Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Psychometric assessment of oral health-related quality of life questionnaires cross-culturally adapted for use in Brazilian adults - a systematic review

ABSTRACT Objective: This study aimed to review the psychometric properties of oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) questionnaires for the Brazilian adult population. Methods: A systematic review was performed based on the COSMIN guidelines (PROSPERO CRD42022300018). The studies were obtained through electronic searches in the PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, Lilacs, VHL (BIREME), SciELO, and Embase databases. Results: The search was performed in December 2022. Articles on OHRQoL that reported the cross-cultural adaptation of instruments into Portuguese (Brazil) and evaluated the psychometric properties of measuring instruments in adult patients were included. Those about the development of a novel instrument and participants under 18 years of age were excluded. Information was collected on the country, type of instrument validated, psychometric tests, and adaptation process. The certainty of the evidence was assessed using GRADEpro program. The search returned 6,556 articles, and 14 were considered for this review. However, two studies did not report the cross-cultural adaptation process. Content validity, internal consistency, criterion validity, construct validity, reliability, general discriminant validity, Cronbach’s alpha value, and general intraclass correlation coefficient value were confirmed in 12 studies. Cronbach’s alpha ranged from 0.69 to 0.96. The certainty of the evidence was considered moderate and low. This study has some limitations, such as the lack of information in some reviewed studies, the unavailability of Brazilian instruments, and absence of longitudinal validation of some instruments. Conclusions: In conclusion, there are 14 OHRQoL instruments adapted for Brazilian adults that can be used with caution by researchers and clinicians, since they presented moderate to low certainty of the evidence.
Classification of Heart Failure Based on Phase Trajectory Complexity of Seismocardiogram

Objective: Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of disease progression and mortality in HF patients. This study aimed to classify HF by extracting nonlinear features from the seismocardiogram (SCG) signal of heart. First, the trajectory of SCG signal was depicted in a reconstructed high-dimensional phase space to reflect nonlinear properties and cardiac dynamics of SCG. This trajectory was then mapped onto a “displacement-velocity” phase plane to obtain the 2-D phase plane trajectory. Thereby, a phase trajectory complexity (PTC) of the SCG signal based on entropy was calculated and proposed as a key feature in order to represent the complexity of the cardiac dynamic system and realize HF classification. The available SCG signals of 73 HF patients and 20 healthy individuals used in this study were obtained from the SCG-right heart catheterization (RHC) and combined measurement of ECG, breathing, and SCGs databases, respectively. Experimental results indicate that our proposed features achieve an accuracy of 87.68% in HF classification. When combined with other nonlinear features, the highest training and prediction accuracies reach 100% and 95.17%, respectively. This demonstrates that our proposed features contribute to improving the HF classification outcomes.
International Plant Nutrition Colloquium

: Aluminium toxicity reduces crop productivity on acid soils. Some plant species developed efficient resistance mechanisms excluding Al from accumulation in Al-sensitive root tissues by exudation of organic anions. Aluminium accumulators did not only evolve resistance but also tolerance mechanisms by sequestration of Al with organic anions within the plant tissue which enable them to grow well under extremely Al-toxic conditions. The aim of this study was to explore the interrelationships between Al exclusion and Al accumulation in the Al accumulator buckwheat. Using “micro rhizotrones” the 5 mm root apex was identified as main root zone involved in both Al accumulation and release of oxalate. The exudation of oxalate into the root apoplast was triggered by Al applied to the 5 mm root apex in a temperature-independent way suggesting a passive process. On the other hand, the uptake of Al into the symplast and the release from the symplast and thus loading of the xylem proved to be active processes. Equimolar concentrations of oxalate and Al in the water free space fluid of the root apex reducing Al rhizotoxicity and at the same time enhancing Al uptake and transport to the xylem is considered as circumstantial evidence that Al is transported into the symplast as (Al-Oxalate1)+.
Three-dimensional scattering by two-dimensional topographies

Three-dimensional seismic responses of two-dimensional topographies are studied by means of the indirect boundary element method (IBEM). The IBEM yields, in the presented form, very accurate results and has the advantage of low computational cost. In IBEM, diffracted waves are constructed in terms of single-layer boundary souces. The appropriate Green's functions used are those of a harmonic point foce moving along the axis of the topography in a full space. Obtained reults are compared against those published by other authors. Examples of simulations are presented for different geometries, for different types of incident wave fields, and in particular, for different arrival angles to the topography to quantitatively study three-dimensional effects of the scattering. The accuracy of the results makes it possible to analyze them in both the time and drequency domaisn. Frequency-space representations allow identification of difraction and interference patterns in the seismic response of the topography. Synthetic seismograms are obtained by Fourier analysis. Using timespace domain representations, the nature of each of the scattered waves are identified in terms of, for example, creeping waves and reflected compressional waves.
Environmental and Engineering Geophysics by Prem V. Sharma

