Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Multicenter Epidemiological and Pathogenic Characteristics Study of Community-Acquired Bacterial Meningitis Children in China: Results from the Chinese Pediatric Bacterial Meningitis Surveillance (CPBMS) 2019–2020

Objective To explore the epidemiological and pathogenic characteristics of children with community-acquired bacterial meningitis. Methods A multicenter, retrospective study was conducted among CABM patients under 15 years old from 33 hospitals in China from 2019 to 2020. The medical record, laboratory, and microbiological data were collected and analyzed. Results A total of 1610 children with CABM were identified and presented at a median onset age of 45 days of whom 955 (59.3%) were males. CABM occurred mostly in infants <1 year of age (84.0%, 1352/1610). In etiology-confirmed cases, the pathogens were isolated from CSF culture in 515 (32.0%), 400 (24.8%) in blood culture, and 186 (11.6%) both in CSF and blood culture. In total, 126 pathogens were identified through CSF mNGS in 330 CABM cases; 21 S. pneumoniae isolates were detected in 83 CABM cases by antigen detection method. Major pathogens were E. coli (195, 24.7%), GBS (170, 21.5%), and S. pneumoniae (157, 19.9%). GBS (29.3%, 22/75) was the first pathogen of CABM in neonates aged 0–6 days old, while E. coli (44.7%, 76/170) in 7 to 28 days of age; S. pneumoniae (96.2%, 151/157) was the most common pathogen in >3 months old cases. About 9.7% (19/195) strains of E. coli produced ultra‑broad‑spectrum β‑lactamases. The common intracranial imaging complications were subdural effusion and (or) empyema in 349 (21.7%), hydrocephalus in 233 (14.5%), and cerebral abscess in 178 (11.1%). A total of 389 (24.2%) cases were completely cured and 1088 (67.6%) cases improved. Among 166 patients (10.3%) with adverse outcomes, 32 cases (2.0%) died, and 37 cases (2.3%) relapsed. Conclusion The onset age of CABM in children is usually within 1 year of age, especially <3 months. The primary pathogens in infants less than 3 months old are E. coli and GBS, and the dominant pathogen in children older than 3 months old is S. pneumoniae. Subdural effusion and (or) empyema and hydrocephalus are common complications. CABM should not be excluded even if CSF leukocyte counts are within normal range. Due to the low detection rate of pathogens in children with CABM, standardized CSF bacteriological examination should be paid more attention to increase the pathogen detection rate. Non‑culture CSF detection methods may facilitate pathogenic diagnosis.
Habitat area requirements of breeding forest birds of the middle Atlantic states

Conservation of birds requires an understanding of their nesting requirements, including area as well as structural characteristics of the habitat. Previous studies have shown that many neotropical migrant bird species seem to depend on extensive forested areas, but the specific area requirements of individual species have not been clarified sufflciently to aid in design and management of effective preserves. For this S-year study, bird and vegetation data were obtained at 469 points in forests ranging in area from 0.1 ha to more than 3,000 ha in Maryland and adjacent states. Data were analyzed first by stepwise regression to identify habitat factors that had the greatest influence on relative abundance of each bird species. In the relatively undisturbed mature forests studied, degree of isolation and area were significant predictors of relative abundance for more bird species than were any habitat variables. For species for which forest area was a significant predictor of abundance} we used logistic regression to examine the relationship between fcxrest area aIld the probability of detecting the species. In managing forest lands for wildlifel top priority should go toward providing for the needs of areasensitive or rare species rather than increasing species diversity per se. Avian species that occur in small and disturbed forests are generalists that are adapted to survival under edge conditions and need no special assistance frorn man. Forest reserves with thousands of hectares are required to have the highest probability of providing for the least common species of forest birds in a region. However, if preservation of large contiguous forest tracts is not a realistic optionS results of this study suggest 2 alternative approaches. First, if other habitat attributes also are eonsidered smaller forests may provide suitable breeding sites for relatively rare species. Second7 smaller tracts in close proximity to other forests may serve to attract or retain area-
The Expression of the Alpha7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor and the Effect of Smoking in Curdlan-Administered SKG Mice

