Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Juvenile wood effect in red alder: analysis of physical and mechanical data to delineate juvenile and mature wood zones.

Indoor air quality problems resulting from the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have become an issue of increasing concern. Emissions from building and furnishing materials, which are frequently constructed from particleboard and medium density fiberboard (MDF), are a potentially important contributor of indoor VOCs. In this research, VOC emissions from particleboard and MDF were measured in small (53-L) stainless steel chambers for 4 days. Samples were collected from 53 of the 61 U.S. mills that produce particleboard and MDF. Each mill identified the predominant tree species used to manufacture the panels. Laboratory tests were conducted at room temperature and 45 percent relative humidity. Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric analysis was used to identify and quantify VOC compounds. The predominant compounds identified in the emissions from particleboard and MDF samples were terpenes and aldehydes, although small straight-chain alcohols and ketones were also found. This study describes the aldehyde emission data, excluding formaldehyde. Emissions of small straight-chain aldehydes, such as hexanal, pentanal, heptanal, octanal, and nonanal, generally exceeded emissions of other compounds and accounted for more than 50 percent oftotal VOC emissions. All 53 particleboard and 16 of 18 MDF samples emitted hexanal, the most prevalent aldehyde found (excluding formaldehyde). The tests showed differences in VOC composition and emission factors by product and tree type. On average, aldehyde emissions from southern pine MDF samples considerably exceeded the aldehyde emissions from southern pine particleboard. Emissions from all other MDF samples, however, were lower than those from particleboard samples in the same species group. With the exception of formaldehyde, aldehydes are not added to the adhesives used to bond wood, and they have not previously been reported as extractable compounds in wood. Degradation ofthe wood or its secondary metabolites is probably responsible for the presence of the aldehydes.
Aggregation, Flexible Forms, and Estimation of Food Consumption Parameters: Reply

Grouping schemes, commodity aggregation, and the choice of functional specification significantly influence the results of empirical demand studies. This article assesses the importance of these factors for estimating aggregate food consumption parameters. A flexible food demand model that nests alternative specifications is estimated using U.S. data. Foods are aggregated based on a new grouping scheme adopted from the "Dietary Guidelines for Americans. " Nutrient intake elasticities with respect to food prices and expenditure are calculated. The influence of socioeconomic variables on consumption and nutrient intake is analyzed. Price, income, and demographic effects are found to be highly significant. Our findings are invariant to the choice of functional form.
Selective Attention Deficits in Persons With Autism: Preliminary Evidence of an Inefficient Attentional Lens

A forced-choice reaction time (RT) task was used to assess the filtering component of selective attention in mental-age (MA) matched groups of persons with autism (n = 12), organic mental retardation (n = 32), familial mental retardation (n = 30), and no handicap (« = 34). Conditions varied with regard to the presence or absence of a window and number (zero, two, or four) and location of distractors. The RTs of the persons with autism improved relative to the other groups in the presence of the window without distractors, but this effect was negated when distractors were also presented. The performance of the persons with autism was the most impaired in the presence of distractors. These findings represent preliminary behavioral evidence of an inefficient attentional lens among persons with autism. The ability to attend selectively to meaningful sources of information while ignoring irrelevant ones is essential to competent and adaptive functioning (Lane & Pearson, 1982). The task of attending is particularly challenging in that the human mind has a finite capacity, but is faced with infinite amounts of information from surrounding environments (e.g., Broadbent, 1971; Enns, 1990; Kahneman, 1973; Pearson & Lane, 1990). Thus, efficient filtering of extraneous information facilitates the processing of information with maximum utility for a given task (Enns & Cameron, 1987; Enns & Girgus, 1985; Gibson & Rader, 1979). Conversely, impaired selective attention leads to increased distraction and diminished cognitive functioning as responses to irrelevant stimuli interfere with the processing of targeted information (Douglas & Peters, 1979; Lane & Pearson, 1982). Without efficient filtering and selectivity the developing child has little chance to make sense of the surrounding environment or to function competently within it. Accordingly, the study of selective attention is a particularly poignant focus of study among persons with autism who are characterized by lower lev
Fluorescence lifetime imaging of free calcium in single cells

