Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of Nutrient Management Practices on the Growth and Yield of Taro (Colocasia esculenta)

Taro (Colocasia esculenta) also called as the potato of the tropics, is an integral component of different farming systems adopted in the state of Kerala. The tubers are rich in starch and are good sources of protein and minerals. Leaves and petiole are also used as green vegetables (Choudhury et al., 2011). With scope for a higher plant density compared to other tuber crops and suitability to different cropping systems, taro has immense potential for cultivation as a commercial crop. The crop responds well to nutrients and hence farmers are adopting varying nutrient management practices. Keeping this in view, a field experiment was conducted to assess the influence of nutrient management practices emphasizing on the use of varied sources and forms of application on the growth and yield of taro.
Influenza D in Domestic and Wild Animals

Influenza D virus (IDV) infections have been observed in animals worldwide, confirmed through both serological and molecular tests, as well as virus isolation. IDV possesses unique properties that distinguish it from other influenza viruses, primarily attributed to the hemagglutinin-esterase fusion (HEF) surface glycoprotein, which determines the virus’ tropism and wide host range. Cattle are postulated to be the reservoir of IDV, and the virus is identified as one of the causative agents of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) syndrome. Animals associated with humans and susceptible to IDV infection include camels, pigs, small ruminants, and horses. Notably, high seroprevalence towards IDV, apart from cattle, is also observed in camels, potentially constituting a reservoir of the virus. Among wild and captive animals, IDV infections have been confirmed in feral pigs, wild boars, deer, hedgehogs, giraffes, wildebeests, kangaroos, wallabies, and llamas. The transmission potential and host range of IDV may contribute to future viral differentiation. It has been confirmed that influenza D may pose a threat to humans as a zoonosis, with seroprevalence noted in people with professional contact with cattle.
Transcriptional Reprogramming of Candida tropicalis in Response to Isoespintanol Treatment

Candida tropicalis, an opportunistic pathogen, ranks among the primary culprits of invasive candidiasis, a condition notorious for its resistance to conventional antifungal drugs. The urgency to combat these drug-resistant infections has spurred the quest for novel therapeutic compounds, with a particular focus on those of natural origin. In this study, we set out to evaluate the impact of isoespintanol (ISO), a monoterpene derived from Oxandra xylopioides, on the transcriptome of C. tropicalis. Leveraging transcriptomics, our research aimed to unravel the intricate transcriptional changes induced by ISO within this pathogen. Our differential gene expression analysis unveiled 186 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in response to ISO, with a striking 85% of these genes experiencing upregulation. These findings shed light on the multifaceted nature of ISO’s influence on C. tropicalis, spanning a spectrum of physiological, structural, and metabolic adaptations. The upregulated DEGs predominantly pertained to crucial processes, including ergosterol biosynthesis, protein folding, response to DNA damage, cell wall integrity, mitochondrial activity modulation, and cellular responses to organic compounds. Simultaneously, 27 genes were observed to be repressed, affecting functions such as cytoplasmic translation, DNA damage checkpoints, membrane proteins, and metabolic pathways like trans-methylation, trans-sulfuration, and trans-propylamine. These results underscore the complexity of ISO’s antifungal mechanism, suggesting that it targets multiple vital pathways within C. tropicalis. Such complexity potentially reduces the likelihood of the pathogen developing rapid resistance to ISO, making it an attractive candidate for further exploration as a therapeutic agent. In conclusion, our study provides a comprehensive overview of the transcriptional responses of C. tropicalis to ISO exposure. The identified molecular targets and pathways offer promising avenues for future research and the development of innovative antifungal therapies to combat infections caused by this pathogenic yeast.
On Sandy, Boron-Poor Soils, Liming Induced Severe Boron Deficiency and Drastically Reduced the Dry Matter Yield of Young Olive Trees

