Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Impact of Phenological Gaps on Leaf Characteristics and Foliage Dynamics of an Understory Dwarf Bamboo, Sasa kurilensis

Phenological gaps exert a significant influence on the growth of dwarf bamboos. However, how dwarf bamboos respond to and exploit these phenological gaps remain enigmatic. The light environment, soil nutrients, leaf morphology, maximum photosynthetic rate, foliage dynamics, and branching characteristics of Sasa kurilensis were examined under the canopies of Fagus crenata and Magnolia obovata. The goal was to elucidate the adaptive responses of S. kurilensis to phenological gaps in the forest understory. The findings suggest that phenological gaps under an M. obovata canopy augment the available biomass of S. kurilensis, enhancing leaf area, leaf thickness, and carbon content per unit area. However, these gaps do not appreciably influence the maximum photosynthetic rate, total leaf number, leaf lifespan, branch number, and average branch length. These findings underscore the significant impact of annually recurring phenological gaps on various aspects of S. kurilensis growth, such as its aboveground biomass, leaf morphology, and leaf biochemical characteristics. It appears that leaf morphology is a pivotal trait in the response of S. kurilensis to phenological gaps. Given the potential ubiquity of the influence of phenological gaps on dwarf bamboos across most deciduous broadleaf forests, this canopy phenomenon should not be overlooked.
A third assessment of global marine fisheries discards

This third update of FAO’s global discard estimate adopted the ‘fishery-by-fishery’ approach employed in the second discards assessment published in 2005. The update included publicly available discard data in the last 20 years to establish a baseline of a time series of global marine fisheries discards. This is essential for monitoring the status and trends of discard management, which is the first step of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management cycle. In addition, the study developed a new fisheries data table incorporating landings data from the FAO Global Capture Production dataset (FishStat J) from 2010 to 2014, which allocated the landings to over 2 000 fisheries worldwide. The current study estimated that the annual discards from global marine capture fisheries between 2010 and 2014 was 9.1 million tonnes (95% CI: 6.7 – 16.1 million tonnes). About 46 percent (4.2 million tonnes) of total annual discards were from bottom trawls that included otter trawls, shrimp trawls, pair bottom trawls, twin otter trawls and beam trawls. The study included a synthesis of estimates of bycatch and discards of endangered, threatened and protected (ETP) species. Substantial advances have been made in quantifying fisheries interactions with such species so as to make informed decisions on their protection. However, many challenges remain, especially for small-scale fisheries. The development of standardized data collection techniques, risk-based sampling and sharing of data across agencies and regions will help to identify management priorities and allow implementation and enforcement of mitigation measures. A review of previous research showed that discard practices were often related to a wide range of factors, so it is difficult to assess the effectiveness of fishery management actions on the amount and practice of discards. Many regulations are inconsistently enforced, and their implementation is often less strict than intended. Piecemeal approaches in many bycatch and discards management measures can result in unintended cross-taxa conflicts, where regulations designed to reduce bycatch and/or discards of one species or species group may increase bycatch and/ or discards of another. Examination of approaches to accounting for and mitigating against pre-catch, post-capture and ghost fishing mortalities demonstrates that an understanding of the relative importance of factors affecting indirect fishing mortality is necessary for estimating total fishing-induced mortality and for designing and implementing mitigation measures.
A distance transform for continuous parameterization of discrete geologic facies for subsurface flow model calibration

Construction of predictive subsurface flow models involves subjective interpretation and interpolation of spatially limited data, often using imperfect modeling assumptions. Hence, the process can introduce significant uncertainty and bias in predicting the flow and transport behavior of these systems. In particular, the uncertainty in the facies distribution in complex geologic environments, such as alluvial/fluvial channels, can be consequential for forecasting the dynamic response of these systems to perturbations due to pumping and development activities. Conventional model calibration techniques that are designed to update continuous model parameters cannot be used to estimate discrete parameters from flow and pressure data. We present a distance transform approach for converting discrete facies models to continuous parameters that can be updated using continuous model calibration methods. Distance transforms are widely used in discrete image processing, where the discrete values in each pixel are replaced with their distance (i.e., a continuous variable) to the nearest boundary cell. After updating the continuous distance maps during model calibration, a back transformation is applied to retrieve the updated facies maps. To preserve large‐scale facies connectivity, truncated singular value decomposition (SVD) parametrization may be used to represent the distance maps with low‐rank parameters. A variant of the ensemble smoother, ES‐MDA is used to update the continuous parameters of the inversion (either distance maps or their SVD coefficients if used). The distance transform method addresses an important problem in facies model calibration where model updating can result in losing facies connectivity and discreteness.
The economics of conjunctive use of ground and surface water

