Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Energy Cost of Walking in Four Types of Snowshoes

Four Marines walked on snow at 4 km/h with four types of snowshoes. Grade of the terrain was about 2.4% and the Marines walked once downhill and once uphill with each snowshoe. Expired respiratory gases (for energy cost measures) and heart rates were collected continuously. The Pride and Military Standard models had a lower energy cost than the Montana model and tended to have a lower cost than the British model. Correlations between snowshoe mass/surface area ratios and energy cost were 0.81 and 0.72 on the uphill and downhill portions of the course, respectively. Data suggested several design characteristics may be favorable from an energy cost perspective: 1) a foot hinge-and-binding system that allows the snowshoe to be dragged across the snow, 2) an upturned front that pushes snow away and allows a more horizontal displacement of the snowshoe during locomotion, and 3) a lower mass to surface area ratio.
- 1-Malaria incidence and efficacy of intermittent preventive treatment in infants ( IPTi )

Robin Kobbe (kobbe@bni-hamburg.de) Samuel Adjei (kwakusam@yahoo.com) Christina Kreuzberg (ckreuzberg@yahoo.com) Benno Kreuels (be.cruel@gmx.de) Benedicta Thompson (benagyin@yahoo.com) Peter A Thompson (appiatee1@yahoo.com) Florian Marks (fmarks@IVI.INT) Wibke Busch (wibke.busch@bni-hamburg.de) Meral Tosun (tosun@bni-hamburg.de) Nadine Schreiber (nadineschreiber@bni-hamburg.de) Ernest Opoku (erniecudjoe@yahoo.com) Ohene Adjei (oadjei@africaonline.com.gh) Christian G Meyer (c.g.meyer@bni-hamburg.de) Juergen May (may@bni-hamburg.de)
Mechanistic insights into the interaction between the host gut microbiome and malaria

Malaria is a devastating infectious disease and significant global health burden caused by the bite of a Plasmodium-infected female Anopheles mosquito. Gut microbiota was recently discovered as a risk factor of severe malaria. This review entails the recent advances on the impact of gut microbiota composition on malaria severity and consequence of malaria infection on gut microbiota in mammalian hosts. Additionally, this review provides mechanistic insight into interactions that might occur between gut microbiota and host immunity which in turn can modulate malaria severity. Finally, approaches to modulate gut microbiota composition are discussed. We anticipate this review will facilitate novel hypotheses to move the malaria-gut microbiome field forward.
Incorporating texture into classification of forest species composition from airborne multispectral images

Although research with digital airborne remote sensing data has been undertaken in different ecoregions to classify forested areas, the potential role of such imagery in deriving information to assist forest management has not yet been fully defined. The objective of this study was to determine the extent that the addition of texture could improve spectral classification of high spatial resolution images (pixel size 1m). These images represented pure and mixed wood forest stands from ecoregions in Alberta and New Brunswick, Canada. This study employed a judicious, selective application of texture to stands within a hierarchical classification framework. In Alberta, the addition of texture made a modest improvement in classification accuracy from 60% to 65%. In New Brunswick, the application of texture to selected land cover types resulted in an overall 12% improvement in classification accuracy. The addition of image texture increased classification accuracy for high spatial detail imagery relative to low spatial detail imagery. Incorporating texture into classification also improved classification accuracies for hardwood stands more so than for softwood stands, but greater attention to stand structure and composition will be needed in future work. Classification accuracies on the order of 60-65% were achieved with simple texture derivatives, maximum likelihood decision rules and conventional classification methods.
ESOC 2022 – Late Breaking Science, Ongoing Trials & Young Stroke Physicians and Researchers

Background and aims: Atrial fibrillation (AF) causes at least one-fifth of ischaemic strokes, with a high risk of early recurrence. Oral anticoagulation is highly effective for reducing the long-term risk of recurrent ischaemic stroke in patients with AF. However, its benefit in the acute phase is unclear. OPTIMAS is an RCT aiming to establish the safety and efficacy of early anticoagulation with a direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC). Methods: OPTIMAS will enrol 3,478 participants with ischaemic stroke and AF from 100+ stroke services in the UK. Participants are randomised 1:1 to early (within 4 days) or standard (day 7 to 14 after stroke) initiation of anticoagulation. Follow-up is at 90 days, blinded to treatment allocation. The primary outcome is the incidence of stroke of any cause, and systemic arterial embolism. Results: OPTIMAS opened in June 2019 and is recruiting from 87 sites. 1,714 participants have been randomised. Recruitment and site-set up were reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, due to national lockdowns and hospital staff being reallocated to COVID-related trials. We rapidly developed a contingency plan to face these challenges, implementing strategies, such as collecting the 90-day follow-ups and obtaining consents over the phone, and encouraging sites to sign up to the NIHR Associate PI Scheme to help with trial-related activities. The trial has consistently been recruiting 80+ patients per month. Conclusions: OPTIMAS will determine the efficacy and safety of early anticoagulation in patients with ischaemic strokes and AF. The trial is recruiting successfully despite COVID-19.
Edinburgh Research Explorer Disruption of an AP-2alpha binding site in an IRF6 enhancer is associated with cleft lip

