with values observed in between 98.8% and 95% and close to that of the pristine TFC-PA membranes. These experimental results are significant and have immediate implication for advances in polymer technology to design and modify the “switchable membrane surfaces” with controllable charge distribution and surface wettability, as well as regulation of water flux and salt.
Bioactive Peptides of Buffalo, Camel, Goat, Sheep, Mare, and Yak Milks and Milk Products

Bioactive peptides derived from milk proteins are of great scientific and applied interests due to their diversity and potential health benefits. Peptides of mineral-binding, opioid, angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE)-inhibitory, immunomodulatory, cytotoxicity, anticarcinogenic, antibacterial, and antithrombotic activities have been isolated and characterized mainly from cow milk proteins. Variations in the bioactive peptides derived from milk proteins of different mammals can be expected depending on the degree of homology between these proteins. This review focuses on the isolation and characterization of peptides of different bioactivities from milk protein hydolyzates and products of buffalo, camel, goat, mare, sheep, and yak milks.