This study is primarily concerned with water storage control under conditions of conjunctive use and the role of storage control in guiding investment decisions in water resource development. Modern sequential decision theory is applied to water storage control in order to provide a theoretical framework for economic analysis. The theoretical model is utilized in an empirical investigation which is concerned with marginal value of imported water. The region chosen for study is serviced by Pine Flat Reservoir on the Kings River in the San Joaquin Valley.
Effect of Different Compost as Pond Manure on the Water Quality and Growth of Labeo rohita (ham.)

Organic fertilizers are used to enhance the productivity of inland aquatic resources. These fertilizers directly influence the water quality parameters which is liable to form the aquatic environment. Vermi compost is a new and valuable introduction to the list of organic fertilizers used in aquaculture production. A sustainable technology is required to get higher production from existing agricultural resources. For long sustainability of the production potential there is a need to utilize all available resources and production system within each and every system. Utilization of byproduct of one farming system to another farming system is a need of today. Not only for sustainable farming but also to keep environment clean in which we are habituating. If we are unable to use these by products, that putrefy our local environment with bad odor, pollute air with the production of noxious gases. The byproduct of farming system when accumulated in open air it produces several hazards to the human beings like, Malaria, Asthmas, dengue and polluted drinking water. Disposal of Agri by products International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 8 Number 02 (2019) Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas. com
Automated Swiss-Style Relief Shading and Rock Hachuring

Rock depiction in Swiss topographic maps has evolved from humble line drawings into expressive renderings indicating slope, aspect and traversability. In this paper, an automatic method to derive monochrome Swiss-style rock hachures from a raster elevation model is presented. The proper placement and light modulation of the linear strokes depend on the availability of sound foundations for both terrain generalization and relief shading, for which two novel methods are introduced. The generalization applies line integral convolution along slope lines to the elevation values. The resulting smoothed raster has the footprint of its steep faces enlarged to increase the map space available for steep faces. The shaded relief is generated with the focus on terrain edges, unlike common raster cell-based methods. The rock hachures are modulated according to the grey values of the shaded relief. Finally, we present two topographic maps that demonstrate this new method of depicting relief.
Ecological spillover dynamics of organisms from urban to natural landscapes

Urbanization and anthropogenic development have fundamentally altered ecosystem dynamics on a global scale. Conservation and management of comparatively less modiﬁed landscapes adjacent to highly modiﬁed landscapes requires careful consideration of interactions between landscape types. Restoration or conservation of habitat within a developed matrix is generally thought to have beneﬁcial effects on landscape-level ecological processes. We propose an ecological spillover framework to critically assess how restoring or conserving species populations within anthropogenically modiﬁed landscapes may affect adjacent wildland populations. Within the framework, the spillover process is divided into seven interconnected ‘nodes’, which identify points at which potential cause-effect relationships may exist between urban and wildland populations. The framework is useful for a wide range of project-speciﬁc ecological relationships, and can help sci-entists and managers identify knowledge gaps and weigh risk in conservation decision-making. We queried the conservation literature to identify research focused on the impacts of urban species populations on regional wildland populations. Our search revealed seven ecological processes that have the potential to be affected by urban to wildland spillover and we found relatively few studies that explicitly analyze spillover effects from urban to wildland areas. Organisms living in urban areas within restored or remnant habitats located in an urban matrix, or within the built environment have largely unknown effects on landscape-level ecological processes. We conclude with a discussion on the critical gaps in research linking these habitats to larger landscape-level ecological understanding, and provide recommendations for research prior-ities that might illuminate this important aspect of 21st century conservation planning.
Got It? Comparative Ergonomic Evaluation of Robotic Object Handover for Visually Impaired and Sighted Users

The rapidly growing research on the accessibility of digital technologies has focused on blind or visually impaired (BVI) users. However, the field of human–robot interaction has largely neglected the needs of BVI users despite the increasing integration of assistive robots into daily life and their potential benefits for our aging societies. One basic robotic capability is object handover. Robots assisting BVI users should be able to coordinate handovers without eye contact. This study gathered insights on the usability of human–robot handovers, including 20 BVI and 20 sighted participants. In a standardized experiment with a mixed design, a handover robot prototype equipped with a voice user interface and haptic feedback was evaluated. The robot handed over everyday objects (i) by placing them on a table and (ii) by allowing for midair grasping. The usability target was met, and all user groups reported a positive user experience. In total, 97.3% of all handovers were successful. The qualitative feedback showed an appreciation for the clear communication of the robot’s actions and the handover reliability. However, the duration of the handover was seen as a critical issue. According to all subjective criteria, the BVI participants showed higher variances compared to the sighted participants. Design recommendations for improving robotic handovers equally supporting both user groups are given.
Distribution and Transformation of Soil Phosphorus Forms under Different Land Use Patterns in an Urban Area of the Lower Yangtze River Basin, South China