It is shown here that the intensity probe CalciumGreen is suitable for quantitative Ca2+ concentration determinations using fluorescence lifetime imaging. The probe is characterized by two distinct fluorescence lifetimes over a large Ca2+ concentration range. This indicates that the probe exists in two forms, one free and one bound to Ca2+. This behaviour is exploited for the determination of the absolute free Ca2+ concentration from fluorescence lifetime measurements. Fluorescence lifetime confocal imaging affords the determination of an effective lifetime of the probe in buffers and single rat myocytes. The images are used for the quantification of the local concentrations of free Ca2+. We find CalciumGreen to be a useful lifetime probe at physiological Ca2+ concentrations. A similar photophysical behaviour has also been found for the intensity probe Fluo-3. However, it is less suitable for the determination of Ca2+ concentrations in cells.
Effects of Leaf Wetness Duration and Inoculum Level on Resistance of Wheat Genotypes to Pyrenophora tritici-repentis

Percent leaf necrosis and lesion length on wheat genotypes increased markedly with increasing duration of leaf wetness (up to 24h or 48 h) following inoculation with Pyrenophora tritici-repentis. A long wetting duration favoured less disease development on resistant (Fink's'), and moderately resistant (Bon/YR/3/F3570//KAL/BB) genotypes than on susceptible Glenlea. No significant difference in per cent necrosis was detected among the upper three leaf positions within a genotype. A long wetness duration had a varying effect on the resistance of wheat genotypes, depending upon the inoculum level. Increasing the inoculum level along with the leaf wetness period increased the per cent leaf necrosis on all three wheat genotypes tested. However, the ranking of the genotype for resistance did not alter even after prolonged duration of leaf wetness (up to 96 h) and/or high inoculum level (12000 conidia/ml water). Various post-inoculation wet-periods in combination with high conidia concentrations in inoculum should be used in identifying highly resistant germplasm in breeding populations at the seedling stage of the wheats. Zusammenfassung Einflus der Blattbefeuchtungsdauer und der Starke des Inokulums auf die Resistenz von Weizengenotypen gegenuber Pyrenophora tritici-repentis Nach Inokulation mit Pyrenophora tritici-repentis nahmen mit steigender Dauer der Blattbefeuchtung der prozentuale Anteil der Blattnekrosen und die Langenausdehnung der Lasionen bei Weizengenotypen deutlich zu (bis zu 24 oder 48 Std.). Eine hohe Befeuchtungsdauer begunstigte bei den resistenten (Fink's') und masig resistenten (Bon/YR/3/F3570//KAL/BB) Genotypen eine geringere Entwicklung der Krankheit als bei der anfalligen Sorte Glenlea. Zwischen den obersten drei Blattpositionen wurden keine signifikanten Unterschiede festgestellt. Eine lang andauernde Befeuchtung hat einen veranderlichen Einflus auf die Resistenz von Weizengenotypen in Abhangigkeit von der Starke des Inokulums. Erhohung der Inokulationsstarke zusammen mit einer Verlangerung der Periode der Blattbefeuchtung lies den prozentualen Anteil der Blattnekrosen bei allen drei getesteten Weizengenotypen zunehmen. Die Einordnung der Genotypen nach ihrer Resistenz anderte sich aber auch nach verlangerter Dauer der Blattbefeuchtung (bis zu 96 Std.) und/oder bei hoher Starke des Inokulums (12000 Konidien/ml Wasser) nicht. Zur Identifizierung hochresistenter Linien in Zuchtpopulationen im Samlingsstadium des Weizens sollten unterschiedliche Feuchteperioden nach der Inokulation kombiniert mit hohen Konidienkonzentrationen im Inokulum benutzt werden.
Stereology of Dimple Fracture and Mechanical Properties Correlations in an Austenitic Alloy With Few Inclusions

