Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Emerging Global Aerosol Climatology from the MODIS Satellite Sensors

The recently released Collection 5 MODIS aerosol products provide a consistent record of the Earth's aerosol system. Comparison with ground-based AERONET observations of aerosol optical depth (AOD) we find that Collection 5 MODIS aerosol products estimate AOD to within expected accuracy more than 60% of the time over ocean and more than 72% of the time over land. This is similar to previous results for ocean, and better than the previous results for land. However, the new Collection introduces a 0.01 5 offset between the Terra and Aqua global mean AOD over ocean, where none existed previously. Aqua conforms to previous values and expectations while Terra is high. The cause of the offset is unknown, but changes to calibration are a possible explanation. We focus the climatological analysis on the better understood Aqua retrievals. We find that global mean AOD at 550 nm over oceans is 0.13 and over land 0.19. AOD in situations with 80% cloud fraction are twice the global mean values, although such situations occur only 2% of the time over ocean and less than 1% of the time over land. There is no drastic change in aerosol particle size associated with these very cloudy situations. Regionally, aerosol amounts vary from polluted areas such as East Asia and India, to the cleanest regions such as Australia and the northern continents. In almost all oceans fine mode aerosol dominates over dust, except in the tropical Atlantic downwind of the Sahara and in some months the Arabian Sea.
Plate-Tectonic Evolution of the Western U.S.A.

Changing interactions of lithospheric plates provide the framework for this overview of the 3.1 Ga geological history of some 3 million km2 of mountains, deserts, plateaus and plains. The author traces the Precambrian to Neogene development of the Western U.S.A. in terms of plate collisions, subduction events, and deformation of lithospheric slabs, with some interpretations based on his work in southeast Asia and other regions of complex tectonics. widespread but stratigraphically limited glacial sediments, was being deposited. Clastic-shelf sedimentation continued through the Early Cambrian, with younger strata trans-gressing farther inland onto the cratonic basement. The continent bad moved into lower latitudes by Middle Cambrian time, and shallow-water strata of the rest of the lower and middle Faleozoic are mostly carbonate rocks, except in near-source environments. elastic sediments are shredded to lenses of resistant sandstones in scaly-clay matrixes, and there are also stabs of less-disrupted strata. Voluminous polymict mkange contains, in scaly-clay matrixes, lenses of ophiolite, abyssal pelagic sediments, and high-pressure metamorphic rocks. The m6lange also encloses fragmented seamounts and atolls conveyed in from more southern latitudes.
Dispersal and migration of female Black Grouse Tetrao tetrix in eastern central Finland

We studied the movement patterns of 209 female Black Grouse radio-marked during 1990–1993 in eastern central Finland. Females were captured for marking in late winter, and the transmitters had a life expectancy of 6–10 months. Adults tended to initiate spring movement to breeding range earlier than yearlings. The median net distance between the marking (winter) site and nest site was 2.6 km for adults and 9.2 km for yearlings, and the maximum distances recorded were 29.6 and 33.2 km, respectively. The spring dispersal directions of yearlings differed from a uniform distribution. Data from radio-tracking, recapturing and recoveries from the public revealed that females that moved less than the median distance in spring as yearlings tended to show fidelity to their first winter range. In contrast, those individuals that moved more than the median distance, mostly switched to using a new winter range. Females marked as adults tended to show fidelity to their winter range. The longest migratory movement recorded between breeding and winter range was 19 km. We conclude that female Black Grouse possess good dispersal abilities, and had no movement problems in our study area consisting of a managed forest landscape.
Structure of a bacterial RNA polymerase holoenzyme open promoter complex