Understanding the phosphorus (P) cycle is essential for preventing soil P loss, improving environmental quality, and promoting sustainable agriculture, particularly in urban areas. In this study, a representative city of the lower Yangtze River Basin, Nanchang, was chosen to systematically explore the distribution and transformation of soil P forms, which were extracted by an improved SEDEX method and measured by a standard phosphorus–molybdenum blue method under three land use patterns. The contents of soil P forms were the highest in the dryland and the lowest in the paddy field, with total P accumulation in the upper wasteland and paddy field soils but in the lower dryland soil. The pH value and grain size affected soil P form distributions to a variable extent from one land use pattern to another. The transformation of soil P forms was weak in the wasteland. It was first found that some detrital limestone P (De-P) was transformed into exchangeable P (Ex-P) in the paddy field with authigenic calcium-bound phosphorus (Au-P) and organic phosphorus (OP) transformation, and the transformation between Ex-P and iron-bound phosphorus (Fe-P), Au-P, and between Au-P and OP existed in the dryland. Land use pattern was the dominant driver for the P distribution and transformation of soil P. This study highlights the critical role of land use patterns in affecting the P cycle of soils in urban areas and the importance of sustainable urban land management.
Measuring the effects of pore-pressure changes on seismic amplitude using crosswell continuous active-source seismic monitoring (CASSM)

Summary Monitoring of time-varying reservoir properties, such as the state of stress, is a primary goal of geophysical investigations, including for geological sequestration of CO 2 , enhanced hydrocarbon recovery (EOR), and other subsurface engineering activities. In this work, we used Continuous Active-Source Seismic Monitoring (CASSM), with cross-well geometry, to measure variation in seismic coda amplitude, as a consequence of effective stress change (in the form of changes in pore fluid pressure). To our knowledge, the presented results are the first in-situ example of such crosswell measurement at reservoir scale and in field conditions. Data compliment the findings of our previous work which investigated the relationship between pore fluid pressure and seismic velocity (velocity-stress sensitivity) using the CASSM system at the same field site (Marchesini et al., 2017, in review ). We find that P-wave coda amplitude decreases with decreasing pore pressure (increasing effective stress). Results from three discrete fluid pumping events show a direct correlation between seismic amplitude and downhole fluid pore indicating a decrease of post P-wave correspondent to a decrease in pore fluid pressure.
The Rising Challenge of Poor Health Literacy of Patients with Systemic Sclerosis: Preliminary Data Identify Important Unmet Needs in an Italian Cohort

Rationale and aim: Health literacy (HL) is pivotal for the successful self-management of chronic diseases. Little HL information is currently available in SSc patients; therefore, the present study aims at evaluating the HL levels in an Italian cohort of SSc patients. Methods: SSc patients were enrolled with the support of Italian patient associations, from September 2022 to March 2023. Health literacy characteristics were derived from the Health Literacy Scale European Questionnaire-16 (HLS-EU-Q16), consisting of 16 items designed on a four-point Likert scale ranging from “very difficult” to “very easy”, and three HL levels were identified: inadequate HL (0–8 score); problematic HL (9–12 score); and sufficient HL (13–16 score). Results: Enrolled patients (n = 57, mean age = 59 years, SD = 13.2) were mostly female (98.2%), partnered (73.7%), and unemployed or retired (67.9%). Almost half of SSc patients were diagnosed more than 10 years ago, with first symptoms appearing on average 19 years ago (SD 10.5). In 63% of the participants, the overall health literacy skills were inadequate, or problematic, especially in the health care and disease prevention domains. Indeed, 49.2% of the patients declared difficulty in finding information on treatments for illnesses and where to get professional help (42.1%), 47.6% found difficulty in retrieving information on how to manage mental health problems, and 40.4% declared difficulties in judging whether the information on health risks in the media was reliable. Conclusions: Our findings show that SSc patients have inadequate or problematic levels of HL, suggesting the need for periodic screenings to uncover poor health literacy skills and to provide tailored and understandable educational material. This study was not registered.
Random Polymers: Interaction with a Penetrable Surface