The effects of temperature and time of aging on ductile fracture were investigated in austenitic stainless steel with few inclusions. From cylindrical tensile data and stereological correlations, a mechanism of void formation is proposed. Two stages can be envisaged for the mechanism of voiding: (1) a homogeneous nucleation process is aided by the vacancies generated by dislocation interaction. (2) limited vacancy-cluster coalescence process can be developed, from the excess vacancies preserved by quench, which annihilate at the voids lead ing to the growing of them. Longer or increased times and high er temperatures produced smaller dimple sizes, being this effect accompanied by the progressive reduction in yield strength and an increased value of ductility and surface relief.
An atlas of Doppler emission-line tomography of cataclysmic variable stars

Doppler emission-line tomography is a technique similar to medical tomography. In this atlas the emission-line profiles of cataclysmic variable stars, seen at different orbital phases, are transformed into velocity space images. This transformation makes many of the complex line profile changes easier to interpret. The emission contributions of the disk and the s-wave are clearly separated in these images, and any emission from the stream and the secondary star can often be identified. In this atlas, Doppler tomograms of Hbeta, He I lambda 4471, and He II lambda 4686 emission lines of 18 cataclysmic variable stars are presented. The Doppler images provide insights into the individual systems and a better technique for measuring and radial velocity amplitude of the white dwarf.
NHexane Extract Of Caryota No Seeds Modulates Survival And Longevity In Drosophila Melanogaster

Study background: The current issues with novel infections and established global resistance to already available anti-infective agents make it imperative that more efforts must be put into exploration of plants as sources of medicine and for prolongation of longevity since they are healthy components of diet. The purpose is to investigate the toxic effects of nHexane extract of Caryota No (CN) seeds in Drosophila Melanogaster (DM) and its effect on survival and life span. Experimental design was employed. Methods: The Lethal Concentration (LC50) was determined by exposing 50 flies in each vial to concentrations ranging from 1 mg to 600 mg per 10 g diet and mortality of flies was scored every 24 hours for 14 days and from the results, five doses were chosen for the next assay. Survival assays were carried out by exposing 50 flies in each vial to the following concentrations: 300 mg, 350 mg, 400 mg, 500 mg and 600 mg of nhexane extracts in 5 replicates for 28 days with daily recording of mortality while the longevity assay was done as in the survival assay but continues until the last fly dies. The control flies received plain diet. Results: The LC50 value of the nhexane extract was determined to be 4565 mg extract/10g fly food in Drosophila melanogaster. The result of nHexane Caryota no extract showed significantly (P < 0.05) reduced survival compared to the control. The longevity assay revealed that the extract significantly (P < 0.05) increased the life span in Drosophila melanogaster. Conclusion: The results obtained from evaluating the nhexane extract of Caryota no indicate that the plant is relatively non-toxic since it did not produce any severe toxic effect and maybe safe under acute, subacute and chronic exposures and by extrapolation may not only be safe for human consumption but may also prolong life span.
PROCEEDINGS TWENTY-FIRST WORKSHOP GEOTHERMAL RESERVOIR ENGINEERING

Until recently, geothermal reservoir simulators use flat interface thermodynamics to determine the thermodynamic state of the reservoir. Development of new simulators and the modification of existing ones has now incorporated the physics of curved interface thermodynamics. These simulators account for the effects of sorption and capillary forces. The simulators GSS and TETRAD were used to simulate the performance of a hypothetical vapor-dominated geothermal reservoir. GSS is a simulator specifically developed to account for adsorption by using adsorption isotherms. On the other hand, TETRAD is a commercial simulator that was modified to account for vapor pressure lowering by using capillary pressure relations. GSS and TETRAD yielded similar results. Thus, the two formulations being used to account for curved interface thermodynamics are practically equivalent. Areas for improvement of both GSS and TETRAD were identified. The hysteresis and temperature dependence of sorption and capillary properties are issues that are needed to be addressed.
Growth and mineral content of roots and shoots of maize seedlings in response to increasing water deficits induced by PEG solutions