Initiation of transcription is a primary means for controlling gene expression. In bacteria, the RNA polymerase (RNAP) holoenzyme binds and unwinds promoter DNA, forming the transcription bubble of the open promoter complex (RPo). We have determined crystal structures, refined to 4.14 Å-resolution, of RPo containing Thermus aquaticus RNAP holoenzyme and promoter DNA that includes the full transcription bubble. The structures, combined with biochemical analyses, reveal key features supporting the formation and maintenance of the double-strand/single-strand DNA junction at the upstream edge of the −10 element where bubble formation initiates. The results also reveal RNAP interactions with duplex DNA just upstream of the −10 element and potential protein/DNA interactions that direct the DNA template strand into the RNAP active site. Addition of an RNA primer to yield a 4 base-pair post-translocated RNA:DNA hybrid mimics an initially transcribing complex at the point where steric clash initiates abortive initiation and σA dissociation. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.7554/eLife.08504. 001
Rechts-, Wirtschafts-und Verwaltungswissenschaftliche Sektion Fachbereich Wirtschaftswissenschaften Diskussionspapiere Der Dfg- Forschergruppe (nr.: 3468269275): Heterogene Arbeit: Positive Und Normative Aspekte Der Qualifikationsstruktur Der Arbeit Diskussionspapier Der Forschergruppe (nr.: 3468269

Based on the OLG-model and the two-bracket labor tax system by Nielsen and Sørensen (1997), we model an economy, where human capital formation is liable to idiosyncratic risk. We show that, compared to a standard Eaton and Rosen (1980) world, extending the instruments available for the government to progressive taxation and education subsidies generalizes the " Siamese Twins "-result by Bovenberg and Jacobs (2005) to the case of risky labor income. Hereby, progressivity is a superior instrument for insurance, and education subsidies are again used in order to alleviate efficiency losses. Abstract Based on the OLG-model and the two-bracket labor tax system by Nielsen and Sørensen (1997), we model an economy, where human capital formation is liable to idiosyncratic risk. We show that, compared to a standard Eaton and Rosen (1980) world, extending the instruments available for the government to progressive taxation and education subsidies generalizes the 'Siamese Twins'-result by Boven-berg and Jacobs (2005) to the case of risky labor income. Hereby, progressivity is a superior instrument for insurance, and education subsidies are again used in order to alleviate efficiency losses.
Disposal Alternatives for Contaminated Dredged Material as a Management Tool to Minimize Adverse Environmental Effects.

Abstract : This report is a guidelines manual to assist in selecting disposal alternatives for contaminated dredged material to minimize adverse environmental effects. It is directed to the small percentage of contaminated sediments that are believed to present a high potential for environmental harm, rather than the great majority of dredging projects that involve uncontaminated or slightly contaminated sediments. The contaminants and potentially nuisance substances considered in this report include: mercury, cadmium, lead, zinc, copper, nickel, chromium, arsenic, chlorinated hydrocarbons,petroleum hydrocarbons, iron, manganese, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur. Individual contaminants, and in some cases groups of contaminants that behave similary, are discussed under separate headings. Many of the contaminants respond differently to physical, chemical, and biological conditions at a disposal site. The approach taken in this report is to point out the relative environmental risks of different disposal methods by identifying the possible disposal alternatives and discussing the problems associated with specific contaminants and disposal methods. Certain management practices that may be applicable to some disposal alternatives that will further reduce the environmental risk are also presented.
The prime number theorem:Analytic and elementary proofs

Three proofs of the prime number theorem are presented. The rst is a heavily analytic proof based on early accounts. Cauchy's residue theorem and various results relating to the Riemann zeta function play a vital role. A weaker result than the prime number theorem is used for the proof, namely Chebyshev's theorem. The second proof is elementary in the sense that it involves no complex analysis. Instead, mainly number-theoretic results are used, in particular, Selberg's formulas. The third proof, like the rst, relies heavily on the Riemann zeta function, but is considerably shorter for the use of the Laplace transform and the analytic theorem.
Detection rate of actionable mutations in diverse cancers using a biopsy-free (blood) circulating tumor cell DNA assay