We introduce a polymer measure to describe a polymer that is attracted to the origin and repelled by the negative half-plane. We work out a direct expression for the partition function and look at properties of the free energy. We look at the model when repellance becomes attraction and when the repellance occurs in a random fashion. We prove several results concerning localization of the polymer, one of which is that the localized phase corresponds to positivity of the free energy. Finally, we construct a tailored Metropolis Algorithm to simulate the distribution of the polymer, and discuss preliminary results of the simulation.
Cuantificación de β-caroteno en zapallos (Cucurbita sp.) cultivados en Uruguay

Pumpkins ( Cucurbita sp.) easily grow in the agricultural and climatic conditions of Uruguay, and it is part of the everyday food of their inhabitants. Their β -carotene content has nutritional interest. This carotene has provitamin A activity, participating in mechanisms that allow healthy growth and reproduction. Their antioxidant properties help in maintaining epithelial tissues and normal vision. The objective of this study was to determine the β - carotene content in the raw flesh of seven different pumpkins types. The evaluated materials came from a field and postharvest comparative trial carried out at Southern Regional Center of the Faculty of Agronomy. The fruits were stored in the open using traditional structures, without control of temperature neither humidity. The pumpkins were placed on a wood table (1,2 by 50 m) below a roof to avoid rain over the fruits, and protected between two lines of trees. The temperatures were registered, and varied from 8 to 23ºC. The relative humidity ranged from 60 to 95%. The plots were distributed at random. Samples consisting of three pumpkins by plant material were taken three times from May to August. The content of β - carotene was determined by high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) on C 30 column, extracted with THF-Methanol (1:1). The local type “Criollo” had the lowest content of β - carotene with 0,08 – 0.17 mg/100g fresh weight always. “Delicato F1” and “Delica F1” showed the highest value, 3,17 and 3,74 mg β -carotene/100g fresh weight respectively. The hybrid that kept more stable the content of β -carotene during the period analyzed was “Atlas F1”. At end of this trial “Criollo” (0.09 mg/100g fresh weight) only had statistical differences with the others evaluated materials (1,70 – 2.71 mg /
Finding and sharing GIS methods based on the questions they answer

ABSTRACT Geographic information has become central for data scientists of many disciplines to put their analyzes into a spatio-temporal perspective. However, just as the volume and variety of data sources on the Web grow, it becomes increasingly harder for analysts to be familiar with all the available geospatial tools, including toolboxes in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), R packages, and Python modules. Even though the semantics of the questions answered by these tools can be broadly shared, tools and data sources are still divided by syntax and platform-specific technicalities. It would, therefore, be hugely beneficial for information science if analysts could simply ask questions in generic and familiar terms to obtain the tools and data necessary to answer them. In this article, we systematically investigate the analytic questions that lie behind a range of common GIS tools, and we propose a semantic framework to match analytic questions and tools that are capable of answering them. To support the matching process, we define a tractable subset of SPARQL, the query language of the Semantic Web, and we propose and test an algorithm for computing query containment. We illustrate the identification of tools to answer user questions on a set of common user requests.
Patterned Variation of Early Woodland Waubesa Contracting Stem Projectile Points in Wisconsin

The overall research goal is to examine the Waubesa Contracting Stem projectile points from three different regions to determine if there are any stylistic changes between three geographically defined concentrations. Identifying any statistical patterning of the blade and shoulder may be related to different social influences from the different geographical regions. The knowledge gained by identifying different styles of Waubesa Contracting Stem points could allow archaeologists to determine which of these three regions a point most likely came from if recovered outside of the core culture area. The study of patterned variation in Waubesa Contracting Stem points could indicate the presence or absence of social interaction and social boundaries between groups of people of the Early Woodland culture in Wisconsin. The morphological analysis of projectile points related to cultural interaction can be used to provide additional information about prehistoric cultures in Wisconsin. Identifying style variation of projectile points can be more difficult as compared to other types of artifacts due to lack of style added to lithics. The patterned variation in the blade or base might be linked to different styles used by different social groups. The analyses presented in this thesis uses data sets out of a sample of 256 projectile points from the three regions of Wisconsin to examine style variation. The analyses on the attributes were found to be useful for identifying style variations in Waubesa Contracting Stem point. Understanding stylistic variations in projectile points could indicate the presence or absence of social interaction and social boundaries between groups of people of the Early Woodland cultures in Wisconsin.