Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Campanian Terlingua local fauna, with a summary of other vertebrates from the Aguja Formation, Trans-Pecos Texas

ABSTRACT The Terlingua local fauna is a rich assemblage of predominantly terrestrial micro vertebrates from the Upper Cretaceous Aguja Formation of Trans-Pecos Texas. Marine invertebrates (which include elements of both Cretaceous Western Interior and Gulf Coast zoogeographic provinces) from conformably underlying strata suggest that the fauna is of late Campanian age, probably correlative with Judithian assemblages of the Western Interior. A Judithian “age” for the fauna is further supported by its mammal and theropod assemblages, and by the faunas of overlying deposits. The previously reported diversity of the Aguja Formation, which we summarize, is significantly enriched by this new fauna. The fauna also fills a major gap in the biogeography of Campanian terrestrial vertebrates. Notable occurrences in the Terlingua local fauna include the therian mammal Gallolestes, previously known only from Baja California, and a hitherto unrecorded type of primitive ‘tribothere. ’ At least 4 marsupial and 6 multitube.
Predictive value of hematological indices on incidence and severity of pulmonary embolism in COVID‐19 patients

Pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) is a common complication of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), which raises the COVID‐19 disease's fatality rate from 3% to 45%. Nevertheless, due to fairly indistinguishable clinical symptoms and a lack of validated clinical prediction models, PTE diagnosis in COVID‐19 patients is challenging. This study aims to investigate the applicability of hematological indices to predict PTE incidence and its severity in SARS‐CoV‐2 patients.
Association of perceived job security and chronic health conditions with retirement in older UK and US workers

Abstract Background The relationship between job insecurity, chronic health conditions (CHCs) and retirement among older workers are likely to differ between countries that have different labor markets and health and social safety nets. To date, there are no epidemiological studies that have prospectively assessed the role of job insecurity in retirement incidence, while accounting for CHC trajectories in two countries with different welfare systems. We investigated the strength of the association between baseline job insecurity and retirement incidence over an 11-year period while accounting for CHC trajectories, among workers 50–55 years of age at baseline in the UK and USA. Methods We performed Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, using 2006–2016 data from the Health and Retirement Study (US cohort, n = 570) and English Longitudinal Study on Aging (UK cohort n = 1052). Results Job insecurity was associated with retirement after adjusting for CHC trajectories (HR = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.50–0.95) in the UK cohort only. CHC trajectories were associated with retirement in both cohorts; however, this association was attenuated in the US cohort, but remained significant for the medium-increasing trajectory in the UK cohort (HR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.01–1.97) after adjustment for all covariates. Full adjustment for relevant covariates attenuated the association between job insecurity and retirement indicating that CHCs, social and health factors are contributing mechanistic factors underpinning retirement incidence. Conclusions The observed differences in the two cohorts may be driven by macro-level factors operating latently, which may affect the work environment, health outcomes and retirement decisions uniquely in different settings.
A high-resolution late Quaternary upwelling record from the anoxic Cariaco Basin, Venezuela

Results are presented of a high-resolution study of the planktonic foraminiferal faunas from two piston cores recovered from the Cariaco Basin in the southern Caribbean Sea. The Cariaco Basin is a small anoxic marine basin on the northern continental margin of Venezuela in an area today characterized by both seasonal trade wind-induced upwelling and pronounced dry and wet seasons. Our data indicate that large changes in the intensity of upwelling, and hence trade wind strength, occurred in this region during the last glacial-interglacial transition and throughout the Holocene. During the last glacial lowstand of sea level, the Cariaco Basin was effectively isolated from the open Caribbean along its northern margin by the then largely emergent Tortuga Bank. Oxic conditions existed in the deep Cariaco Basin at this time, and surface productivity was low. About 12,600 years ago, the abrupt initiation of strong upwelling over the basin and the onset of permanent anoxia in the deep waters are coincident with the rapid rise of sea level that accompanied the peak interval of meltwater discharge from the Laurentide Ice Sheet into the Gulf of Mexico. Strong upwelling between 12,600 and about 10,000 years ago may be related to intensified trade winds resulting, in part, from cooler sea surface temperatures in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. After about 10,000 years ago, upwelling intensity was reduced, though highly variable. A preliminary frequency domain analysis of the Holocene portion of the Cariaco Basin time series suggests that solar forcing may explain a significant component of the century-scale variability observed in the record of upwelling and trade wind strength.
Making use of partially observed states in Markov switching autoregressive models: application to machine health diagnosis