In the northeast of Portugal, like in many parts of the world, most soils are acidic, which may hamper crop productivity. This study presents the findings of a factorial experiment on olive (Olea europaea L.) involving three factors: (i) soil type [schist (Sch) and granite (Gra)]; (ii) cultivars [Cobrançosa (Cob) and Arbequina (Arb)]; and (iii) fertilizer treatments [liming (CaCO3) plus magnesium (Mg) (LMg), phosphorus (P) application (+P), boron (B) application (+B), all fertilizing materials combined (Con+), and an untreated control (Con-)]. Dry matter yield (DMY) did not show significant differences between cultivars, but plants grown in schist soil exhibited significantly higher biomass compared to those in granite soil. Among the treatments, +B and Con+ resulted in the highest DMY (50.8 and 47.2 g pot−1, respectively), followed by +P (34.3 g pot−1) and Con- (28.6 g pot−1). Treatment LMg yielded significantly lower values (15.6 g pot−1) than Con-. LMg raised the pH above 7 (7.36), leading to a severe B deficiency. Although Con+ also raised the pH above 7 (7.48), it ranked among the most productive treatments for providing B. Therefore, when applying lime to B-poor sandy soils, moderate rates are advised to avoid inducing a B deficiency. Additionally, it seems prudent to apply B after lime application.
Design and implementation of a low-cost device for measuring sap flow in woody species

Transpiration is a key variable in water balance. Sap flow measurement methods allow to estimate transpiration at plant level, but scalable at the stand, river basin or ecosystem level. This requires recording data continuously, for which there are commercial devices, but they are specialized and expensive. This document shows that it is possible to integrate a data capture, management and storage system, as a counterpart to a commercial system such as Campbell's CR-100, for measuring and recording environmental variables, with a notable reduction in costs. The methodology used to develop a device for the estimation of sap flow using the heat ratio method, the design of the Arduino-based electronic circuit and the software, with register 13-64-171 of the Dirección Nacional de Derechos de Autor, is presented.
Exploring the Privacy Paradox in Social Network Users: A Double-Entry Mental Accounting Theory Perspective

Social networking service (SNS) users often express great concern for their personal privacy, yet continue to disclose personal information on these platforms. This privacy paradox between privacy concerns and disclosure behavior has drawn widespread academic attention. In this study, we use the double-entry mental accounting theory to construct a theoretical model and conduct an in-depth analysis of the privacy paradox phenomenon and its causes through empirical verification. Our research shows a significant positive correlation between perceived benefits and users’ intention to disclose privacy, while perceived risks and users’ intention to disclose privacy are significantly negatively correlated. The double-entry mental accounting theory plays a crucial role in mediating the relationship between perceived values and users’ intention to disclose privacy. Furthermore, we found that information sensitivity negatively regulates the relationship between perceived risks, the pleasure attenuation coefficient α, the pain buffering coefficient β, and the intention to disclose privacy. Our study provides theoretical and empirical information on the reasons for the privacy paradox and offers insights for social networking service providers to optimize their services.
Surveillance épidémiologique d'un groupe professionnel d'Électricité de France : les travailleurs sous très haute tension

351 salaries des entreprises E.D. F. travaillant sous tension sur des lignes de transport d'energie depassant 63 kilovolts ont fait l'objet d'une surveillance epidemiologique en raison de la specificite de leurs activites les exposant episodiquement a des champs electromagnetiques intenses. Nombreux a s'absenter, leur absenteisme est comparable en nombre d'arrets et en duree d'absence a celui de travailleurs de meme âge et de meme niveau hierarchique. Il se caracterise par un nombre eleve d'accidents de travail et tres peu d'arrets psychiatriques. Ce travail transversal (annees 1989 et 1990) doit etre prolonge par une etude longitudinale, seule capable de detecter un eventuel effet a long terme
Balancing Hormones and Gene Expressions for Rooting Success: Lovastatin Unveils Cytokinin Inhibition in Malus prunifolia var. ringo Apple Stem Cuttings

