Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Present day kinematics of the Eastern California Shear Zone from a geodetically constrained block model

We use Global Positioning System (GPS) data from 1993–2000 to determine horizontal velocities of 65 stations in eastern California and western Nevada between 35° and 37° N. We relate the geodetic velocities to fault slip rates using a block model that enforces path integral constraints over geologic and geodetic time scales and that includes the effects of elastic strain accumulation on faults locked to a depth of 15 km. The velocity of the Sierra Nevada block with respect to Nevada is 11.1±0.3 mm/yr, with slip partitioned across the Death Valley, (2.8±0.5 mm/yr), Panamint Valley (2.5±0.8 mm/yr), and Airport Lake/Owens Valley (5.3±0.7/4.6±0.5 mm/yr) faults. The western Mojave block rotates at 2.1±0.8°/My clockwise, with 3.7±0.7 mm/yr of left lateral motion across the western Garlock Fault. We infer 11±2 mm/yr of right lateral motion across the Mojave region of the Eastern California Shear Zone.
GRADIENT ECOLOGY OF A BIOTIC INVASION: BIOFACIES OF THE TYPE CINCINNATIAN SERIES (UPPER ORDOVICIAN), CINCINNATI, OHIO REGION, USA

Abstract Recent studies have emphasized that faunal change is typically brief and most commonly occurs at sequence boundaries and major flooding surfaces. The Upper Ordovician of the Cincinnati, Ohio, region records a major biotic invasion in the Richmondian Stage, which offers an opportunity to test these generalizations and to understand how episodes of faunal change are reflected in the structure of ecological gradients. The early Cincinnatian (C1–early C4 depositional sequences) displays two relatively stable faunal gradients, with the primary gradient reflecting onshore-offshore setting and the secondary gradient reflecting substrate consistency. During the mid-C4 sequence, dominant taxa of the shallow subtidal are extirpated, while deep subtidal taxa expand into those habitats, leading to a loss of cross-shelf faunal differentiation. This faunal breakdown is accompanied into the mid-C5 by a series of ecological epiboles, indicating an ongoing flux in ecological associations. The onshore-offshore gradient is reestablished in the C5, albeit with new associations dominated by or containing immigrant taxa. Recognition of this gradient is hindered by widespread increased abundance of bryozoans and by the delayed appearance of at least seven common genera of brachiopods and corals. The Richmondian Invasion plays out over multiple sequences and is not confined to a brief interval at the beginning of a sequence. These faunal changes do not coincide with sequence boundaries or major flooding surfaces and therefore cannot be sequence stratigraphic artifacts, nor can they represent a geologically instantaneous faunal response to sea-level change.
Growing (Up) in Times of Multiple Crises – A Call for Mental Health (Research) Action

The rock band Fury in the slaughterhouse sang that “every generation got its own disease”, however, remaining in that wording, the current generation of children and adolescents in Europe has to cope with several severe “diseases” at the same time: the war of Russia against Ukraine, the social and mental health consequences of the Covid-19-pandemic, the economic downturn, societal polarization, and last but not least, the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change. Each of these crises have visible and measurable consequences, and some crises mutually reinforce each other. The climate crisis, for instance, has already brought irreversible damage to some societies and natural habitats around the world. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2023), weather phenomena such as droughts, storms and floods will become more likely and more intense. It is estimated that people who are born today will experience heat waves up to seven times more often than people who are in their forties to sixties today (Thiery et al., 2021). Furthermore, climate change is linked to macroeconomic consequences negatively affect­ ing the economic situations of states and individuals and is thus a driving force behind increasing poverty (e.g., Kotz et al., 2021). The climate crisis also accelerates biodiversity loss. Further, both environmental degradation as well as climate change undermine peace and increase the likelihood for conflict between groups, representing additional stressors for development both on an individual and a societal level (e.g., Palmer, 2022). Unsurpris­ ingly, a recent meta-analysis shows that climate events are negatively correlated with mental health (Cuijpers et al., 2023), and a recent review demonstrates that the risk for
Derivation of biomass information for semi-arid areas using remote-sensing data

