Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A standardized Ashwagandha root extract alleviates stress, anxiety, and improves quality of life in healthy adults by modulating stress hormones: Results from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study

Background: The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in a surge in stress, anxiety, and depression worldwide. Ashwagandha, an ayurvedic adaptogen has been traditionally used to manage stress, anxiety, and general well-being. Objective: We assessed the effect of Ashwagandha root extract (ARE-500 mg) standardized for 2.5% withanolides as per USP protocol with piperine (5 mg of 95% piperine) once daily for 60 days (12.5 mg withanolides/day) to alleviate stress and anxiety in healthy individuals with mild to moderate symptoms. Methods: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted for 60 days using ARE (n = 27) and placebo (n = 27) once daily at night at Narayana Institute of Cardiac Sciences, Bangalore, and Vijaya Super Specialty Hospital, Nellore, in India. The objectives of this study were to assess an improvement in perceived stress scale (PSS), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7), quality of life (QOL), cognitive scores in the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB), changes in salivary cortisol, urinary serotonin, dopamine, serum levels of nitric oxide (NO), glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) from baseline to end of the study. Safety was evaluated by laboratory parameters, and by monitoring any incidence of adverse events. Results: 54 individuals were randomized and 50 of them completed the study. The PSS, GAD-7, and QOL scores improved significantly in all the participants taking ARE compared to the placebo. The CANTAB analysis revealed a significant improvement in multitasking, concentration, and decision taking time in ARE compared to placebo. ARE was also associated with a greater reduction in the morning salivary cortisol and an increase in urinary serotonin compared to placebo. Serum levels of NO, GSH, and MDA were not significantly different. Biochemical and hematological parameters remained in the normal range in all participants and ARE was well tolerated during the study. Conclusion: The results of the study suggest that ARE with 2.5% withanolides can effectively improve stress and anxiety by reducing cortisol and increasing serotonin in healthy individuals with mild to moderate symptoms.
Temporal behavior of cloud morphologies and motions in Saturn's atmosphere

Saturn's atmosphere displays a variety of temporal changes in its cloud morphology at synoptic and planetary scales. Hemispheric long-term albedo variations, which are more pronounced at ultraviolet and blue wavelengths, have been well established and are apparently linked to the seasonal insolation cycle. Short-term changes, of the order of months, have been observed in the spectral reflectivity of the belt/zone pattern mainly at mid-latitudes. Some appear to be related to discrete spot activity, but for the majority of the changes, no such signs of spot activity were detected up to a resolution ∼2000 km. In particular, the “ribbon” structure at 45°N could have been affected by this activity and probably is a transient phenomenon. The polar belts at ∼65° north and south and those at 75° north (hexagon) and south show a long-term stability in their location, perhaps for more than a century. The most prominent belts located in the Equator and the Equatorial Zone are persistent features of Saturn's globe; their main changes took place during the development of a rare, planetary-scale disturbance known as Great White Spots. Only five such events have been observed at repetitive regular intervals of about one Saturn year since the first report in 1876, and at different latitudes from the equator to 60°N. They are probably convective in origin, with the seasonal heating of the upper atmosphere acting as a trigger mechanism. During its life cycle of 2–3 years, the disturbance shows turbulent planetary-scale patterns of clouds that might be related to a wave dynamical phenomenon. Other distinct nonaxisymmetric cloud systems at synoptic scale are very scarce in Saturn's atmosphere. We observed new isolated features at several latitudes during 1990 and 1991. These spots, together with those available from historical records, are used as tracers for determining the latitude dependence and time variability of Saturn's zonal winds. The winds tend to exhibit a long-term stability in their latitudinal positions and average wind speed, although some significant departures from the zonal mean Voyager profile have been detected during the development of the equatorial disturbance in 1990 and 1991.
Evapotranspiração e coeficiente de cultura do tomateiro industrial estimado por sensoriamento utilizando o algoritmo SAFER