Abstract The effects of polyethylene glycol (PEG) solutions of increasing osmotic potentials (ψπ=−0.44 and ‐0.88 MPa) on the growth of the seedlings and on the concentrations of Mn, Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Co, Mo, Cr, Cl, Fe, Ca, Mg, K, Na, P, and N were determined in the shoots and roots of maize (Zea mays L. cv. Summer II) grown in Hoagland's solution in a growth chamber. Water stress was imposed for three days with PEG 4000 on six‐day‐old seedlings. Despite a reduction in the leaf water potential (ψw), which decreased with increasing PEG concentrations, and despite an increase in the water saturation deficit (W.S.D.), the pressure potentials (ψp) were maintained in both treatments at levels quite similar to that in the control seedlings. At ψπ=−0.44 MPa of the growth medium, both the length and dry weight of the shoots and roots significantly decreased, whereas at ψπ=−0.88 MPa only the root length continued to decrease with the consequence of an increase in the total mass production of the seedlings. At ψπ=−0.
Short report : the effect of fish oil on blood pressure and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol levels in phase I of the trials of hypertension prevention

OBJECTIVE To study the effects of moderate doses of fish oil on blood pressure and high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol. METHODS The participants were 350 normotensive men and women aged 30-54 years who were enrolled from seven academic medical centers in phase I of the Trials of Hypertension Prevention. They were randomly assigned to receive placebo or 6 g purified fish oil once a day, which supplied 3 g n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids for 6 months. RESULTS Baseline blood pressure was (mean +/- SD) 123 +/- 9/81 +/- 5 mmHg. The mean differences in the blood pressure changes between the fish oil and placebo groups were not statistically significant. There was no tendency for fish oil to reduce blood pressure more in subjects with baseline blood pressure in the upper versus the lower quartile (132/87 versus 114/75 mmHg), low habitual fish consumption (0.4 versus 2.9 times a week) or low baseline plasma levels of n-3 fatty acids. Fish oil increased HDL2-cholesterol significantly compared with the placebo group. Subgroup analysis showed this effect to be significant in the women but not in the men. Increases in serum phospholipid n-3 fatty acids were significantly correlated with increases in HDL2-cholesterol and decreases in systolic blood pressure. CONCLUSION Moderate amounts of fish oil (6 g/day) are unlikely to lower blood pressure in normotensive persons, but may increase HDL2-cholesterol, particularly in women.
The structure of attentional control: contingent attentional capture by apparent motion, abrupt onset, and color

Five spatial cuing experiments tested 2 hypotheses regarding attentional capture: (a) Attentional capture is contingent on endogenous attentional control settings, and (b) attentional control settings are limited to the distinction between dynamic and static discontinuities (C. L. Folk, R. W. Remington, & J. C. Johnston, 1992). In Experiments 1 and 2, apparent-motion precues produced significant costs in performance for targets signaled by motion but not for targets signaled by color or abrupt onset. Experiment 3 established that this pattern is not due to differences in the difficulty of target discrimination. Experiments 4 and 5 revealed asymmetric capture effects between abrupt onset and apparent motion related to stimulus salience. The results support the hypotheses of Folk et al. (1992) and suggest that stimulus salience may also play a role in attentional capture.
Quadruplex nucleic acids.

Fundamentals of Quadruplex Structures Stephen Neidle and Shankar Balasubramanian Energetics, Kinetics and Dynamics of Quadruplex Folding Structural Diversity of G-Quadruplex Scaffolds The Role of Cations in Determining Quadruplex Structure and Stability DNA Quadruplex-Ligand Recognition: Structure and Dynamics Quadruplex Ligand Recognition: Biological Aspects Quadruplexes and Gene Regulation Quadruplexes in the Genome Quadruplexes and the Biology of G-Rich Genomic Regions The G-Quartet in Supramolecular Chemistry and Nanoscience
Surface geometry change in 2-naphthoic acid adsorbed on silver

The surface geometry of quinoline, pyridine, and 2-naphthoic acid adsorbed on silver colloid surface has been determined by observing the CH stretching and CH bending bands in their SERS spectra. 2-Naphthoic acid has been observed to have two different surface geometries depending on the surface concentration. At high surface concentration, this molecule is «standing up», while at low surface concentration, it is «lying down» on the silver surface
Synergistic immunosuppressive actions of cyclosporine with a mouse anti+-rat α/β-T cell receptor monoclonal antibody