Nicotine, an abundant molecule in tobacco, has immunomodulatory effects on inflammatory diseases, primarily due to the activation of alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7 nAChR). We aim to evaluate the expression of the α7 nAChR+ cells in joint tissue and the effect of smoking on immune cells and peripheral arthritis in curdlan-administered SKG mice, a murine model of spondyloarthropathy (SpA). The SKG mice were injected with curdlan two times at 2-week intervals and were divided into two groups; one exposed to cigarette smoke and the other not exposed. We found that the α7 nAChR+ cells increased in the joint tissue of curdlan-administered SKG mice compared to in the wild type. Furthermore, the peripheral arthritis scores and histological scores for synovial inflammation were lower in smoke-exposed curdlan-administered SKG mice than in mice not exposed to smoke. Immunofluorescence staining of the α7 nAChR+ and IL-17A+ cells was lower in the synovia of smoke-exposed mice than the control mice. The proportions of α7 nAChR+IL-17A+ and α7 nAChR+IL-17A+FOXP3+ cells also decreased in the synovia of smoke-exposed mice compared with the controls. We observed an increase in the α7 nAChR+ cells within the joint tissue of curdlan-administered SKG mice and that cigarette smoke had an influence on both peripheral arthritis and immune cell population, especially α7 nAChR+ cells. Thus, exposure to cigarette smoke after arthritogenic stimuli may have an anti-arthritogenic effect in curdlan-administered SKG mice.
Analysis of Social Responsibility and its Relationship with the Financial Performance of Companies Located in Countries with Emerging Economies

Objective: The objective of this research was to analyze the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility and companies' financial performance, from the perspective of ESG scores. Theoretical framework: Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and social and financial performance were conceptualized. The Legitimacy Theory consolidates CSR as a social contract, established between the company and society through actions that will be evaluated by their development and the results disclosed (Guthrie & Parker, 1989). Corporate social performance (DSC) represents the way in which the company meets and responds to the demands of social content, generating collective results (Boaventura, Silva & Bandeira-de-Melo, 2012). Method: Explanatory, documentary and quantitative research with a sample composed of companies that are part of the BRICS and that made ESG scores available, from 2018 to 2022, through Thomson Reuters Eikon®. Results and conclusion: The results confirm that there is a positive and significant relationship only for market performance when analyzing the RSCENV variable (CSR Environmental). The variable RSCGOV (CSR Governance) presented a non-significant result. Research implications: The results show that the hypothesis tested that corporate social responsibility strategies have a positive relationship with financial performance was disregarded by the research data. Originality/value: This study contributes to deepening the discussion about the impact of Corporate Social Responsibility practices on the performance of organizations, specifically aiming to contribute to the analysis of the impact of different aspects of sustainability (Environmental, Social and Governance) on operational and market performance.
Coronal plumes and the expansion of pressure-balanced structures in the fast solar wind

The expansion of a coronal hole filled with a discrete number of higher density filaments (plumes) in overall pressure balance with the ambient medium is described within the thin flux tube approximation. The resulting solar wind model extends the results of Parker [1964] and Velli et al. [1994] to nonisothermal temperature profiles and includes a flux of Alfven waves propagating both inside and outside the structures. Remote sensing and solar wind in situ observations are used to constrain the parameter range of our study. Close to the Sun, the precise plasma parameters are fundamental in determining the relative position of the critical points, which are found by means of an iterative procedure because the flows from the two regions are coupled. At greater distances the filling factor of the higher-density regions may vary largely, and streams which are either faster or slower than the wind arising from the ambient hole may result, depending on the temperature differences and on the flux of Alfven waves assumed in the two regions. Velocity differences of the order of ∼50 km s−1, such as those found in microstreams in the high-speed solar wind, might be thus easily explained by reasonable fluctuation amplitudes at the Sun, although the natural candidates for plumes at large heliocentric distances are more likely to be the so-called pressure-balanced structures.
Genomics and Physiology of Chlorophyll Fluorescence Parameters in Hordeum vulgare L. under Drought and Salt Stresses