Résumé Le diagnostic de bon fonctionnement des machines est une tâche fondamentale dédiée à la surveillance des systèmes dans un souci de sécurité, de prévention des accidents et de programmation des opérations de maintenance. Cette tâche est généralement accomplie grâce à des méthodes d’ana-lyse de données (recourant par exemple à des modèles sta-tistiques). Ces méthodes sont appliquées aux séries tempo-relles décrivant la dynamique du système analysé. Ces sé-ries temporelles sont sujettes à des changements de régimes reﬂétant les changements d’état du système. Dans cet article, nous proposons de modéliser de telles séries tempo-relles par un nouveau modèle de changement de régimes Markovien appelé PHMC-LAR (Partially Hidden Markov Chain AutoRegressive model) où le processus des états dé-crit l’état de santé du système à chaque pas de temps. Ce modèle possède la capacité d’inclure des connaissances partielles sur le processus des états Markovien. La connais-sance partielle est traduite par la présence d’états observés à certains pas de temps aléatoires. Les paramètres de notre modèle sont estimés grâce une variante de l’algorithme d’Espérance-Maximisation, que nous avons développée. La procédure d’inférence des états cachés consiste à identiﬁer la séquence d’états la plus probable pour une série tempo-relle donnée; elle est réalisée au moyen de l’algorithme de Viterbi. Les études expérimentales ont été
Seasonal isoprene emission rates and model comparisons using whole‐tree emissions from white oak

Whole-tree isoprene emission rates of a chambered white oak were measured throughout the growing season to develop a seasonal emissions model and to compare with emissions estimated using current leaf algorithms and forest canopy models. Emissions increased from mid-May to a maximum in mid-July, and the highest rates occurred late in June and throughout July. Rates decreased from early August to mid-October. A model developed to characterize the whole-tree emissions accounted for 80% of the variability of observed emissions over the growing season. Peak isoprene emissions and photosynthesis occurred at the same time, but peak emissions continued longer, suggesting that peak photosynthetic rates were not necessary for peak isoprene emissions. Measured light intensities 2 m and 3.3 m down into the tree canopy corresponded to intensities estimated by using current canopy models; however, intensities at l m were 14% lower than predicted by modeling. Measured median leaf-to-air temperature differences were 2.0°C at the canopy top and 0.5°C or less in the canopy. Median values of leaf temperatures estimated using a leaf energy balance procedure were slightly lower than air temperatures at all canopy levels, although differences were not more than 0.9°C. The most recently developed biogenic emissions model, which assumes that leaf and air temperatures are the same, predicted July whole-tree emission rates fairly closely, although high emission rates were slightly underpredicted using the model. Leaf temperature adjustments used in previous canopy models were applied to this model, and in this case, predicted rates underestimated measured rates when measured rates exceeded 80 μg C g−1 h−1.
Precambrian Tectonic History of the West Australian Craton and Adjacent Orogens

This review is a synthesis of the Precambrian geology of the West Aus­ tralian Craton and its fringing orogens. It describes the evidence that has recently been reinvestigated and reinterpreted to reveal a long dynamic history of repeated aggregation and dispersal of crustal fragments. Cratons are large composite geological units of continental crust that have survived intact for significant periods of geological time. They are generally tabular bodies with great areal extent (millions of square kilo­ meters) and lithospheric thickness (200-400 km). Orogens are narrow steep zones of tectonic and metamorphic activity associated with the deposition of sediments and the intrusion of plutonic rocks. They occur within or along the margins of continents and are generally a few hundred kilometers wide, thousands of kilometers long, and extend to the base of the litho­ sphere. Most orogens are initially associated with compressive tectonics, crustal thickening, and the transient formation of mountain belts. Cratons and orogens may survive for very long periods of time. But as part of a thin crust on a dynamic mantle they are inherently mobile and travel as rafts for great distances around the surface of the Earth. They may be torn apart, dispersed, and reassembled with other continental fragments. The boundaries of these crustal fragments, once established, remain zones of crustal weakness that may be reactivated as intra­ continental mobile belts or lines along which cratons are assembled and dismembered (cf Hoffman 1 988).
Los mamíferos de México en las colecciones científicas de Norteamérica