Previously we have shown that nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate (NSCL/P)1, is strongly associated with SNPs in Interferon Regulatory Factor 6 (IRF6)2. Here, multispecies sequence comparisons identify a common SNP (rs642961, G>A) in a novel IRF6 enhancer. The A allele is significantly overtransmitted (P=1×10 −11 ) in families with NSCL/P, in particular with cleft lip (CL) but not cleft palate. Further, there is a dosage effect of the A allele, with the relative risk for CL 1.68 for the AG genotype and 2.40 for the AA genotype. EMSA and ChIP assays demonstrate that the risk allele disrupts the binding site of transcription factor AP-2 α and expression analysis in the mouse localizes the enhancer activity to craniofacial and limb structures. Our findings place IRF6 and AP-2 α in the same developmental pathway and identify a high frequency variant in a regulatory element contributing substantially to a common, complex disorder.
Patient values and preferences on transcatheter or surgical aortic valve replacement therapy for aortic stenosis: a systematic review

Objective To investigate patients' values and preferences regarding aortic valve replacement therapy for aortic stenosis. Setting Studies published after transcatheter aortic valve insertion (TAVI) became available (2002). Participants Adults with aortic stenosis who are considering or have had valve replacement, either TAVI or via surgery (surgical aortic valve replacement, SAVR). Outcome measures We sought quantitative measurements, or qualitative descriptions, of values and preferences. When reported, we examined correlations between preferences and objective (eg, ejection fraction) or subjective (eg, health-related quality of life) measures of health. Results We reviewed 1348 unique citations, of which 2 studies proved eligible. One study of patients with severe aortic stenosis used a standard gamble study to ascertain that the median hypothetical mortality risk patients were willing to tolerate to achieve full health was 25% (IQR 25–50%). However, there was considerable variability; for mortality risk levels defined by current guidelines, 130 participants (30%) were willing to accept low-to-intermediate risk (≤8%), 224 (51%) high risk (>8–50%) and 85 (19%) a risk that guidelines would consider prohibitive (>50%). Study authors did not, however, assess participants' understanding of the exercise, resulting in a potential risk of bias. A second qualitative study of 15 patients identified the following factors that influence patients to undergo assessment for TAVI: symptom burden; expectations; information support; logistical barriers; facilitators; obligations and responsibilities. The study was limited by serious risk of bias due to authors' conflict of interest (5/9 authors industry-funded). Conclusions Current evidence on patient values and preferences of adults with aortic stenosis is very limited, and no studies have enrolled patients deciding between TAVI and SAVR. On the basis of the data available, there is evidence of variability in individual values and preferences, highlighting the importance of well-informed and shared decision-making with patients facing this decision. Trial registration number PROSPERO CRD42016041907.
Non-Invasive Matrices Use in Pollution Evaluation at Nanoscale Levels – A Way Forward in Ecotoxicological Studies

In most cases, environment contamination is a result of humanity’s lifestyle resulted from industrial-, agricultural activities and extended urbanization. For most of us it is more and more difficult to imagine our lifestyle from every day without using and profit of products stocked by chemical industry such as pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, agrochemicals and many other consumer chemicals (Bhandari et al, 2009). Unfortunately together with the rise of chemical manufacture and its use has also come increasing public awareness and concern regarding presence of these chemicals in our surrounding environment. Concernments are mainly caused by the physicochemical properties of these chemical compounds and their possible negative consequence linked to human health and biota.
Ecohydrological model of flow duration curves and annual minima

To address streamflow variability in river basins, Botter et al. (2007a) recently provided an analytical solution for the seasonal probability distribution function of daily streamflows on the basis of a stochastic description of soil moisture dynamics at basin scales. In this paper the above model is extended to the annual timescale to derive analytical expressions for the long‐term flow duration curve on the basis of a few climatic, ecohydrologic, and geomorphic parameters of the basin. A novel analytical expression for the cumulative probability distribution of the annual minima is also derived from the “troughs under threshold” theory. The expressions derived provide a physically based linkage between flow duration curves and the distribution of annual minima through geomorphic, climatic, and ecological features of the basin. Our theoretical results prove in good agreement with observational streamflow data in a 50 km2 vegetated basin located in North Carolina (USA), suggesting that the model developed may represent a valid tool for estimating low‐flow statistics in gauged and ungauged basins.
Risk factors of diabetic retinopathy and sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy: a cross-sectional study of 13 473 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in mainland China