To map the genomic regions and control chlorophyll fluorescence attributes under normal, salinity-, and drought-stress conditions in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) at the seedling stage, an experiment was conducted in 2019–2020 using 106 F8 lines resulting from the cross between Badia × Kavir. Initially, the different chlorophyll fluorescence parameters were evaluated. Under drought stress, the highest decrease was related to REo/CSm (59.56%), and the highest increase was related to dV/dto (77.17%). Also, under salinity stress, the highest decrease was related to Fv/Fo (59.56%), and the highest increase was related to DIo/RC (77.17%). Linkage maps were prepared using 152 SSR polymorphic markers, 72 ISSR alleles, 7 IRAP alleles, 29 CAAT alleles, 27 Scot alleles, and 15 iPBS alleles. The obtained map accounted for 999.2 centi-Morgans (cM) of the barley genome length (92% of the whole barley genome). The results indicated the importance of chromosomes 3, 2, and 7 in controlling ABS/CSm, Area, ETo/CSm, Fm, Fv, and ETo/RC under drought stress. qEToRCD-7, as a major QTL, controlled 18.3% of ETo/RC phenotypic variation under drought stress. Under salinity stress, the regions of chromosomes 2 and 7 (102 cM and 126 cM) controlled the parameters ABS/CSo, Fm, Fo, Fv, TRo/SCo, Area, ETo/CSm, and ETo/CSo. The results showed that chlorophyll fluorescence is an important parameter in the study of drought and salinity effects on barley. This is the first report of the investigation of changes in the genetic structure of quantitative genes controlling the fluorescence parameters associated with barley response to drought and salinity stresses in the Iranian barley RILs population. According to the obtained results, it is possible to use HVPLASC1B and EBmac0713 in normal conditions, ISSR21-2 and ISSR30-4 in drought conditions, and Bmac0047, Scot5-B, CAAT6-C, and ISSR30iPBS2076-4 in saline stress conditions to select genotypes with higher photosynthetic capacity in marker-assisted selection programs.
Reconstructing the ocean's mesopelagic zone carbon budget: sensitivity and estimation of parameters associated with prokaryotic remineralization

Abstract. Through the constant rain of sinking marine particles in the ocean, carbon (C) trapped within is exported into the water column and sequestered when reaching depths below the mesopelagic zone. Atmospheric CO2 levels are thereby strongly related to the magnitude of carbon export fluxes in the mesopelagic zone. Sinking particles represent the main source of carbon and energy for mesopelagic organisms, attenuating the C export flux along the water column. Attempts to quantify the amount of C exported versus C consumed by heterotrophic organisms have increased in recent decades. Yet, most of the conducted estimations have led to estimated C demands several times higher than the measured C export fluxes. The choice of parameters such as growth efficiencies or various conversion factors is known to greatly impact the resulting C budget. In parallel, field or experimental data are sorely lacking to obtain accurate values of these crucial overlooked parameters. In this study, we identify the most influential of these parameters and perform inversion of a mechanistic model. Further, we determine the optimal parameter values as the ones that best explain the observed prokaryotic respiration, prokaryotic production and zooplankton respiration. The consistency of the resulting C budget suggests that such budgets can be adequately balanced when using appropriate parameters.
Geology of the Luna 24 landing site

