Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Monitoring Forest Cover Changes Using Remote Sensing and GIS: A Global Prospective

Res. J. Enuiron. Sci., 5 (2). ' 105-123, 2011 Yamaguchi, 2009), with GIS ((" kog'raphical Inf()rmati()n System) techniques provide inforinat,ion about landscape history, t·opography, soil, rainfall, temperature and factors on which the distribution of species depends (noss, 2001). This study attempts to provide a review of the utility of remote sensing" coupled with ( AS to understand the changes of forest cover at. global and regional scale based on the, highhght. of several case studies and emphasized has been given to compare the changes of forest cover in different. forest types at temporal and spatial scale, of the Indo-Burma hotspot region during last two decades
Exploring evolutionary patterns and processes : a case study using the Mesozoic bivalve Buchia

The fossil record is the only direct source of data for studying modes (patterns) and rates of morphological change over geologic time periods. Determining modes is critical for understanding macroevolutionary processes, but just how modes can vary within a taxon, and why, have hitherto been largely understudied. To address this, I examined patterns of morphological change in the shell of the Mesozoic marine bivalve genus Buchia over its geographic and temporal range. Buchia was chosen as a test subject because it is abundant, well-preserved across a variety of facies, and is widely distributed across the Northern Hemisphere where the likelihood of multiple lineages is low. While the focus of this thesis is on evolutionary patterns, it is also necessary to address issues of taxonomy and geographical variation, making this research applicable to a wide-variety of fields. Previous to this study there was no protocol for measuring buchiid valves, nor was the genus studied in a quantitative manner. Throughout this research I used ten morphological characters to describe shell shape and size. Multivariate methods (principle component and canonical variate analyses) were employed to discriminate between species of Buchia and examine how morphological characters change through time and space within the genus. Evolutionary patterns were delineated using two well-established programs that discriminate between multiple modes of evolution. Overall, nearly 2000 specimens from eight geographical locations around the world were studied for this thesis. I found the genus Buchia was a useful tool for evolutionary studies as it can be studied quantitatively in space and time. Specifically I have found that buchiid species can be delineated using morphometrics; the genus is restricted to the Northern Hemisphere; while the environment significantly affects morphology, there is no evidence of a latitudinal gradient; diversity and disparity within Buchia are not correlated; most evolutionary modes conformed to random walks or stasis; and modes and rates vary across the geographical range of the genus. Overall, I have found that the environment plays an important role in shaping both morphology and modes.
The effect of encapsulated butyric acid and zinc on performance, gut integrity and meat quality in male broiler chickens 1

This study evaluated the impact of encapsulated butyric acid and zinc (ButiPEARL™ Z) on performance parameters, gut integrity and meat quality during heat stress in male broiler chickens reared to 47 days of age. Day old chicks (n=448) were randomly assigned to 2 treatments (16 pens/treatment; 14 birds/pen). From day 29 to day 47, broilers were subjected to cyclic heat stress (HS). On day 28 (before HS) and on day 32 (4 days after HS), intestinal samples were taken from 8 birds/treatment and intestinal permeability was measured. On day 47, birds were processed and breast fillets were scored for woody breast (WB). ButiPEARL Z showed significantly higher feed intake and body weight gain (BWG) than the control at day 47 (P<0.05). During the HS period, ButiPEARL Z showed significantly higher BWG compared to the control (P<0.05). At day 47, ButiPEARL Z showed a numerical improvement on overall feed conversion ratio (FCR) of 4 points when compared to the control. Additionally, intestinal macromolecule permeability of ButiPEARL Z was numerically lower than the control, which indicates a more intact tight junction in the ButiPEARL Z birds. ButiPEARL Z tended to improve WB by 35% (P=0.07). The data provides evidence ButiPEARL Z may alleviate the negative effects of heat stress on growth performance and intestinal integrity and help reduce the severity of woody breast.
Enhancing Anticancer Efficacy of Formononetin Microspheres via Microfluidic Fabrication

Formononetin is a flavonoid compound with anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory properties. However, its low solubility limits its clinical use. We employed microfluidic technology to prepare formononetin-loaded PLGA-PEGDA microspheres (Degradable polymer PLGA, Crosslinking agent PEGDA), which can encapsulate and release drugs in a controlled manner. We optimized and characterized the microspheres, and evaluated their antitumor effects. The microspheres had uniform size, high drug loading efficiency, high encapsulation efficiency, and stable release for 35 days. They also inhibited the proliferation, migration, and apoptosis. The antitumor mechanism involved the induction of reactive oxygen species and modulation of Bcl-2 family proteins. These findings suggested that formononetin-loaded PLGA-PEGDA microspheres, created using microfluidic technology, could be a novel drug delivery system that can overcome the limitations of formononetin and enhance its antitumor activity.
Effet du couvert nival, de la nourriture et de la prédation hivernale sur la dynamique de population des lemmings