Adventitious root (AR) formation is the key to asexual reproduction; however, cytokinin (CK) hampers AR formation. But the mechanism by which CK inhibits it is still unknown. In this study, we used Malus prunifolia var. ringo apple stem cuttings that were treated with exogenous 6-benzyl adenine (6-BA) at 1 mg/L and lovastatin (CK biosynthesis inhibitor) at 1 mg/L to compare with control (untreated) cuttings. The results indicated that the control and 6-BA-treated cuttings failed to produce ARs; however, lovastatin-treated cuttings successfully produced a few ARs after 20 days (d) of treatments by increasing indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and reducing zeatin riboside (ZR) content at several time points. The 6-BA treatment induced the expression of CK-related genes, such as MdARR3, MdARR5, MdARR5-2, MdAKH4, and MdCKX5, at most time points. However, lovastatin-treated cuttings reduced their expression, which favors AR formation. Furthermore, the expression of auxin-related genes, including MdIAA23, MdARF7, and MdARF19, was induced by lovastatin treatment. Like auxin-related genes, several root-development-related genes (MdWOX5, MdWOX11, MdLB29, and MdARRO1) were also promoted in response to lovastatin treatment that were repressed by 6-BA and control cuttings. In conclusion, lovastatin treatment supports AR formation by inhibiting CK biosynthesis inside the cuttings, as compared to the control and 6-BA-treated cuttings. This study laid the foundation for future studies on the relationship of CK biosynthesis inhibitors with adventitious rooting in apples and other crops.
Exploring Humanoid Robot Locomotion Capabilities in Virtual Disaster Response Scenarios

—We study the feasibility of having various humanoid robots undertake some tasks from those challenged by the DARPA’s call on disaster operations. Hence, we focus on locomotion tasks that apparently require human-like motor skills to be achieved. We use virtual scenes under the fully-3D-modeled-environment assumption. The robot autonomously plans and executes the motion with a high-level goal speciﬁcation, such as reaching a global position or a particular contact state. We assess the feasibility according not only to the robot kinematics, but also to whole-body dynamics, non- desired collision avoidance, friction limits, and actuation limits. The results –the controlled motions– are demonstrated in the accompanying video.
Impact of evapotranspiration process representation on runoff projections from conceptual rainfall‐runoff models

Conceptual rainfall‐runoff models are commonly used to estimate potential changes in runoff due to climate change. The development of these models has generally focused on reproducing runoff characteristics, with less scrutiny on other important processes such as the conversion from potential evapotranspiration (PET) to actual evapotranspiration (AET). This study uses three conceptual rainfall‐runoff models (GR4J, AWBM, and IHACRES_CMD) and five catchments in climatologically different regions of Australia to explore the role of ET process representation on the sensitivity of runoff to plausible future changes in PET. The changes in PET were simulated using the Penman‐Monteith model and by perturbing each of the driving variables (temperature, solar radiation, humidity, and wind) separately. Surprisingly, the results showed the potential of a more than sevenfold difference in runoff sensitivity per unit change in annual average PET, depending on both the rainfall‐runoff model and the climate variable used to perturb PET. These differences were largely due to different ways used to convert PET to AET in the conceptual rainfall‐runoff models, with particular dependencies on the daily wet/dry status, as well as the seasonal variations in store levels. By comparing the temporal patterns in simulated AET with eddy‐covariance‐based observations at two of the study locations, we highlighted some unrealistic behavior in the simulated AET from AWBM. Such process‐based evaluations are useful for scrutinizing the representation of physical processes in alternative conceptual rainfall‐runoff models, which can be particularly useful for selecting models for projecting runoff under a changing climate.
Factors Associated with Gadget Addiction in Children at Inpres III Elementary School Perumnas Antang Makassar City