Updated information on the geographic and taxonomic representativeness of mammal specimens deposited in 28 Mexican mammal collections, the Mammal Networked Information System (MaNIS), and the Unidad de Informatica para la Biodiversidad (UNIBIO) data bases were compiled in order to analyze and compare the overall current status of the specimens of Mexican mammals deposited in collections in North America. A total of 421,466 specimens deposited in 120 collections were documented, of which 233,116 were deposited in collections in the United States of America and Canada, and 188,350 in collections in Mexico. The collections with the greatest number of specimens from Mexico are the Coleccion Nacional de Mamiferos (CNMA 46,000), the University of Kansas (KU 44,301), and the Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biologicas (ENCB 43,985). In Mexican collections, the states of northern Mexico are improperly represented in number of specimens ( 10,000) are Baja California Sur, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Puebla and Veracruz. The orders better represented in terms of number of specimens are Rodentia and Chiroptera (234,978 and 120,956, respectively). The Mexican states with the smallest area have the greatest density of specimens collected (specimens/km2), such as Distrito Federal (3.2), Tlaxcala (1.4), Colima (1.06), and Morelos (0.9). The aim of this analysis is to provide a baseline to establish appropriate strategies to complete the national inventory of Mexican mammals and to ensure that this natural heritage is fully represented within Mexican collections.
The association between short-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide and hospital admission for schizophrenia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Ambient air pollution has been identified as a primary risk factor for mental disorders. In recent years, the relationship between exposure to ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and the risk of hospital admissions (HAs) for schizophrenia has garnered increasing scientific interest, but evidence from epidemiological studies has been inconsistent. Therefore, a systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to comprehensively identify potential correlations. Methods: A literature search in 3 international databases was conducted before December 31, 2022. Relative risk (RR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated to evaluate the strength of the associations. Summary effect sizes were calculated using a random-effects model due to the expected heterogeneity (I2 over 50%). Results: A total of ten eligible studies were included in the meta-analysis, including 1,412,860 participants. The pooled analysis found that an increased risk of HAs for schizophrenia was associated with exposure to each increase of 10 μg/m3 in NO2 (RR = 1.029, 95% CI = 1.016–1.041, P < .001). However, the heterogeneity was high for the summary estimates, reducing the credibility of the evidence. In 2-pollutant models, results for NO2 increased by 0.3%, 0.2% and 2.3%, respectively, after adjusting for PM2.5, PM10 and SO2. Conclusions: This study provides evidence that NO2 exposure significantly increases the risk of hospital admission for schizophrenia. Future studies are required to clarify the potential biological mechanism between schizophrenia and NO2 exposure to provide a more definitive result.
Founder-CEO Compensation and Selection into Venture Capital-Backed Entrepreneurship∗

We show theoretically that a critical determinant of the attractiveness of VC-backed entrepreneurship for high-earning potential founders is the expected time to develop a startup’s initial product. This is because founder-CEOs’ cash compensation increases substantially after product development, alleviating the non-diversifiable risk that founders face at startup birth. Consistent with the model’s predictions of where the supply of entrepreneurial talent is likely to be most constrained, we find that technological shocks differentially altering the expected time to product across industries can explain changes in both the rate of entry and characteristics of individuals selecting into VC-backed entrepreneurship.
Soil carbon sequestration in sub‐Saharan Africa: a review

Restoration of degraded soils is a development strategy to reduce desertification, soil erosion and environmental degradation, and alleviate chronic food shortages with great potential in sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA). Further, it has the potential to provide terrestrial sinks of carbon (C) and reduce the rate of enrichment of atmospheric CO2. Soil organic carbon (SOC) contents decrease by 0 to 63 per cent following deforestation. There exists a high potential for increasing SOC through establishment of natural or improved fallow systems (agroforestry) with attainable rates of C sequestration in the range of 0·1 to 5·3 Mg C ha−1 yr−1. Biomass burning significantly reduces SOC in the upper few centimeters of soil, but has little impact below 10 to 20 cm depth. The timing of burning is also important, and periods with large amounts of biomass available generally have the largest losses of SOC. In cultivated areas, the addition of manure in combination with crop residues and no‐till show similar rates of attainable C sequestration (0 to 0·36 Mg C ha−1 yr−1). Attainable rates of SOC sequestration on permanent cropland in SSA under improved cultivation systems (e.g. no‐till) range from 0·2 to 1·5 Tg C yr−1, while attainable rates under fallow systems are 0·4 to 18·5 Tg C yr−1. Fallow systems generally have the highest potential for SOC sequestration in SSA with rates up to 28·5 Tg C yr−1. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Clustering, randomness, and regularity in cloud fields: 4. Stratocumulus cloud fields