A producao de tomate industrial vem se destacando no cenario agroindustrial brasileiro. Na regiao do Cerrado, a producao ocorre no periodo seco do ano (maio a outubro), em grandes areas irrigadas, principalmente por pivo central (sistema de irrigacao responsavel por cerca de 90% da area de producao de tomate industrial). Apesar da producao ser considerada tecnificada, o setor ainda e muito carente de informacoes tecnico-cientificas que auxiliem a cultura atingir o potencial de produtividade e qualidade na regiao. A prova disso e a baixa produtividade media atual (80 t/ha) em comparacao a importantes regioes produtoras no mundo (Espanha e Estados Unidos, principalmente), que apresentam o dobro desta produtividade. Uma das informacoes fundamentais e a necessidade hidrica dos hibridos de tomateiro nas condicoes locais de cultivo. O refinamento desta informacao pode auxiliar no melhor dimensionamento de projetos de irrigacao, assim como no melhor manejo da agua ao longo do ciclo, e pela melhor gestao dos recursos hidricos. Entretanto, os metodos tradicionais de pesquisa nesta area requerem o uso de evapotranspirometros que sao onerosos e pontuais e necessitam de sistemas de aquisicao de dados, o que dificulta sua utilizacao. Mas, tecnicas de sensoriamento remoto vem sendo aplicadas com eficiencia, ja testadas em outras regioes e tem se mostrado bem promissoras. Assim, este estudo teve o objetivo de estimar a evapotranspiracao atual da cultura (ETa) de dois hibridos de tomateiro para o processamento industrial, N901 e H1308, e os seus respectivos coeficientes de cultura (Kc) pelo modelo de balanco de energia SAFER (Simple Algorithm for Evapotranspiration Retrieving) utilizando imagens do satelite Landsat 8 OLI/TIRS, na orbita 221/72 e 222/71, e comparacao com tradicional metodo micrometeorologico utilizando evapotranspiracao de referencia (ETo Penman-Monteith), com os Kcs recomendados pela FAO 56 e EMBRAPA. O estudo foi realizado na Fazenda cabeceira do Piracanjuba, no municipio de Silvânia-GO, no periodo de maio a agosto de 2015, em solo argiloso com preparo convencional. Alem disso, foi monitorado o potencial de agua na folha (semanalmente) e o conteudo de agua no solo pelo balanco hidrico dinâmico local. O potencial de agua na folha e a umidade do solo revelaram que nao ocorreu deficit hidrico ao longo do ciclo de 122 dias. Os resultados mostraram, ainda, que a cultura acumulou uma evapotranspiracao total de 351,97, 340,97 e 356,26 mm pelos metodos FAO 56, EMBRAPA e SAFER, respectivamente. Os Kcs estimado pelo metodo do SAFER apresentou significante correlacao com os metodos FAO 56 e Embrapa (FAO 56, R² = 0,98; Embrapa, R² = 0,95). A ETa estimada pelo metodo do SAFER apresentou significante correlacao com os metodos micrometeorologicos (FAO 56, R2 = 0,97; Embrapa, R2 = 0,97), podendo este ser utilizado para estimativa da ETa do tomateiro na regiao.
Effects of vascular normalizing agents on immune marker expression in T cells, dendritic cells, and melanoma cells

Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) are lymph node-like structures that form at sites of inflammation, and their presence in cancer patients is predictive of a better clinical outcome. One significant obstacle to TLS formation is reduced immune cell infiltration into the tumor microenvironment (TME), resulting from aberrant vasculature within the TME. Recent studies have shown that low doses of vasculature normalizing (VN) agents may override this defect, leading to improved tissue perfusion and increased immune cell entry into the TME. While the effect of VN agents on vascular endothelial cells has been well documented, their effects on immune cell and tumor cell phenotype remain understudied. We hypothesized that treating immune cells with VN agents would induce a pro-inflammatory phenotype in T cells and dendritic cells (DCs), while treating tumor cells would reduce their immunosuppressive phenotype and promote production of chemokines that recruit immune cells and foster TLS formation. To test this, a mouse melanoma cell line, primary murine T cells, and DCs were treated overnight with VN agents. The next day, treated and control cells were harvested for analyses to measure transcript levels of target genes as well as levels of surface markers. Overall, VN agents were observed to have differential but predominantly immune-supportive effects on immune and tumor cell phenotypes. These findings will guide future experiments which may result in an effective clinical treatment.
Shadow Fading Model for Vehicle-to-Vehicle Network Simulators

The Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) propagation channel has significant implications on the design and performance of novel communication protocols for Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs). Extensive research efforts have been made to develop V2V channel models to be implemented in advanced VANET system simulators for performance evaluation. The impact of shadowing caused by other vehicles has, however, largely been neglected in most of the models, as well as in the system simulations. In this paper we present a simple shadow fading model targeting system simulations based on real world measurements performed in urban and highway scenarios. The measurement data is separated for the situations like line-of-sight (LOS), the obstructed line-of-sight (OLOS) by vehicles, and non line-ofsight (NLOS) by buildings with the help of video information available during measurements. It is observed that the vehicles obstructing LOS induce an additional attenuation of about 10dB in the received signal power. We use a Markov chain based state transition diagram to model transitions from LOS to obstructed LOS and present an example of state transition intensities for a real traffic mobility model. We also provide a simple recipe, how to incorporate our shadow fading model in VANET network simulators.
Flash flood dynamics and composition in a semiarid mountain watershed

Flash flood hydrographs were examined using water stable isotopes (deuterium and oxygen) and a plug‐flow lumped catchment model to assess the origin and routing processes of flood water in a semiarid basin in southwestern United States. Precipitation and stream water were sampled during storm and flood conditions at high and low elevations. Isotope mixing relationships readily determined the predominance of three sources for the representative summer monsoon events: high elevation precipitation from two major subbasins and base flow. Each flood progressed through a series of source water contributions, as indicated by several segments of linear mixing between these end‐members. We developed a plug‐flow lumped catchment model to test possible governing processes for specific watershed and forcing conditions. Results suggest two main findings: First, these flood events were generated primarily from event water runoff in high elevations that mixed at the flood bore with pre‐event base flow resident in the stream. The power, speed, and turbulence of the flood bore cause it to mix with, ride atop and push the resident in‐stream water in the front of the rising limb. Second, the timing and volume of flood waves from subbasins are identified by their combined isotopic signature at the basin outlet; this approach may provide an effective mesoscale constraint for rainfall‐runoff models.
AND PSEUDO-EUCLIDEAN

In this paper we study the property of generic global rigidity for frameworks of graphs embedded in d-dimensional complex space and in a d-dimensional pseudo-Euclidean space ( R d with a metric of indeﬁnite signature). We show that a graph is generically globally rigid in Euclidean space iﬀ it is generically globally rigid in a complex or pseudo-Euclidean space. We also establish that global rigidity is always a generic property of a graph in complex space, and give a suﬃcient condition for it to be a generic property in a pseudo-Euclidean space. Extensions to hyperbolic space are also discussed.
University of Birmingham Microwave waveguide filter with broadside wall slots

An investigation into rectangular waveguide filters with open slots on the broad side walls is reported. This type of waveguide filter eliminates the need for direct contact between the two waveguide halves and intentionally leaves a gap in the middle of broad side walls. For X-band (8.2 - 12.4 GHz) waveguides, such a gap can be nearly as wide as 9% of the internal waveguide width a , without introducing any significant radiation loss. A 5 th order filter centred at 10 GHz with a fractional bandwidth of 2% is designed based on such a structure, and fabricated from aluminium and tested. There is a good agreement between measurement and simulation results. This verifies the proposed structure as well as the design procedure.
Observations of S410p and S350p phases at seismograph stations in California