Lemmings are renowned for their multi-annual population cycles. Yet, what controls these cycles is still poorly understood. There are large gaps in our understanding of their winter ecology and a snow cover of good quality is thought to be an important factor for maintaining the cyclic dynamic of lemming populations. We first enhanced snow cover by setting out snow fences and found that densities of winter nests were higher where snow depth was increased but that reproduction was not influenced. We then used an 18-year time series of brown lemming (Lemmus trimucronatus) abundance to test if snow variables could explain the residual variation between the observed lemming density and the one predicted by models where cyclicity had been accounted for. Our analysis provides support for the hypothesis that snow cover can affect the amplitude of lemming population cycles. Summer abundance of lemmings was higher following winters with a deep snow cover and a low-density snow pack near the ground. In addition, we attempted to live trap lemmings under the snow in their preferred winter habitat using chimney-like boxes. We hypothesize that our low trapping success resulted from lemmings leaving the deeper snow areas where our boxes were located and moving to shallower snow or exposed tundra due to an inversion of sub-nivean temperatures in spring. We also examined if winter food resources could limit lemming populations by installing exclosures in their preferred habitat and sampling annually plant biomass inside and outside exclosures at snow-melt and at peak growth. Winter grazing had little impact on total plant biomass at snow-melt. Overall, plant regrowth during the summer showed few annual variation and was not reduced in years of high lemming abundance. Our results suggest that it is unlikely that food depletion during winter was the cause of the decline in lemming abundance following a year of peak abundance. We then tested if snow quality should affect mammalian predation rates on lemmings and found that deep and hard snow restricted fox (Vulpes lagopus) predation attempts made by jumping through the snow, but not those made by digging. Ermine (Mustela erminea) predation was unaffected by snow depth and weakly by nest density but was higher in stream gully habitats. Finally, we examined patterns of predation by ermines on lemmings. Our results indicate that ermines may play a key role in the lemming decline phase, by removing a large proportion of the lemming population during summers of peak abundance and by maintaining a high predation pressure during the following winter. In
Prediction of "fear" acquisition in healthy control participants in a Prediction of "fear" acquisition in healthy control participants in a de novo fear-conditioning paradigm de novo fear-conditioning paradigm

Studies using fear-conditioning paradigms have found that anxiety patients are more conditionable than individuals without these disorders, but these effects have been demonstrated inconsistently. It is unclear whether these findings have etiological significance or whether enhanced conditionability is linked only to certain anxiety characteristics. To further examine these issues, the authors assessed the predictive significance of relevant subsyndromal characteristics in 72 healthy adults, including measures of worry, avoidance, anxious mood, depressed mood
Identifica¸c˜ao e Modelagem de Erros Estoc´asticos em Sensores Inerciais via Variˆancia de Allan e Otimiza¸c˜ao

: With the growing opportunities in the most diverse areas of engineering associated with autonomous vehicles, much has been studied about the application of low-cost inertial sensors, especially of the Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) type. However, the recognized predominance of stochastic errors in such sensors becomes an obstacle, since most of the documentation provided by the respective manufacturers is incomplete. In this sense, this work aims to investigate the Allan Variance (AV) technique as a tool for identifying the nature of Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) stochastic errors. In addition, a discrete-time state-space model capable of reconstructing these errors from the stochastic characteristics identified for the inertial sensors is evaluated. Finally, an optimized version of the aforementioned technique is proposed, which is capable of refining the dynamic model of stochastic errors, as well as its correspondence with the AVs experimentally obtained for the inertial sensors. Experimental results, based on data collected from different commercially available low-cost IMUs, show that the models and techniques discussed are capable of adequately estimating the behavior of such errors and, therefore, guaranteeing the adequate tuning of eventual estimators (such as the Kalman filter, for example), when merging IMUs with auxiliary sensors for integrated multi-sensory navigation.
Management Accounting Practices in Vietnamese Services Enterprises: The Current Evolutionary Stages

The aim of this study is to examine the current evolutionary stages of management accounting practices in Vietnamese services enterprises which refer to the management accounting evolution model proposed by IFAC (1998). We employ a questionnaire survey to study the extent to which Vietnamese services enterprises have adopted traditional and modern management accounting practices. We sent the questionnaires to 200 Vietnamese services enterprises and received 77 answers which are equivalent to 38.5% response rate. Our findings show empirical evidence of current evolutionary stage and management accounting practices which are widely adopted in Vietnamese services enterprises. We found that approximately 60% of the Vietnamese services enterprises are in the initial stages of the IFAC model. 36% of the services enterprises (28 enterprises) reached Stage 3 of the IFAC model which is a significant point in this research. There are 2 (4%) of the enterprises in Stage 4 of the IFAC model. We also found that the widely adopted management accounting practices in the Vietnamese services enterprises are budgeting for product cost controlling and budgeting for revenue, using financial ratios analysis and non-financial measurements related to customers, and profitability ratio analysis
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCENTRATIONS, FATE, AND RISK ASSESSMENT OF INSECTICIDES USED FOR ADULT MOSQUITO MANAGEMENT