During the pandemic until the start of the COVID-19 endemic period, the government made a policy to do activities at home including studying online. These conditions make children's activities preoccupied with gadgets every day, so it is feared that it can lead to addiction. The research objective was to determine the factors associated with gadget addiction in school-age children at Inpres III Elementary School Perumnas Antang, Makassar City. This study used quantitative research using a cross-sectional approach. The research was conducted in August 2022. Sampling used an accidental sampling technique. The study conducted at Inpres III Elementary School Perumnas Antang Makassar City had a total sample of 132 respondents. As for the variables used for gadget addiction in school-age children, the results obtained were internal factors p-value = 0.000, external factors p-value = 0.000, situational factors addicted p-value = 0.000, social factors p-value = 0.000, and demographic factors p-value = 0.000. There is a relationship between internal factors, external factors, situational factors, social factors, and demographic factors on gadget addiction in school-age children at Inpres III Elementary School Perumnas Antang, Makassar City.
Testing and Improving Temperature Thresholds for Snow and Rain Prediction in the Western United States

The phase of precipitation at the land surface is critical to determine the timing and amount of water available for hydrological and ecological systems. However, there are few techniques to directly observe the precipitation phase and many prediction tools apply a single temperature threshold (e.g., 0°C) to determine phase. In this paper, we asked two questions: (1) what is the accuracy of default and station optimized daily temperature thresholds for predicting precipitation phase and (2) what are the regions and conditions in which typical temperature‐based precipitation phase predictions are most suited. We developed a ground truth dataset of rain vs. snow using an expert decision‐making system based on precipitation, snow depth, and snow water equivalent observations. This dataset was used to evaluate the accuracy of three temperature‐threshold‐based techniques of phase classification. Optimizing the temperature threshold improved the prediction of precipitation phase by 34% compared to using 0°C threshold. Developing a temperature threshold based on station elevation improved the error by 12% compared with using the 0°C temperature threshold. We also found the probability of snow as a function of temperature differed among ecoregions, which suggests a varied response to future climate change. These results highlight a current weakness in our ability to predict the effects of regional warming that could have uneven impacts on water and ecological resources.
Species Delimitation in a Polyploid Group of Iberian Jasione (Campanulaceae) Unveils Coherence between Cryptic Speciation and Biogeographical Regionalization

Groups with morphological stasis are an interesting framework to address putative cryptic species that may be hidden behind traditional taxonomic treatments, particularly when distribution ranges suggest disjunct and environmentally heterogeneous biogeographic patterns. New hypotheses of delimitation of evolutionary independent units can lead to the identification of different biogeographic processes, laying the foundation to investigate their historical and ecological significance. Jasione is a plant genus with a distribution centered in the Mediterranean basin, characterized by significant morphological stasis. Within the western Mediterranean J. gr. crispa species complex, J. sessiliflora s.l. and allied taxa form a distinct group, occupying environmentally diverse regions. At least two ploidy levels, diploid and tetraploid, are known to occur in the group. The internal variability is assessed with phylogenetic tools, viz. GMYC and ASAP, for species delimitation. The results are compared with other lines of evidence, including morphology and cytology. The fitting of distribution patterns of the inferred entities to chorological subprovinces is also used as a biogeographical and environmental framework to test the species hypothesis. Despite the scarcity of diagnostic morphological characters in the group, phylogenetic delimitation supports the description of at least one cryptic species, a narrow endemic in the NE Iberian Peninsula. Moreover, the results support the segregation of a thermophilic group of populations in eastern Iberia from J. sessiliflora. Ploidy variation from a wide geographical survey supports the systematic rearrangement suggested by species delimitation. Taxonomic reorganization in J. sessiliflora s.l. would allow ecological interpretations of distribution patterns in great accordance with biogeographical regionalization at the subprovince level, supporting geobotanical boundaries as a framework to interpret species ecological coherence of cryptic lineages. These results suggest that species differentiation, together with geographic isolation and polyploidization, is associated with adaptation to different environments, shifting from more to less thermophilic conditions. Thus, the recognition of concealed evolutionary entities is essential to correctly interpret biogeographical patterns in regions with a complex geologic and evolutionary history, such as the Mediterranean basin, and biogeographical units emerge as biologically sound frameworks to test the species hypothesis.
Geochemical extraction of ceratopsian remains from ironstone