The impact of changes in vegetation biomass on the global ecosystem and the future evolution of possible climate change is of high relevance. Above-ground biomass (AGB) influences environmental processes, such as the hydrological cycle, soil erosion and degradation, especially in semi-arid areas. Therefore, a great need exists for the development of accurate and transferable methods for biomass estimation in these areas. Remote-sensing-based biomass studies have been carried out since the early 1980s. The large majority of these have focused on forests. A reasonable number of efforts have also been undertaken for the estimation of the biomass in semi-arid regions; however, a summary of these studies is not available yet. This review article provides an overview of the remote-sensing-based research activities for AGB estimation in semi-arid regions using optical data, radar data, combined multi-sensor approaches and modelling approaches. A description of typical field measurement methods is also provided, as well as a summary and discussion of the commonly observed difficulties and challenges to be overcome in the future. Most studies were based on low- and medium-resolution optical or radar data and applied empirical relationships between the remote-sensing-derived indices and biomass field measurements. The influence of soil background on the remote-sensing signals is a major challenge. The biggest challenge, however, seems to be the transferability of the methods in time and space. Especially, empirical relationships seem to provide weak results when applied to another point in time or space. Thus, further research on the transferability of remote-sensing-based methods for biomass estimation – especially in semi-arid areas – is required. Additional analyses and research are also needed for an understanding of the relationship between the AGB and remote-sensing signals in ecosystems with scarce vegetation, towards efficient field sampling schemes, synergetic use of optical and radar data and robust models that are not dependent on extensive field sampling.
Shear zones, fault networks, and Archean gold

Conjugate ductile shear zones developed mostly on granite-greenstone margins are a dominant structural feature of the Yilgarn craton. These greenstone belt–scale shear zones lack both gold deposits and gold-related alteration. Previous interpretations of the shear zones as part of a linked system, as craton-scale terrane boundaries, or as crustal-scale pathways for gold-mineralizing fluids, all appear equivocal. Instead, gold mineralizing fluids in the Yilgarn craton (illustrated here by the gold-rich Yandal Belt) were focused by a network of middle to upper crustal brittle faults in the Late Archean. The faults are 040° to 060° trending dextral, and 090° to 120° trending sinistral; the maximum compression direction is about 075°. Gold mineralization occurs in laminated and other schistosity-parallel quartz veins where brittle faults refract along earlier subsidiary within-greenstone ductile shear zones, and in quartz veins within Late Archean faults.
A field survey in Potenza (southern Italy) for developing and testing an innovative strategy of air pollution control on a local scale

Climate change and air pollution, both on a global and local scale, are two interrelated environmental policy problems, but usually they are studied separately with very different approaches. In a novel context, in which climate change and air quality become two related aspects of the same problem, we believe that it is necessary to carry out novel local strategies for Air Quality Monitoring Networks’ (AQMNs) innovation, not only applying analytical optimization procedures of the existing networks, but also introducing advanced in situ devices and using data by remote investigations. Advanced instrumentation allows to evaluate the concentration of specific pollutants and to better characterize the local weather conditions. Remote observations (satellite data and vertical profiles of atmospheric variables) may improve the network effectiveness. In this study we present experimental data observed in the urban area of Potenza (Basilicata, southern Italy) during a field survey. In the same sampling period, we compare data atmospheric pollutants concentrations by AQM network of Potenza with data collected in our experimental site and with a satellite map of CO2. Despite the observation scales being very different, the results are encouraging and we believe that other efforts have to be made; the short-term benefits obtaining from air pollution control and innovation may be as effective as the long-term benefits obtainable through strategic climate change measures. So it is important to develop and to support local integrated strategies, for mitigating air pollution and climate change contemporaneously.
Marked seasonality in the concentrations and sea‐to‐air flux of volatile iodocarbon compounds in the western English Channel

[1] In the first seasonal study of volatile iodinated organic compounds (VICs) in the open sea, concentrations of five VICs were measured approximately weekly at four depths, over 20 months from July 2002 to April 2004, in the western English Channel. Seawater concentrations varied seasonally by an order of magnitude for all five compounds, with winter minima and, generally, late summer/autumn maxima. The average contribution to the dissolved VIC pool was chloroiodomethane (39%), diiodomethane (33%), iodomethane (22%), iodoethane (6%), and bromoiodomethane (4%). Total sea-to-air flux of iodine atoms carried by the VICs (15.5 mmol I m � 2 yr � 1 ) was approximately fourfold higher than that for iodomethane alone. This contrasts with previous studies that indicated that iodomethane was the main vector of iodine away from macroalgal beds. The estimated sea-to-air flux takes into account the significant airside control of the gas exchange of certain VICs, particularly diiodomethane; for which a 30% reduction in average daily flux was observed when an additional airside transfer velocity was included in the calculations. Because of their high reactivity, chloroiodomethane and diiodomethane are likely to drive the atmospheric organic iodine chemistry over these shelf seas, rather than the monohalogenated VICs.
Interactions between climate, vegetation and the active layer in soils at two Maritime Antarctic sites