Analysis of cell-free DNA using next-generation sequencing (NGS) is a powerful tool for the detection/monitoring of alterations present in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA). Plasma extracted from 171 patients with a variety of cancers was analyzed for ctDNA (54 genes and copy number variants (CNVs) in three genes (EGFR, ERBB2 and MET)). The most represented cancers were lung (23%), breast (23%), and glioblastoma (19%). Ninety-nine patients (58%) had at least one detectable alteration. The most frequent alterations were TP53 (29.8%), followed by EGFR (17.5%), MET (10.5%), PIK3CA (7%), and NOTCH1 (5.8%). In contrast, of 222 healthy volunteers, only one had an aberration (TP53). Ninety patients with non-brain tumors had a discernible aberration (65% of 138 patients; in 70% of non-brain tumor patients with an alteration, the anomaly was potentially actionable). Interestingly, nine of 33 patients (27%) with glioblastoma had an alteration (6/33 (18%) potentially actionable). Overall, sixty-nine patients had potentially actionable alterations (40% of total; 69.7% of patients (69/99) with alterations); 68 patients (40% of total; 69% of patients with alterations), by a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved drug. In summary, 65% of diverse cancers (as well as 27% of glioblastomas) had detectable ctDNA aberration(s), with the majority theoretically actionable by an approved agent.
Structuring structural operational semantics

Defining a formal (i.e., mathematical) semantics for computer languages is the first step towards developing rigorous techniques for reasoning about computerprograms and specifications in such a language. Structural Operational Semantics (SOS), introduced by Plotkin in 1981, has become a popular technique for defining formal semantics. In this thesis, we first review the basic concepts of SOS and the existing meta-results. Subsequently, we enhance the state of the art in this field by offering the following contributions:• developing a syntactic format guaranteeing a language construct to be commutative;• extending the existing congruence and well-definedness meta-results to the setting with equational specifications;• defining a more liberal notion of operational conservativity, called orthogonality,and formulating meta-theorems for it;• prototyping a framework for checking the premises of congruence and conservativity meta-theorems and animating programs according to their SOS specification;• defining notions of bisimulation with data and formulating syntactic rule formats guaranteeing congruence for these notions;• proposing syntactic rule formats for guaranteeing congruence of strong bisimilarity and higher-order bisimilarity in the setting of higher order processes.
Irregular spiking of pyramidal neurons organizes as scale-invariant neuronal avalanches in the awake state

Spontaneous fluctuations in neuronal activity emerge at many spatial and temporal scales in cortex. Population measures found these fluctuations to organize as scale-invariant neuronal avalanches, suggesting cortical dynamics to be critical. Macroscopic dynamics, though, depend on physiological states and are ambiguous as to their cellular composition, spatiotemporal origin, and contributions from synaptic input or action potential (AP) output. Here, we study spontaneous firing in pyramidal neurons (PNs) from rat superficial cortical layers in vivo and in vitro using 2-photon imaging. As the animal transitions from the anesthetized to awake state, spontaneous single neuron firing increases in irregularity and assembles into scale-invariant avalanches at the group level. In vitro spike avalanches emerged naturally yet required balanced excitation and inhibition. This demonstrates that neuronal avalanches are linked to the global physiological state of wakefulness and that cortical resting activity organizes as avalanches from firing of local PN groups to global population activity. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.7554/eLife.07224. 001
USULAN GROUND MOTION UNTUK EMPAT KOTA BESAR DI WILAYAH SUMATERA BERDASARKAN HASIL ANALISIS SEISMIC HAZARD MENGGUNAKAN MODEL SUMBER GEMPA 3 DIMENSI