[1] We analyze a new set of seismic data from seismograph stations in California. This data set consists of nearly 5000 S receiver functions for 47 seismograph stations. As a rule, the stacked SRFs display a distinct S410p seismic phase (S wave converted to P at the 410 km discontinuity). The wave paths of S410p sample the upper mantle beneath California and the neighboring region of the Pacific. In northernmost California the S410p travel times are close to those of the IASP91 global model. Further south, S410p usually arrives about 2 s earlier than predicted by the IASP91 model. This early arrival can be explained either by an anomalously high Vp/Vs velocity ratio (1.9 in a 125 km thick layer of the upper mantle versus 1.8 in IASP91), by a depression of the 410 km discontinuity of 15 km, or by a combination of both effects with smaller amplitudes. We observe systematically S350p phase which is converted from a negative discontinuity (with a lower S velocity at the lower side) near a depth of 350 km. The observations of S350p are indicative of a low S velocity layer a few tens of kilometers thick atop the 410 km discontinuity beneath southern California and the neighboring oceanic region. Some receiver functions also display S480p phase, which is interpreted as evidence of an intermittent low-velocity layer in the transition zone.
Estimating soil water‐holding capacities by linking the Food and Agriculture Organization Soil map of the world with global pedon databases and continuous pedotransfer functions

Spatial soil water‐holding capacities were estimated for the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) digital Soil Map of the World (SMW) by employing continuous pedotransfer functions (PTF) within global pedon databases and linking these results to the SMW. The procedure first estimated representative soil properties for the FAO soil units by statistical analyses and taxotransfer depth algorithms [Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 1996]. The representative soil properties estimated for two layers of depths (0–30 and 30–100 cm) included particle‐size distribution, dominant soil texture, organic carbon content, coarse fragments, bulk density, and porosity. After representative soil properties for the FAO soil units were estimated, these values were substituted into three different pedotransfer functions (PTF) models by Rawls et al. [1982], Saxton et al. [1986], and Batjes [1996a]. The Saxton PTF model was finally selected to calculate available water content because it only required particle‐size distribution data and results closely agreed with the Rawls and Batjes PTF models that used both particle‐size distribution and organic matter data. Soil water‐holding capacities were then estimated by multiplying the available water content by the soil layer thickness and integrating over an effective crop root depth of 1 m or less (i.e., encountered shallow impermeable layers) and another soil depth data layer of 2.5 m or less.
A comparison of indexing methods to evaluate quality of soils: the role of soil microbiological properties

The study evaluates and compares two procedures for selecting soil quality indicators (used for the construction of soil quality indices, SQI) by using diverse chemical, physical, and biological properties, and evaluates the role of soil microbiological properties in the construction of SQI. Different soil environments were selected from an extensive agricultural production site in the rolling pampa, Buenos Aires, Argentina. The plots included an undisturbed soil, a grassland soil, and continuous tilled soils with four different surface horizon depths (25, 23, 19, and 14 cm). Various properties were measured, and a minimum dataset was chosen by principal component analysis (PCA) considering all measured soil properties together (procedure A), or the PCA was performed separately according to classification as physical, chemical, or biological soil properties (procedure B). The measured soil properties involved physical, chemical, and biochemical properties determined by standard protocols used in routine laboratory analysis (simple SQI, SSQI) or more laborious protocols to determine microbial community structure and function by phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) and catabolic response profile (CRP), respectively (complex SQI, CSQI). The selected properties were linearly normalised and integrated by the weight additive method to calculate SSQI A, SSQI B, CSQI A, and CSQI B indices. Two microbiological SQI (MSQI) were also calculated; MSQI 1 considered only biological properties according to the procedure used for calculating SQI; MSQI 2 was calculated by considering three selected microbiological parameters representing the size (microbial biomass carbon), activity (soil basal respiration), and functional diversity (evenness, determined by CRP) of the microbial communities. All of the constructed indices show the same differences among the study sites. The inclusion of CRP and PLFA data in the indices slightly increased, or did not increase, the index sensitivity. Microbiological indices had the same sensitivity as the indices integrated by physical, chemical, and biological properties. An evaluation of the SQI constructed by both procedures found no difference in sensitivity. However, SQI constructed by procedure B allowed evaluation of the effects of management practices on physical, chemical, and biological soil properties.
Seismic moments of earthquakes beneath island arcs, phase changes, and subduction velocities