One of the most effective ways of managing adult mosquitoes that vector human and animal pathogens is the use of ultra-low-volume (ULV) insecticides. Due to a lack of studies examining the environmental fate of ULV insecticides and because previous risk assessments have shown that environmental concentrations of insecticides contributed the largest amount of variance to the estimated total exposure, I measured deposition onto surfaces and air concentrations of permethrin and naled. I also conducted risk assessments for human and other non-target organisms using the values I measured. Deposition concentrations of permethrin and naled generally decreased as distance from the spray source increased. Overall, approximately 3.2% of the permethrin and 15% of the naled applied deposited on the ground within 75 m from the spray source 1 h after application. Concentrations of permethrin and naled 12 h after application were not significantly different than concentrations 1 h after application. The results of my probabilistic human-health risk assessment using actual environmental concentrations showed that previous risk assessments overestimated risks. Thus they were conservative in protecting human health. The non-target risk assessment and field bioassay using the house cricket, Acheta domesticus (L.), as a surrogate for mediumto large-bodied ground dwelling insects showed that ULV applications most likely would not result in impacts on populations. I also measured actual environmental concentrations of pyrethrins and piperonyl butoxide (PBO) after aerial ULV applications. Pyrethrins were not detected in the water or on deposition pads. However PBO was detected in the water and on deposition samples, but concentrations rapidly decreased to background levels by 36 h after application. The estimated risks of pyrethrins and PBO to aquatic surrogates were lower than those estimated by previous ecological risk assessments. My study is the first to relate actual environmental concentrations of ULV insecticides to estimates of humanhealth risks. Results of my environmental fate studies, human-health and non-target risk assessments, and the current weight of scientific evidence, demonstrate that the risks to humans and the environment after ULV applications of insecticides most likely are below regulatory levels of concern.
Observations of Polar Bear Predatory Behaviour toward Caribou

A polar bear ( Ursus maritimu s) was observed unsuccessfully stalking and chasing caribou ( Rangifer tarandus ) in western Hudson Bay. Before chasing the caribou, the polar bear appeared to make use of wind direction and vegetation cover in order to move close to them. While there have been very few documented cases of the two species interacting, our observations indicate that polar bears will stalk and chase caribou.
FASSFuzzer—An Automated Vulnerability Detection System for Android System Services

As the core component of Android framework, Android system services provide a large number of basic and core function services for Android system. It has a lot of resources and very high system permissions. And for the Android system, it is a very important attack surface. Attackers can use Android system service vulnerabilities to steal user privacy, cause Android applications or Android system denial of service, remote malicious code execution and other malicious behaviors, which will seriously affect the security of Android users. Based on fuzzy testing technology, this paper designed and implemented a vulnerability mining system for Android system services, optimized and improved the fuzzy testing method, so as to improve the speed and effectiveness of vulnerability mining, and timely submitted the discovered vulnerabilities to the corresponding manufacturers and security agencies, to help Android manufacturers repair the vulnerabilities in time. The main work of this paper is as follows: Aiming at the null pointer reference vulnerability of Android system services, we designed and implemented an automatic fast mining system FASSFuzzer. FASSFuzzer uses ADB to quickly detect null pointer reference vulnerabilities in Android services. At the same time, FASSFuzzer added automatic design to automatically perceive the generation of vulnerabilities and ensure the full automation of the whole vulnerability mining process, and automatically generate a vulnerability mining report after the completion of vulnerability mining.
The biogeochemical silicon cycle in the Southern Ocean tracked by isotopic approaches

Southern Ocean biogeochemistry plays a crucial role on global marine primary production by impacting the nutrient availability even in low latitude surface water. Variations in the silicon (Si) cycle are large and its coupling to other nutrient biogeochemical cycles is still not well understood in this ocean. Results of two different isotopic approaches suggested that a strong silicon pump was quickly initiated in spring by a switch from regenerated to new biogenic silica production. The seasonal evolution of natural Si isotopic composition (δ30Si) was mainly driven by the balance between the “dissolution to production” and “Si-supply to Si-uptake” ratios that decoupled the isotopic dynamics of particulate and dissolved Si-pools (DSi and BSi, repectively). We also used δ30Si measurements to track seasonal flows of BSi to the deep sea with. These results confirmed that the δ30Si is well preserved during particles settling. The seasonal evolution of δ30Si signal allows for the first time to quantify important features about the processes controlling the diatoms’ productivity and its fate, such as mixing events that bring nutrient in the ML or the seasonal evolution of particles sinking velocities. These insights confirm that the δ30Si of DSi and BSi, combined to isotopic technics to measure Si fluxes in the ML, are promising tools to improve our understanding on the Si-biogeochemical cycle and provide new constraints for application to biogeochemical models.
Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy

The use of biobased and bioactive compounds has boosted the development of sustainable extraction and purification processes, in which ionic liquids have been playing a major role. Ionic-liquid-based aqueous biphasic systems (IL-based ABS) have been raising significant interest as advantageous extraction and purification platforms; however, imidazolium-based ILs have been the primary option as phase-forming agents. Aiming the development of more sustainable IL-based ABS, in this work, six novel analogues of glycine-betaine ILs (AGB-ILs) were investigated. These ILs were synthesized and characterized in terms of purity, physico-chemical properties, ecotoxicity and ability to form ABS with tri-potassium citrate. The investigated AGB-ILs are composed of tri( n -alkyl[2-ethoxy-2-oxoethyl]ammonium/phosphonium and tri( n -alkyl[4-ethoxy-4-oxobutyl] ammonium/phosphonium cations with ethyl, n-propyl and n-butyl substituents, and the tosylate ([Tos] - ) anion. The synthesized ILs present degradation temperatures in the range from 220 to 265 °C, and are classified as relatively harmless regarding their ecotoxicity. The studied AGB-ILs display slightly lower thermal stability, but yet a lower ecotoxicity compared to the commercial IL 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tosylate. Their ability to form ABS was assessed, allowing to conclude that an expansion in the alkyl side chain length and spacer, as well as the presence of phos-phonium instead of ammonium as central atom, increase the ability for phase separation in presence of tri-potassium phosphate aqueous solutions. The extraction performance of the studied AGB-ILs-based ABS was finally assessed with furfural, a platform chemical. In the majority of the studied systems, furfural preferentially migrates to the AGB-IL-rich phase, obtaining extraction efficiencies in a single step to the IL-rich phase up to 98%. These results reveal that novel ABS comprising AGB-ILs can be potentially used as separation platforms of bioactive compounds.
Seminal fluid mediates ejaculate competition in social insects Seminal Fluid Mediates Ejaculate Competition in Social Insects Patterns of Diversity in Marine Phytoplankton

Queens of ants and bees normally obtain a lifetime supply of sperm on a single day of sexual activity, and sperm competition is expected to occur in lineages where queens receive sperm from multiple males. We compared singly mated (monandrous) and multiply mated (polyandrous) sister groups of ants and bees and show that seminal fluid of polyandrous species has a more positive effect on the survival of a male ’ s own sperm than on other males ’ sperm. This difference was not observed in the monandrous species, suggesting that incapacitation of competing sperm may have independently evolved in both bees and ants. In Atta leafcutter ants, the negative effect of the seminal fluid of other males was negated by secretion from the queen sperm-storage organ, suggesting that queens may control ejaculate competition after sperm storage. Spatial diversity gradients are a pervasive feature of life on Earth. We examined a global ocean circulation, biogeochemistry, and ecosystem model that indicated a decrease in phytoplankton diversity with increasing latitude, consistent with observations of many marine and terrestrial taxa. In the modeled subpolar oceans, seasonal variability of the environment led to competitive exclusion of phytoplankton with slower growth rates and lower diversity. The relatively weak seasonality of the stable subtropical and tropical oceans in the global model enabled long exclusion time scales and prolonged coexistence of multiple phytoplankton with comparable fitness. Superimposed on the decline in diversity seen from equator to pole were “ hot spots ” of enhanced diversity in some regions of energetic ocean circulation, which reflected lateral dispersal.
Distribución y Movilidad de la Especialización Argentina en el Comercio Mundial de Agroalimentos: Un Estudio Dinámico

El siguiente trabajo presenta un estudio aplicado sobre la persistencia o movilidad dinámica de los patrones de especialización de Argentina dentro del sector agroalimentario durante el período 1996-2006. A los fines de obtener una variable aleatoria que cuantifique de manera global al desempeño comercial de un determinado producto o sector, se propone una metodología de medición basada en el indicador de Ventajas Comparativas Reveladas, estimando y analizando su distribución empírica, y con ello los cambios en la composición interna del sector. Para estudiar la convergencia en los patrones de especialización, se plantea un modelo dinámico basado en cadenas de Markov caracterizando el comportamiento interno de dicha distribución, obteniendo resultados que indican una ‘polarización’ dentro del sector.