Objective To explore the risk factors of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy (STDR) among Chinese patients with diabetes. Design, setting and participants A cross-sectional investigation was performed in eight screening clinics in six provinces across mainland China. Information about the risk factors was recorded in screening clinics. Some risk factors (sex, age, diagnosis age, diabetes duration, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose (FBG) and glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c)) were recorded in all eight clinics, while others were collected only in a subset of the clinics. The relationships between the risk factors and DR and between the risk factors and STDR were explored for the eight factors mentioned above and for all factors studied. Main outcomes and measures Risk factors of DR and STDR were assessed, and a nomogram of the results was produced. Results Younger age, longer diabetes duration, higher SBP, higher FBG and higher HbA1c were found to be independent risk factors for both DR and STDR in the eight-factor analyses. In the all-factor analysis, younger age, longer diabetes duration, higher SBP, oral medicine use and insulin use were independent risk factors for both DR and STDR; higher postprandial blood glucose (PBG), HbA1c, triglyceride andlow-density lipoprotein were independent risk factors for DR only, and higher FBG was a risk factor for STDR only. Conclusions In this cross-sectional investigation, several risk factors were found for DR and STDR. Notably, FBG, PBG and HbA1c were all risk factors for DR or STDR, suggesting that stricter blood glucose control in clinical practice is required.
The Weather and Climate: Emergent Laws and Multifractal Cascades: Generalized scale invariance and cloud morphology

Advances in nonlinear dynamics, especially modern multifractal cascade models, allow us to investigate the weather and climate at unprecedented levels of accuracy. Using new stochastic modelling and data analysis techniques, this book provides an overview of the nonclassical, multifractal statistics. By generalizing the classical turbulence laws, emergent higher-level laws of atmospheric dynamics are obtained and are empirically validated over time-scales of seconds to decades and length-scales of millimetres to the size of the planet. In generalizing the notion of scale, atmospheric complexity is reduced to a manageable scale-invariant hierarchy of processes, thus providing a new perspective for modelling and understanding the atmosphere. This synthesis of state-of-the-art data and nonlinear dynamics is systematically compared with other analyses and global circulation model outputs. This is an important resource for atmospheric science researchers new to multifractal theory and is also valuable for graduate students in atmospheric dynamics and physics, meteorology, oceanography and climatology.
Tomosyn regulates the small RhoA GTPase to control the dendritic stability of neurons and the surface expression of AMPA receptors

Tomosyn, a protein encoded by syntaxin‐1‐binding protein 5 (STXBP5) gene, has a well‐established presynaptic role in the inhibition of neurotransmitter release and the reduction of synaptic transmission by its canonical interaction with the soluble N‐ethylmaleimide‐sensitive factor attachment protein receptor machinery. However, the postsynaptic role of tomosyn in dendritic arborization, spine stability, and trafficking of ionotropic glutamate receptors remains to be elucidated. We used short hairpin RNA to knock down tomosyn in mouse primary neurons to evaluate the postsynaptic cellular function and molecular signaling regulated by tomosyn. Knockdown of tomosyn led to an increase of RhoA GTPase activity accompanied by compromised dendritic arborization, loss of dendritic spines, decreased surface expression of AMPA receptors, and reduced miniature excitatory postsynaptic current frequency. Inhibiting RhoA signaling was sufficient to rescue the abnormal dendritic morphology and the surface expression of AMPA receptors. The function of tomosyn regulating RhoA is mediated through the N‐terminal WD40 motif, where two variants each carrying a single nucleotide mutation in this region were found in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We demonstrated that these variants displayed loss‐of‐function phenotypes. Unlike the wild‐type tomosyn, these two variants failed to restore the reduced dendritic complexity, spine density, as well as decreased surface expression of AMPA receptors in tomosyn knockdown neurons. This study uncovers a novel role of tomosyn in maintaining neuronal function by inhibiting RhoA activity. Further analysis of tomosyn variants also provides a potential mechanism for explaining cellular pathology in ASD.
Modeling route complexity ratings

We develop a predictive model of the perceived complexity of routes in road maps, taking into account the properties of the road, the task and the map display. Sixty subjects ranked the complexity of 120 routes on scales between 0 and 10. Half of them described the route verbally before rating it. Subjects also completed a questionnaire about the influence of different variables on the route complexity. A linear regression model explained much of the dependent variable’s variance (R2 = 0.63). The number of turns and rotations, the perceived density of the map and route length were significant predictors. Describing the route before rating it may lower its apparent complexity. Subjects’ assessments of the contribution of different variables to perceptions of route complexity differed from the actual contribution of the variables in the models. The model of perceived route complexity can be used to design road maps that minimize the user’s cognitive load.
Performance of the Wave Energy Dissipation of a Floating Breakwater with Truss Structures and the Quantification of Transmission Coefficients