The analysis of seismic moments of intermediate and deep-focus earthquakes in four island arc regions supports the hypothesis that these shocks are the result of shear stresses caused by phase transitions in the descending slab at depth near 150, 350, and 600 km. Cumulative seismic moments summation M/sub 0/ for earthquakes listed by Gutenberg and Richter were found to exhibit four maxima when they were plotted as a function of depth; the maxima occur within the depth ranges 0 to 100, 100 to 250, 250 to 450, and 450 to 700 km. The uppermost range corresponds to the zone of underthrusting. The seismic moments of earthquakes in the three lower depth ranges ae related to phase transitions in the slab by summation M/sub 0/ = . mu.LT vertical bar . delta.V/V vertical bar v/sub sub/, where . mu. is the modulus of rigidity, L is the length along strike of the subduction zone, T is the slab thickness, . delta.V/V is the fractional volume change associated with a particular phase transition, and v/sub sub/ is the subduction velocity. In the range 100 to 250 km the earthquakes result from volume decreases associated with the melting of the oceanic crust. In the depth range 250more » to 450 km the volume change is due mostly to the transformation of olivine to spinel structure with a density increase of about 8%. In the lowest depth range the decrease in volume is due to the change of spinel to postspinel phases with a density increase of about 8%. For any island arc region, up to four independent estimates of v/sub sub/ can be calculated by using Brune's method for the zone of shallow underthrusting and the relationship between summation M/sub 0/ and volume changes for the three deeper zones. As an example, the four estimates of v/sub sub/ for the Tonga arc, in order of increasing depth, are 8.4, 7.9, 7.6, and 8.3 cm/yr. « less
Spoiling the party. Experimental evidence on the willingness to transmit inconvenient ethical information

Information about the consequences of our consumption choices can be unwelcome, and people sometimes avoid it. We investigate a situation where one person possesses information that is inconvenient for another, and study why and when they decide to transmit that information. We introduce a simple and portable experimental game to analyze transmission of inconvenient information. In this game, a Sender can inform a Receiver at a small cost about a negative externality associated with a tempting and proﬁtable action for the Receiver. The results from our online experiment (N = 1,512) show that Senders transmit more information for large negative externalities. Sender’s decisions are largely driven by their own preferences for information. However, some Senders take the Receiver’s feelings into account, by transmitting evidence of positive externalities or by suppressing negative information upon the Receiver’s request. Understanding the decision to share inconvenient information matters, as it will aﬀect the personal and political will to address important externalities and can inform strategies to encourage the transmission of inconvenient information within organizations.
Correction to “Correcting for forecast bias in soil moisture assimilation with the ensemble Kalman filter”

Profile average soil moisture [vol%] 16.5 ± 2.8, 19.2 ± 5.1 17.9 ± 3.6, 19.7 ± 5.3 19.2 ± 4.8 18.2 ± 3.8, 20.0 ± 5.4 Evapotranspiration [mm] 67 ± 11 67 ± 11 67 ± 11 67 ± 11 Ground evaporation [mm] 42 ± 10 42 ± 10 42 ± 10 42 ± 10 Canopy evaporation [mm] 0.2 ± 0.7 0.1 ± 0.7 0.1 ± 0.7 0.1 ± 0.7 Canopy transpiration [mm] 25 ± 10 25 ± 10 25 ± 10 25 ± 10 Surface runoff [mm] 38 ± 11 39 ± 11 37 ± 11 39 ± 11 Subsurface drainage [mm] 109 ± 32 427 ± 393 149 ± 60 571 ± 526 Soil moisture RMSE [vol%] 6.74 ± 3.47, 2.00 ± 0.70 4.98 ± 2.74, 1.94 ± 0.71 1.88 ± 0.70 4.82 ± 2.73, 2.08 ± 0.75 Average absolute increment [mm/event] n/a, 65 ± 58 26 ± 29, 39 ± 40 51 ± 50 38 ± 39, 36 ± 41