Getaran pada tanah yang diakibatkan oleh perambatan gelombang gempa dapat digambarkan melalui data ground motion dalam bentuk acceleration time histories yang tercatat pada instrumen di stasiun pencatatan. Dengan ground motion ini dampak kejadian gempa bumi di suatu daerah dapat diketahui secara obyektif dan terukur (kuantitatif). Untuk wilayah Indonesia khususnya Pulau Sumatera, data ground motion yang tersedia masih sangat terbatas. Data catatan gempa umumnya berbentuk informasi mengenai lokasi pusat gempa, magnitude, kedalaman serta mekanisme gempa. Studi ini berisi pembahasan mengenai metode pembuatan ground motion dan ground motion yang diusulkan untuk empat kota utama di Pulau Sumatera.yang memiliki sejarah kegempaan aktif, yaitu kota Banda Aceh, kota Padang, kota Bengkulu, dan kota Bandar Lampung. Studi diawali dengan identifikasi sumber gempa yang dilakukan berdasarkan data histori s kejadian gempa dalam radius jarak 500 km dari lokasi studi dimana pada jarak ini sumber gempa diasumsikan masih memberikan pengaruh yang signifikan. Pembuatan model zona sumber gempa dilakukan berdasarkan hasil identifikasi sumber gempa dan kajian seismotektonik dan geologi regional. Model zona sumber gempa dibedakan untuk mekanisme gempa subduksi dan gempa kerak dangkal (shallow crustal), dimana mekanisme gempa subduksi sendiri terbagi atas zona megathrust/interface pada kedalaman hiposenter kurang dari 60 km dan zona benioff/intraslab pada kedalaman hiposenter lebih dari 60 km. Pengolahan dengan metode statistik terhadap data historis kejadian gempa dilakukan untuk menghasilkan data yang independen yang diperlukan dalam penentuan parameter seismik. Pengolahan ini meliputi konversi skala magnitude, analisis pemilahan gempa utama (main shocks) dengan gempa awalan/susulan (foreshocks/aftershocks) serta analisis kelengkapan data gempa (completeness). Parameter seismik menggambarkan karakteristik dan aktifitas kegempaan di tiap zona sumber gempa dan diperlukan sebagai input dalam PSHA. Parameter ini meliputi reccurence rate dan b-value, magnitude maksimum, slip rate dan fungsi atenuasi. Dengan model sumber gempa 3 dimensi, PSHA menghasilkan nilai percepatan maksimum (peak ground acceleration/PGA) dan response spectra di batuan dasar yang lebih akurat. PSHA dalam studi ini dilakukan untuk periode ulang gempa 500 tahun (9.5% probabilitas dalam 50 tahun). Response spectra di batuan dasar kemudian diskalakan untuk periode spektral T=0.2 detik dan T=1.0 detik guna mendapatkan target spectra. Analisis spectral matching dari response spectra gempa karakteristik terhadap target spectra menghasilkan scaled spectra dan scaled acceleration time histories di batuan dasar yang diusulkan sebagai ground motion desain dalam studi ini. PSHA dan analisis spectral matching dalam studi ini dilakukan menggunakan program komputer EZ-FRISKTM Version 7.20 dari Risk Engineering Inc.
Capital Inflows and Real Exchange Rate Appreciation in Latin America: The Role of External Factors

The characteristics of recent capital inflows to Latin America are discussed. It is argued that these inflows are partially explained by economic conditions outside the region, like the recession in the United States and lower international interest rates. The importance of external factors suggests that a reversal in those conditons may lead to a future capital outflow, increasing the macroeconomic vulnerability on Latin American economies. Policy options, it is argued, are limited.
Motion Vision Processing in Fly Lobula Plate Tangential Cells

Many animals use visual motion cues for navigating within their surroundings. Both flies and vertebrates compute local motion by temporal correlation of neighboring photoreceptors, via so-called elementary motion detectors (EMDs). In the fly lobula plate and the vertebrate visual cortex the output from many EMDs is pooled in neurons sensitive to wide-field optic flow. Although the EMD has been the preferred model for more than 50 years, recent work has highlighted its limitations in describing some visual behaviors, such as responses to higher-order motion stimuli. Non-EMD motion processing may therefore serve an important function in vision. Here, we describe a novel neuron class in the fly lobula plate that clearly does not derive its input from classic EMDs. The centrifugal stationary inhibited flicker excited (cSIFE) neuron is strongly excited by flicker, up to very high temporal frequencies. The non-EMD driven flicker sensitivity leads to strong, nondirectional responses to high-speed, wide-field motion. Furthermore, cSIFE is strongly inhibited by stationary patterns, within a narrow wavelength band. cSIFE's outputs overlap with the inputs of well described optic flow-sensitive lobula plate tangential cells (LPTCs). Driving cSIFE affects the active dendrites of LPTCs, and cSIFE may therefore play a large role in motion vision.
Optimized Signal Separation for 3D-Polarized Light Imaging