ABSTRACT Ironstone surrounds many fossils and has a hardness that provides a significant challenge to fossil conservators globally. There are various forms of ironstone, with the carbonate forms of siderite and silicates most often containing vertebrate fossils and potentially preserved soft tissues. The ironstone itself is much harder than the fossils preserved within, leading to the mechanical preparation of the fossils––typically using pin vises or airscribes––being time-consuming and presenting the risk of damage. Existing chemical methods for softening ironstone to prepare the fossils have varied success and also pose a risk of damaging the fossil itself. Here we show that carbonic acid can soften ironstone without damaging permineralized bone or potentially preserved soft tissues. Carbonic acid treatments reduced the hardness of ironstone without causing any significant change in hardness, color, chemical composition, or weight to permineralized ceratopsian bones or a modern cervid bone that retained nonmineralized internal tissues. In addition, we found that solutions of sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide were viable for softening ironstone to remove from the permineralized bone when preserved soft tissue recovery is not a priority. The treatments proposed in this study are important as they are applicable to a range of preparation scenarios, are cost-efficient, are relatively safe to handle, and cause no damage to permineralized fossil bones. Putting these methods into practice can lead to more efficient and safe preparation of fossils in ironstone.
Cerebrospinal fluid drainage and chronic hydrocephalus in aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage patients with intraventricular hemorrhage

Background Patients with intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) are at a higher risk of developing hydrocephalus and often require external ventricular drainage or long-term ventriculoperitoneal shunt surgery. Objective To investigate whether cerebrospinal fluid drainage in patients with IVH due to aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) reduces the incidence of chronic hydrocephalus. Method A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients with aSAH treated at our hospital between January 2020 and December 2022. The first analysis compared patients with and without IVH, while the second analysis compared IVH patients with and without chronic hydrocephalus. The third analysis compared IVH patients who underwent in different drainage methods which is lumbar drainage (LD) or external ventricular drainage (EVD). The primary outcome measure was the incidence of chronic hydrocephalus. Result Of the 296 patients hospitalized with aSAH, 108 (36.5%) had IVH, which was associated with a significantly higher incidence of chronic hydrocephalus compared to patients without IVH (49.1% vs. 16.5%, p < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that IVH was independently associated with the formation of chronic hydrocephalus (OR: 3.530, 95% CI: 1.958–6.362, p < 0.001). Among the 108 IVH patients, 53 (49.1%) developed chronic hydrocephalus. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the Hunt Hess grade at admission (OR: 3.362, 95% CI: 1.146–9.863, p = 0.027) and postoperative cerebrospinal fluid drainage (OR: 0.110, 95% CI: 0.036–0.336, p < 0.001) were independent risk factors for the development of chronic hydrocephalus in IVH patients. Among all IVH patients who underwent cerebrospinal fluid drainage, 45 (75%) received continuous lumbar puncture drainage, and 15 (25%) received external ventricular drainage. Univariate analysis did not show a statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of postoperative chronic hydrocephalus (p = 0.283). However, multivariate logistic regression analysis suggested that the drainage methods of LD and EVD might be associated with the development of chronic hydrocephalus. Conclusion The presence of IVH increases the risk of chronic hydrocephalus in patients with aSAH, and postoperative cerebrospinal fluid drainage appears to reduce this risk. The specific effects of lumbar puncture drainage and ventricular drainage on the incidence of chronic hydrocephalus require further investigation.
A TDC With Integrated Snapshot Circuit and Calibration in 28-nm CMOS

This brief presents a 135ps dynamic range, 5.45ps effective resolution 2D Vernier time-to-digital converter for use in an all-digital phase-locked-loop. The matrix readout array limits the number of delay cells necessary by using all taps of the delay lines. A full calibration scheme is presented. It calibrates the system against PVT variations and maintains and favors a linear operation over achieving a specified resolution. The proposed architecture is fabricated in a 28nm CMOS technology and consumes 360<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\pmb {\mu }\text{W}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> at 0.9V supply voltage and 55MS/s conversion rate.