To complete the analysis of the spatial distribution of boundary layer cloudiness, the present study focuses on nine stratocumulus Landsat scenes. The results indicate many similarities between stratocumulus and cumulus spatial distributions. Most notably, at full spatial resolution all scenes exhibit a decidedly clustered distribution. The strength of the clustering signal decreases with increasing cloud size; the clusters themselves consist of a few clouds (less than 10), occupy a small percentage of the cloud field area (less than 5%), contain between 20% and 60% of the cloud field population, and are randomly located within the scene. In contrast, stratocumulus in almost every respect are more strongly clustered than are cumulus cloud fields. For instance, stratocumulus clusters contain more clouds per cluster, occupy a larger percentage of the total area, and have a larger percentage of clouds participating in clusters than the corresponding cumulus examples. To investigate clustering at intermediate spatial scales, the local dimensionality statistic is introduced. Results obtained from this statistic provide the first direct evidence for regularity among large (>900 m in diameter) clouds in stratocumulus and cumulus cloud fields, in support of the inhibition hypothesis of Ramirez and Bras (1990). Also, the size compensated point-to-cloud cumulative distribution function statistic is found to be necessary to obtain a consistent description of stratocumulus cloud distributions. A hypothesis regarding the underlying physical mechanisms responsible for cloud clustering is presented. It is suggested that cloud clusters often arise from 4 to 10 triggering events localized within regions less than 2 km in diameter and randomly distributed within the cloud field. As the size of the cloud surpasses the scale of the triggering region, the clustering signal weakens and the larger cloud locations become more random.
An Emerging Role for Epigenetic Dysregulation in Arsenic Toxicity and Carcinogenesis

Background Exposure to arsenic, an established human carcinogen, through consumption of highly contaminated drinking water is a worldwide public health concern. Several mechanisms by which arsenical compounds induce tumorigenesis have been proposed, including oxidative stress, genotoxic damage, and chromosomal abnormalities. Recent studies have suggested that epigenetic mechanisms may also mediate toxicity and carcinogenicity resulting from arsenic exposure. Objective We examined the evidence supporting the roles of the three major epigenetic mechanisms—DNA methylation, histone modification, and microRNA (miRNA) expression—in arsenic toxicity and, in particular, carcinogenicity. We also investigated future research directions necessary to clarify epigenetic and other mechanisms in humans. Data sources and synthesis We conducted a PubMed search of arsenic exposure and epigenetic modification through April 2010 and summarized the in vitro and in vivo research findings, from both our group and others, on arsenic-associated epigenetic alteration and its potential role in toxicity and carcinogenicity. Conclusions Arsenic exposure has been shown to alter methylation levels of both global DNA and gene promoters; histone acetylation, methylation, and phosphorylation; and miRNA expression, in studies analyzing mainly a limited number of epigenetic end points. Systematic epigenomic studies in human populations exposed to arsenic or in patients with arsenic-associated cancer have not yet been performed. Such studies would help to elucidate the relationship between arsenic exposure, epigenetic dysregulation, and carcinogenesis and are becoming feasible because of recent technological advancements.
Seed Production of Wiregrass in Central Florida Following Growing-Season Prescribed Burns

Wiregrass (Aristida stricta Michx.) is a major species in the long leaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) sandhills areas of central Florida, providing a major portion of the fuel for the recurring ground fires necessary to maintain the community. Growing season burning promotes flower and seed production. The objective of this study was to assess the seed production potential of wiregrass following prescribed burns from May through August. Four longleaf wiregrass sites were prescribed burned, one each in May, June, July, and August. Information on bunch size, bunch density, seed stalk density, seed density, and seed germination were collected. The four sites differed significantly in the density of wiregrass bunches, average bunch size, wiregrass cover and seed viability. The density of seed stalks was fairly consistent across sites. Viable seed production was lowest on the June burned site and highest on the July burned site. The study shows good quantities of seed are comparatively easy to produce with growing season bums.
Modeling of observed mineral dust aerosols in the arctic and the impact on winter season low‐level clouds

Mineral dust aerosol is the main ice nucleus (IN) in the Arctic. Observed dust concentrations at Alert, Canada, are lowest in winter and summer and highest in spring and autumn. In this study, we simulate transport and deposition of dust in a global chemical transport model. The model predicts the spring maximum caused by natural dust from desert sources in Asia and Sahara but underestimates the observations in autumn. Both natural and pollution sources contribute to the wintertime dust burden, as suggested by previous measurements of elemental compositions. Cloud parcel model simulations were carried out to study the impact of dust aerosol on the formation of mixed‐phase and ice clouds in the Arctic lower troposphere. The liquid water path of low‐level cloud is most sensitive to dust aerosol concentration from winter to early spring when air temperature is at its lowest in the annual cycle. The global and parcel models together suggest that low concentrations and acid coating of dust particles are favorable conditions for occurrence of mixed‐phase clouds and that anthropogenic pollution can cause significant perturbations to Arctic IN and clouds in winter.
Commentary: Impact of COVID-19 pneumonia on pulmonary vascular volume

COPYRIGHT © 2023 Jounieaux, Rodenstein and Mahjoub. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. Commentary: Impact of COVID-19 pneumonia on pulmonary vascular volume