Abstract The wave absorption performance of a new type of steel floating breakwater with truss (FBT), which is composed of a box-type pontoon and truss structures, has been investigated experimentally. The truss structures are attached to the front and the rear of the pontoon, and exaggerate wave energy dissipation due to wave breaking. Flow visualization has revealed that the front truss breaks the incident waves and effectively converts wave energy to turbulent energy. Image analysis of the motions of the FBT and determination of the transmission coefficient Kt showed efficient dissipation of wave energy resulting from the truss structure. Kt is also discussed and quantified with the aid of dimensional analysis. Values of Kt are plotted against the ratio of the water depth h to the wavelength of incident waves L, and the profiles obtained are normalized by introducing values of h/L at which Kt equals 0.5, i.e., (h/L)0.5. Normalization gives a universal empirical expression for Kt, and empirical expressions of (h/L)0.5 are also obtained by independently changing the shape parameters and the wave steepness. A graphic chart of (h/L)0.5 is provided so Kt of the FBT can be evaluated easily. This data-reduction method developed for the quantification of Kt may be applicable for other floating breakwaters as well as for this new type.
Origin and significance of grapestone, Bahama Islands

ABSTRACT Bahaman grapestone is produced by cementation of recrystallized ooids in the marine environment. Initial binding of grains is accomplished by growth of algae and encrusting forams in the substrate. Later cementation and infilling of the composite may be due to continued growth of these organisms in the interior of the aggregate and to chemical or biochemical precipitation of cement. Data indicate the recrystallized ooids making up grapestone were formed at an earlier stage in sedimentation as the sea transgressed onto the Bahaman Platform at the end of the last glacial lowstand. Thus, grapestone is produced through a sequence of depositional conditions rather than a single set of conditions. Given a supply of firm grains, uneven water turbulence, high water circulation rates, and very low sedimentation rates favor the formation of grapestone.
Normal faulting and the topographic roughness of mid-ocean ridge flanks

The ocean floor on the flanks of mid-ocean ridges is covered by abyssal hills, topographic features elongated perpendicularly to the direction of relative plate motion. These topographic features are interpreted as normal fault blocks and/or volcanic constructions that originated near the ridge axis and were later rafted onto the ridge flanks by seafloor spreading. The purpose of this paper is to quantify the topographic roughness of a profile perpendicular to the strike of a number of normal faults, given a fault population and a mechanical model for the response of the lithosphere to faulting. We obtain expressions for the variation in root-mean-square roughness with profile length and for the power spectral density of a profile given three parameters: a fault density (number of faults per unit length crossed by the profile), an average squared fault scarp height, and a characteristic length of flexure. To keep matters simple, we make a number of assumptions and approximations, namely, that the lithosphere behaves as an elastic plate, that faults have an infinite length and a vertical dip, that the response of topography to a number of faults is simply the sum of the responses to each fault, and that faults have random locations and scarp heights independently chosen from some statistical distribution. The theory predicts that the roughness-length relationship/power spectral density should follow power laws for scales/wavelengths less than a characteristic scale proportional to the length scale of flexure. We compare the predictions of the theory with actual measurements of mid-ocean ridge flank roughness, and find good first-order agreement. In particular, we use independent estimates of fault densities, average squared fault scarp heights, and flexural length scales to predict the topographic roughness of the East Pacific Rise, and we find that normal faulting can explain all the observed topographic roughness. Nevertheless, there are some differences between predictions and observations. These differences are likely to be due to processes other than faulting that create topographic relief (e.g., volcanism) and to spatial correlations of fault scarp heights. Despite these shortcomings, the approach presented here provides a first step in understanding the topographic roughness signal by quantifying the contribution of the geological processes that generate surface relief.
Hydrologic Routing of Flow in Arid Ephemeral Channels

Hydrographs of ephemeral streams in an arid region usually decrease significantly in magnitude, downstream, unless they are augmented by tributary flows. Estimation of outflow hydrographs from a channel reach is essential for the development of water-resources systems. A hydrologic-flow-routing technique for arid ephemeral channels is developed. The hydrologic-routing equations for the movement of flood waves are modified by the inclusion of a nonlinear volumetric transmission loss rate term, which is empirically estimated from the observed inflow-outflow data for a channel reach. The predicted outflow hydrographs match better with the observed than the outflow hydrographs generated through the lumped regression model for ephemeral channels. The hydrologic-flow-routing technique may also be used for ungaged channel reaches through parameterization.