A mouse IgG1 mAb (R73) directed against the rat alpha/beta-TCR was documented not only to prolong the survival of allografts across major RT1 plus non-RT1 antigenic disparities, but also to display a synergistic immunosuppressive interaction with CsA. Heterotopic cardiac transplants from Buffalo (RT1b) rats survived significantly longer in Wistar-Furth (RT1u) hosts treated immediately after the operation with 0.25 mg/kg R73 i.v. , with a mean survival time of 11.0 +/- 5.5 versus 6.8 +/- 1.2 days in the untreated group (P < 0.01). Administration of 0.5 or 5.0 mg/kg R73 displayed dose-dependent prolongation of survival to 17.0 +/- 8.3 days (P < 0.05) or 28.6 +/- 14.0 days (P < 0.01), respectively. One 0.5 mg/kg i.v. dose of R73 delivered to normal Wistar-Furth hosts produced peripheral T cell depletion that reversed after 16 days. Three injections of 0.5 mg/kg R73 on days 0, 2, and 4 prolonged allograft survival to 52.5 +/- 38.6 days compared with 17.0 +/- 8.3 days with a single dose (P < 0.01). Addition of 3 daily doses of 5 or 10 mg/kg CsA administered per oral gavage to a single dose of 0.05, 0.25, or 0.5 mg/kg R73 injected on day 0 produced a synergistic effect to prolong allograft survival, as determined by the rigorous median-effect analysis. The synergistic interaction, which may be explained by the inhibitory effect of CsA on Ca(2+)-dependent pathways triggered after activation of TCR, the target of R73, warrants clinical investigation in order to assess the potential impact of anti-alpha/beta-TCR mAb on CsA-based immunosuppressive regimens.
Spoken Natural Language Dialog Systems: A Practical Approach

1. Achieving Spoken Communication with Computers 2. Foundational Work in Integrated Dialog Processing 3. Dialog Processing Theory 4. Computational Model 5. Parsing 6. System Implementation 7. Experimental Results 8. Performance of the Speech Recognizer and Parser 9. Enhanced Dialog Processing: Verifying Doubtful Inputs 10. Extending the State of the Art A. The Goal and Action Description Language B. User's Guide for the Interruptible Prolog Simulator (IPSIM) C. Obtaining the System Software Via the Anonymous FTP
Differential effect of amphotericin B on the three evolutive stages of Trypanosoma cruzi and on the host cell-parasite interaction.

1. Amphotericin B (Am.B) was shown to have a direct effect on T. cruzi, with the three forms of the parasite presenting different susceptibilities to the drug in the following order: amastigotes > trypomastigotes > epimastigotes. These differences highlight the importance of using the vertebrate forms of the parasite in tests of new drugs. 2. The treated parasites showed alterations of the plasma membrane, suggesting that, as in fungi, the primary effect of Am.B was probably via formation of complexes with membrane components. 3. When exposed to filipin, another polyene antibiotic, the three parasite forms were observed to present a similar order of susceptibility, with comparable ultrastructural modifications. 4. Higher concentrations of Am.B were required to damage the intracellular parasites in vitro, 2.3 micrograms/ml for parasites inside peritoneal macrophages and 7 micrograms/ml for parasites inside heart muscle cells. 5. Am.B is effective against the parasite, but is also toxic to mammalian cells. Testing of Am.B for the control of Chagas' disease by blood transfusion may be useful, since bloodstream forms are lysed by lower concentrations of the drug than those required to affect intracellular parasites.
The polar bear Ursus maritimus feeding in a seabird colony in Frans Josef Land

During the second half of August 1992 polar bears were observed feeding intensively in the little auk Alle alle colony on Rubini Rock, Hooker Island, Frans Josef Land. They dug out nests eating eggs, chicks and adult birds. Their activity results in both worsening the breeding conditions and decreasing the breeding success of the little auks. The polar bear has not earlier been known as a little auk predator.