In the summer 2000–01, thermal monitoring of the permafrost active layer within various terrestrial sites covered by lichen, moss or grasses was undertaken at Jubany (King George Island) and Signy Island in the Maritime Antarctic. The results demonstrated the buffering effect of vegetation on ground surface temperature (GST) and the relationship between vegetation and active layer thickness. Vegetation type and coverage influenced the GST in both locations with highest variations and values in the Deschampsia and Usnea sites and the lowest variations and values in the Jubany moss site. Active layer thickness ranged from 57 cm (Jubany moss site) to 227 cm (Signy Deschampsia site). Active layer thickness data from Signy were compared with data collected at the same location four decades earlier. Using a regression equation for air temperature versus ground surface temperatures the patterns of changing air temperature over time suggest that the active layer thickness increased c. 30 cm between 1963 and 1990 and then decreased 30 cm between 1990 and 2000. The documented increased rate of warming (2°C ± 1) since 1950 for air temperatures recorded in the South Orkney Islands suggests that the overall trend of active layer thickness increase will be around 1 cm year−1.
Mars Volatiles and Climate Surveyor Robotic Arm

The primary purpose of the Mars Volatiles And Climate Surveyor (MVACS) Robotic Arm is to support the other MVACS science instruments by digging trenches in the Martian soil; acquiring and dumping soil samples into the Thermal Evolved Gas Analyzer; positioning the Soil Temperature Probe in the soil; positioning the Robotic Arm Air Temperature Sensor at various heights above the surface, and positioning the Robotic Arm Camera for taking images of the surface, trench, soil samples, magnetic targets, and other objects of scientific interest within its workspace. In addition to data collected from the Robotic Arm sensors during science support operations, the Robotic Arm will perform experiments along with the other science instruments to yield additional information on Martian soil mechanics in the vicinity of the lander. The experiments include periodic imaging of dumped soil piles, surface scraping and soil chopping experiments, compaction tests, insertion of the various end-effector tools into the soil, and trench cave-in tests. Data from the soil mechanics experiments will yield information on Martian soil properties such as angle of repose, cohesion, bearing strength, and grain size distribution.
Black silicon spacing effect on bactericidal efficacy against gram-positive bacteria

The morphology of regular and uniform arrays of black silicon structures was evaluated for bactericidal efficacy against gram-positive, non-motile Staphylococcus epidermidis (S. epidermidis). In this study, uniform and regular arrays of black silicon structures were fabricated using nanosphere lithography and deep reactive ion etching. The effects of nanomorphology on bacterial killing were systematically evaluated using silicon nanostructures with pitches ranging from 300 to 1400 nm pitch on spherical cocci approximately 500 to 1000 nm in diameter. Our results show that nanostructure morphology factors such as height and roughness do not directly determine bactericidal efficacy. Instead, the spacing between nanostructures plays a crucial role in determining how bacteria are stretched and lysed. Nanostructures with smaller pitches are more effective at killing bacteria, and an 82 ± 3% enhancement in bactericidal efficacy was observed for 300 nm pitch nanoneedles surface compared to the flat control substrates.
Silibinin Induces Apoptosis and G2/M Cell Cycle Arrest in Human Ovarian Cancer SKOV-3 Cell Line

Background: Silibinin, an herbal polyphenolic flavonolignan, has antioxidant and anticancer properties. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate some cellular and molecular effects of silibinin on the human ovarian cancer SKOV-3 cell line. Methods: For cytotoxicity investigations of silibinin, MTT assay was used at 24, 48, and 72 hours. Apoptosis and cell cycle were studied by flow cytometry. The effect of silibinin on mRNA expression of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), cyclin E, and S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 (SKP2) was determined by Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (QRT-PCR). Results: Silibinin administration in lower concentrations (12.5 and 25 µg/mL) did not lead to significant (P < 0.05) changes in cell viability and even slightly increased cell growth after 72 hours. However, silibinin in higher concentrations (≥ 50µg/mL) inhibited SKOV-3 cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The mode of cell growth inhibition was apoptosis induction and G2/M cell cycle arrest. Silibinin caused down-regulation of the anti-apoptotic gene, namely Bcl-2. Additionally, silibinin resulted in down-regulation of the major genes in the cell cycle, including cyclin E and SKP2. Conclusions: Overall, this study confirmed the ability of silibinin to suppress ovarian cancer progression through the induction of apoptosis and inhibition of G2/M phase transition. Silibinin may be considered an efficient and safe herbal medication for ovarian cancer.
Transcriptome Analysis of Streptococcus mutans Quorum Sensing-Mediated Persisters Reveals an Enrichment in Genes Related to Stress Defense Mechanisms