The Soviet spacecraft Luna 24 landed at the southeast edge of Mare Crisium on the moon on August 18, 1976. A 160 cm core with a diameter of 8 mm was drilled, extracted, and returned to earth by the spacecraft. A description is presented of the geologic setting at the Luna 24 landing site to provide background information for the study of Luna 24 samples. Interpretations of spectral reflectance data suggest that the Luna 24 landing area is similar in TiO2 content to Oceanus Procellarum. Mare Crisium fills the interior of a circular multiringed impact structure in the eastern hemisphere of the moon. Stratigraphic units within Mare Crisium consist of mare materials and postmare deposits. Aspects of local stratigraphy are discussed, taking into account ray material and mare material. In the vicinity of the Luna 24 landing site, the terrain may be divided into four areas on the basis of topography.
Elección de la duración del viaje vacacional: una aproximación con modelos de recuento 1

The choice of length of holiday stay is a tourist decision with important implications for tourism organiza- tions. However, literature has devoted little attention to it. Moreover, the existing few studies have focused on coas- tal destinations, not considering the inland tourism emerging in some countries. This article analyses the determi- ning factors of the length of stay of vacations, taking into account the type of destination -coastal and inland-, and proposing sundry hypotheses on the influence of individual characteristics related to the destination, personal res- trictions and demographic aspects. The method applied uses, as a novelty in this kind of decisions, a Truncated Negative Binomial Model, which avoids estimation biases of regression models and the restrictive assumption of the mean-variance equality of the Poisson Model. The empirical application, which is carried out in Spain on a sample of 1,600 individuals allows us to conclude that the Negative Binomial Model is more appropriate than the Poisson in this type of analysis. On the other hand, the important dimensions of the duration of the vacation are, for both kind of destinations, the hotel and own apartment accommodation, time restrictions, age and the way of organizing the tra- vel. Size of city of residence and the "low prices" attribute is important for the coastal destinations and the rented apartment accommodation for inland destinations.
How Chiefs Became Kings—Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai‘i

The sheer volume of published works by Patrick Vinton Kirch, Class of 1954 Professor of Anthropology and Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, is unmatched in oceanic archaeology. His most recent offering, How Chiefs Became Kings, is amongtheverybestwithin thisvastarrayof scholarship. This volume is concerned with Hawai‘i, and the questions of how, when and why a founder colony was transformed from a Polynesian chiefdom into a series of archaic states encountered by James Cook in 1778. It is about the details of Hawai‘ian genealogies and traditions, and the tracking of proximate cause for transformations rooted in agency and history. It is also about ultimate cause,
Extrapolation Problems in Modeling Fire Effects at Large Spatial Scales: A Review

Models of vegetation change in response to global warming need to incorporate the effects of disturbance at broad spatial scales. Process-based predictive models, whether for fire behavior or fire effects on vegetation, assume homogeneity of crucial inputs over the spatial scale to which they are applied. Landscape disturbance models predict final burning patterns, but either do not model mechanistic behavior and explicit spread rates, or require large amounts of data to initialize simulations and predict ecological effects. Empirical data on the ecological effects of fire are not generally available at these scales, and conclusions are often extrapolated upward from stand-level data. Three methods for extrapolating ecological effects of fire across spatial scales and the sources of error associated with each were identified: (1) extrapolating fire behavior models directly to larger spatial scales; (2) integrating fire behavior and fire effects models with successional models at the stand level, then extrapolating upward; and (3) aggregating model inputs to the scale of interest. Extreme fire events present a challenging problem for modelers, regardless of which extrapolation method is employed. No single approach to modeling fire effects is inherently superior; modeling objectives and the characteristics of specific systems will determine the best strategy for each situation.
Rehabilitation of degraded forests to improve livelihoods of poor farmers in South China