“Why should we bother about connectivity in the age of functional imaging, at a time when magnets of ever increasing strength promise to detect the location of even the faintest thought? Isn’t it enough to locate cortical areas engaged in deception, introspection, empathy? Do we really have to worry about their connections? The answer is “yes”. In the case of the nervous system, the unit of relational architecture that allows the whole to exceed the sum of the parts is known as large-scale network. Its elucidation requires an elaborate understanding of connectivity patterns” [1]. Despite considerable advances in experimental techniques and in our understanding of animal anatomy over the last decades, the real connectivity of the human brain has essentially remained a mystery. It is the human brain’s multiscale topology that poses a particular challenge to any neuroimaging technique and prevented the neuroscientists from unraveling the connectome so far.
Exploring Bioavailability of Hydrophobic Organic Contaminants in Sediments

Due to high affinity for organic carbon phase, hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) preferentially deposit in bed sediments in surface aquatic systems. Consequently, many contemporary sediment contaminants are HOCs, including DDTs, PCBs, and PBDEs. However, their accumulation potential and toxicity to benthic organisms in sediments are regulated by bioavailability, rather than bulk chemical concentrations. The overall purpose of the current project was to develop and apply chemically-based methods to explore bioavailability of HOCs in sediments, and help improve the assessment of their potential ecotoxicological risks and sometimes human health effects in the environment.A solid phase microextraction (SPME) method using disposable polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) fibers was developed for measuring the phase distribution of flame retardant PBDEs in sediments. Results showed that PBDEs were predominantly sorbed to the sediment phase, with freely dissolved concentration (Cfree) only accounted for 2 =0.84&ndash0.94). Bioavailability measurements from the SPME, IDM and Tenax methods were compared in amendment-based remediation. After normalizing over the unamended sediments, significant linear correlations (R 2 >0.90, p <0.01, slopes=1.00&ndash1.09) were found between these methods, suggesting they are interchangeable or complementary for evaluating remediation efficiency or progress.Overall, the bioavailability estimation methods or their specific applications developed from this project will improve understanding environmental fate of HOCs and their potential toxicity to such organisms as the sediment-dwelling invertebrates. The developed methods may be readily adoptable for other HOCs as well as other matrices (e.g., soil).
Effect of grass planting on the microclimate of apple orchard in the dryland area of Loess Plateau.

The effects of interplanting white clover(Trifolium repens L.) and perennial ryegrass(Lolium perenne L.)on the microclimate of apple orchard in Weibei dryland area of the Loess Plateau were studied with bareground as control from April to October by positional survey of air temperature,relative humidity,soil temperature,etc.The results show that interplanting grasses could regulate the surface air temperature and soil temperature,increase the relative humidity,and decrease the wind speed and relative light intensity in apple orchard.At different developmental stages,the regulation effects of grasses were different.Furthermore,the regulation effects were closely related to the types of herbaceous plant.Grey Correlation Analysis indicates that the integrated microclimatic effect of the white clover was better than that of ryegrass in apple orchard in Weibei dryland areas.
Genetic and ecophysiological dissection of tolerance to drought and heat stress in bread wheat : from environmental characterization to QTL detection

A stagnation of wheat yield was reported in France and other countries worldwide since the 1990’s, which incriminated mainly drought and heat stress. Improving the European wheat tolerance to them is of first importance. This study aimed to investigate the genetic determinism of the tolerance to such stresses. Three CIMMYT bread wheat populations combining complementary heat and drought adaptive habits were grown in Northern Mexico under irrigated, drought and heat-irrigated treatments from 2011 to 2013. The trial network comprised 15 trials and both physiological and agronomic traits were scored. First, an environmental characterization methodology was developed and resulted in the identification of six main environmental scenarios in the network. A representative environmental covariate was extracted from each of them. Then, a factorial regression model leaded to the dissection of the genotype-by-environment interaction and highlighted differential stress sensitivity of the germplasm. Finally, a multi-environmental QTL detection resulted in the discovery of genomic regions involved in the control of both physiological and agronomic traits and the study of their sensitivity to the environment. From the environmental characterization to the QTL detection, this study resulted in the development of a tool for breeders which may enable the evaluation of the potential of any genotypes in front of a range of environment, but also the identification of genomic regions involved in the control of the tolerance to drought and heat stress in bread wheat. This may help in improving the tolerance of the European bread wheat germplasm to drought and heat stress.