Persisters are a small fraction of growth-arrested phenotypic variants that can survive lethal concentrations of antibiotics but are able to resume growth once antibiotics are stopped. Their formation can be a stochastic process or one triggered by environmental cues. In the human pathogen Streptococcus mutans, the canonical peptide-based quorum-sensing system is an inducible DNA repair system that is pivotal for bacterial survival. Previous work has shown that the CSP-signaling peptide is a stress-signaling alarmone that promotes the formation of stress-induced persisters. In this study, we exposed S. mutans to the CSP pheromone to mimic DNA damage conditions and isolated the antibiotic persisters by treating the cultures with ofloxacin. A transcriptome analysis was then performed to evaluate the differential gene expression between the normal stationary-phase cells and the persisters. RNA sequencing revealed that triggered persistence was associated with the upregulation of genes related to several stress defense mechanisms, notably, multidrug efflux pumps, the arginine deaminase pathway, and the Opu/Opc system. In addition, we showed that inactivation of the VicK kinase of the YycFG essential two-component regulatory system abolished the formation of triggered persisters via the CSP pheromone. These data contribute to the understanding of the triggered persistence phenotype and may suggest new therapeutic strategies for treating persistent streptococcal infections.
Association of Red Meat Intake and Colorectal Cancer among East-Asians: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Observational Studies Performed between 2011-2021.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Colorectal cancer has the third highest incidence and second highest mortality among all cancers worldwide. Although numerous studies investigating the associations between high red meat intake and risk of colorectal cancer have been published, the association between the intake of red meat and the risk of colorectal cancer in Asians remains unclear. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort and case-control studies to estimate the association between red meat intake and colorectal cancer incidence rate between 2011-2021. METHOD We searched PubMed database from 1 Jan 2011 to 21 July 2021. Prospective cohort studies and nested case-control studies that reported results on the association between red meat consumption and colorectal cancer were included in the meta-analysis. The outcome of interest was the association between the intake of red meat and the risk of colorectal cancer. We performed a meta-analysis to calculate the odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS A total of 5 studies enrolling 48,158 participants were included. The results showed no significant association between red meat intake and colorectal cancer risks (OR=1.38; 95%CI: 0.98-1.93). The aspect of the corresponding funnel plot suggested the presence of significant publication bias. Egger's test confirmed the significant asymmetry of the funnel plot (t = 9.3024, p = 0.0026). CONCLUSIONS Contrary to many other meta-analyses, our study showed that intake of red meat was not associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer in East-Asians from China, Japan and South Korea. However, due to the limited number of included papers and the lack of confounders adjustments, our results warrant cautious interpretations.
Impact of Tracer Dose Reduction in [18 F]-Labelled Fluorodeoxyglucose-Positron Emission Tomography ([18 F]-FDG)-PET) on Texture Features and Histogram Indices: A Study in Homogeneous Tissues of Phantom and Patient

Background: Histogram indices (HIs) and texture features (TFs) are considered to play an important role in future oncologic PET-imaging and it is unknown how these indices are affected by changes of tracer doses. A randomized undersampling of PET list mode data enables a simulation of tracer dose reduction. We performed a phantom study to compare HIs/TFs of simulated and measured tracer dose reductions and evaluated changes of HIs/TFs in the liver of patients with PETs from simulated reduced tracer doses. Overall, 42 HIs/TFs were evaluated in a NEMA phantom at measured and simulated doses (stepwise reduction of [18 F] from 100% to 25% of the measured dose). [18 F]-FDG-PET datasets of 15 patients were simulated from 3.0 down to 0.5 MBq/kgBW in intervals of 0.25 MBq/kgBW. HIs/TFs were calculated from two VOIs placed in physiological tissue of the right and left liver lobe and linear correlations and coefficients of variation analysis were performed. Results: All 42 TFs did not differ significantly in measured and simulated doses (p > 0.05). Also, 40 TFs showed the same behaviour over dose reduction regarding differences in the same group (measured or simulated), and for 26 TFs a linear behaviour over dose reduction for measured and simulated doses could be validated. Out of these, 13 TFs could be identified, which showed a linear change in TF value in both the NEMA phantom and patient data and therefore should maintain the same informative value when transferred in a dose reduction setting. Out of this Homogeneity 2, Entropy and Zone size non-uniformity are of special interest because they have been described as preferentially considerable for tumour heterogeneity characterization. Conclusions: We could show that there was no significant difference of measured and simulated HIs/TFs in the phantom study and most TFs reveal a linear behaviour over dose reduction, when tested in homogeneous tissue. This indicates that texture analysis in PET might be robust to dose modulations.
Pasua and the politics of environmental management, Tongareva, Cook Islands

Abstract This article presents a summary of findings from an exploration of the politics and practices of environmental management concerning a species of giant clam, pasua (Tridacna maxima) on the island of Tongareva, an atoll in the northern Cook Islands, Eastern South Pacific. The discussion focuses on the variations in what the Tongarevan people see as the ‘problem with pasua’ and the interplay between their conceptions and the acceptance or not of a proposed customary closure on pasua harvest known as rahui. The paper suggests that environmental problems which appear ‘local’ are never about what happens in any one location but are, rather, complex, multiple and situated in networks of competing relations. The article concludes that the ‘problem with pasua’ is in a sense not locatable, because pasua is revealed in this study to be relational, networked and deeply socialised.