Degradation of forests and forest lands is a problem in many parts of the world and is particularly serious in south China. Chinese forest policy reforms in recent years have enabled rural households to generate income from forests, to own the trees they have planted, and have offered new opportunities to manage forests sustainably. Rehabilitation of degraded forests and forest lands is one of the possible pathways to improve livelihoods of poor farmers and others in the rural communities. This report documents the results of four case studies in south China in which farmers, local officials and ressearchers anlysed the problems of degraded forests and forest lands, and formulated options for their solution. Opportunities to improve forest management and people's livelihoods are dependent on overcoming a range of biophysical, socioeconomic and political constraints. Action research was used to implement and test some of the options identified. The experience and analysis should be of value for researchers, resource managers and government officials in China and elsewhere to address poverty and environmental concerns through a multidisciplinary, participatory and holistic approach.
Lateral subsurface flow pathways in a semiarid Ponderosa pine hillslope

The mechanisms controlling lateral subsurface flow in semiarid environments have received relatively little attention despite the fact that lateral subsurface flow can be an important runoff process in these environments. The objective of the current study is to better understand lateral subsurface flow process in semiarid environments. Natural chloride, dissolved organic carbon, and stable isotope (δD and δ18O) tracers were used to investigate the lateral subsurface flow process and the chemical changes that occur as a result of lateral subsurface flow. Observed differences in chemistry between soil matrix water and lateral subsurface flow were large (for example, chloride concentrations in matrix soil water samples were >200 mg/L, compared with only 2 mg/L in lateral subsurface flow samples obtained at the same time). This difference in chemistry is indicative of a two‐domain flow system in which macropores conduct lateral subsurface flow that is not in chemical or hydrological equilibrium with the soil matrix. The size of precipitation events appeared to have a strong influence on the variations in old/new water percentages, and examples of both old and new water dominated events were observed. There were also large variations in the chemistry of lateral subsurface flow with time. For example, chloride and dissolved organic carbon concentrations were 10 and 70 times greater, respectively, under saturated conditions than under unsaturated conditions.
Material Point Method for Coupled Hydromechanical Problems

This paper describes a new formulation of the material point method (MPM) for solving coupled hydromechanical problems of fluid-saturated soil subjected to large deformation. A soil-pore fluid coupled MPM algorithm based on Biot's mixture theory is proposed for solving hydromechanical interaction problems that include changes in water table location with time. The accuracy of the proposed method is examined by comparing the results of the simulation of a one-dimensional consolidation test with the corresponding analytical solution. A sensitivity analysis of the MPM parameters used in the proposed method is carried out for examining the effect of the number of particles per mesh and mesh size on solution accuracy. For demonstrating the capability of the proposed method, a physical model experiment of a large-scale levee failure by seepage is simulated. The behavior of the levee model with time-dependent changes in water table matches well to the experimental observations. The mechanisms of seepage-induced failure are discussed by examining the pore-water pressures, as well as the effective stresses computed from the simulations.
Predictive Strategies to Reduce the Risk of Rehospitalization with a Focus on Frail Older Adults: A Narrative Review

Frailty is a geriatric syndrome that has physical, cognitive, psychological, social, and environmental components and is characterized by a decrease in physiological reserves. Frailty is associated with several adverse health outcomes such as an increase in rehospitalization rates, falls, delirium, incontinence, dependency on daily living activities, morbidity, and mortality. Older adults may become frailer with each hospitalization; thus, it is beneficial to develop and implement preventive strategies. The present review aims to highlight the epidemiological importance of frailty in rehospitalization and to compile predictive strategies and related interventions to prevent hospitalizations. Firstly, it is important to identify pre-frail and frail older adults using an instrument with high validity and reliability, which can be a practically applicable screening tool. Comprehensive geriatric assessment-based care is an important strategy known to reduce morbidity, mortality, and rehospitalization in older adults and aims to meet the needs of frail patients with a multidisciplinary approach and intervention that includes physiological, psychological, and social domains. Moreover, effective multimorbidity management, physical activity, nutritional support, preventing cognitive frailty, avoiding polypharmacy and anticholinergic drug burden, immunization, social support, and reducing the caregiver burden are other recommended predictive strategies to prevent post-discharge rehospitalization in frail older adults.