1. Introductory observations 2. Gravity surveying 3. Magnetic surveying 4. Seismic surveys 5. Self-potential surveying 6. Resistivity and induced polarization surveys 7. Electromagnetic surveys 8. Ground-probing radar 9. Radioactivity surveys 10. Geothermal surveying 11. Geophysical borehole logging 12. Inversion theory and tomography Appendix A. Analytical continuation of potential fields Appendix B. Gravity and magnetic attraction of finite vertical or horizontal cylinder Appendix C. Magnetic anomaly of a right rectangular prism with an arbitrary direction of magnetization vector Appendix D. Poynting vector resistivity and the Bostick inversion Index.
Effectiveness of cinnamon in the reduction of lipid levels in people with diabetes: a randomized clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effectiveness of cinnamon in reducing lipid levels in people with diabetes. METHOD Randomized clinical trial of parallel groups, triple-blind, conducted in Basic Health Units in the state of Piauí in 2019. People with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, between 18 and 80 years old, using oral antidiabetics, were included, and divided into two groups. The experimental group tested 3g of cinnamon for 90 days. RESULTS 140 people participated in the study. From these, the experimental group (n= 71) showed a reduction in mean levels of total cholesterol (p= 0.316 | CI 95% -24.9-8.1), LDL (p= 0.024 | CI 95% -29.3 -2.1) and triglycerides (p= 0.969 | 95% CI -28.6-27.5), and increased HDL (p= 0.001 | 95% CI 4.2-10.2). CONCLUSION The use of 3g of cinnamon per day, for 90 days, seems to help reduce LDL values and increase HDL levels in patients with diabetes.
Ductile Shearing Zones Occurring along the Northern and Southern Boundaries of the Central Tianshan Block

This paper described in detail the structural features of the central Tianshan block along Houxia-Wuwamen section of the Wulumuqi-Korla highway. Basing upon field and microstructural observations, three ductile shearing zones associated with the Central Tianshan Block are identified. The ductile shearing zone occurred along the Northern Margin of the Central Tianshan block has been studied before, and is dextral with a width up to 10km. The Wulasitai ductile shearing zone occurred within the Central Tianshan block, and is a sinistral one, where its mylonite has a width of 200 m. The ductile shearing zone occurred along the southern margin of the Central Tianshan block is presented as a lot of dioritic mylonite and ultra mylonite. Shearing criteria such as S-C fabric indicated that it is a sinistral shearing zone. The boundary faults that were used to define the Central Tianshan block developed along the shearing center of the northern or southern ductile shearing zones respectively. Above shearing zones must have very large strain accumulations, suggesting the amalgamation of the tectonic units of the Tianshan range result from strike sliding in a great degree. It is significant to study the space distribution, kinematics and total strain accumulation of the ductile shearing zones for reconstruction of the tectonics and paleo-geography of the Tianshan range.
Overview of Balaenoptera whales strandings in Southern Brazil from 1993 to 2018

The ecology and distribution of most baleen whales are poorly known in Brazilian waters, despite the history of whaling and the recent increase in the research effort. Although stranding data presents some caveats, it is useful to understand patterns of distribution and occurrence and to detect population trends. In this scenario, data from 25 years of a monitoring marine mammal stranding program were used to evaluate the composition and spatial-temporal patterns of Balaenoptera whales in southern Brazil. A stretch of 270 km on the coast of Rio Grande do Sul State (from 29°20’S to 31°21’S) was surveyed year-round between 1993 and 2018. Whales were identified, measured and sex determined whenever possible. Molecular identification through mtDNA analysis was obtained for 22 individuals and confirmed field identification in 17 cases. Forty-eight whales of four species were recorded: common minke whale B. acutorostrata n = 27, Antarctic minke whale B. bonaerensis n = 1, Bryde’s whale B. brydei n = 13, fin whale B. physalus n = 1. In addition, six whales were not identified at species level due to advanced decomposition. The larger number of strandings of common minke and Bryde’s whales may be related to their greater abundance and/or more coastal distribution. Both species were recorded year-round, but strandings of common minke and Bryde’s whales occurred mostly during winter/spring (77.77%) and spring/summer (66.66%), respectively. Although Bryde’s whales appear to remain in southern Brazilian waters during the entire year, the results suggest the existence of seasonal inshore-offshore movements. Moreover, the greater number of strandings of juveniles of common minke whales compared to adults (ratio 1.86:1) and their occurrence in different seasons suggest that some immature individuals may not leave this region, as previously pointed out by other studies. This long-term survey brings new evidence of the importance of this region in the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean for some Balaenoptera species.
The effects of natural grazing intensity on plant community and soil nutrients in alpine meadow.

Grazing is significant factor impacting the ecological processes of grassland ecosystems.This study was conducted to investigate the effects of natural grazing intensity on plant community and soil nutrients in alpine meadow.Using comparative experiments,research was initiated under different grazing intensities to provide a theoretical basis for defining the reasonable stocking rate of alpine meadow.Our results showed that: Both above-ground biomass and species richness of plant community were the highest in fencing than that in light and moderate grazing,and the least in heavy grazing treatment;Shannon-Wiener diversity index was not significantly different among fencing,light and moderate grazing;the above-ground biomass and cover of palatable herbages(grasses and sedges) was reduced with grazing intensity increasing,while the forbs in heavy grazing treatment had higher above-ground biomass than that in fencing,light and moderate grazing;over three growing stages,soil moisture decreased with grazing intensity enhancing in May,but increased in July and September;the soil bulk density in moderate grazing was significantly lower than that in other three grazing treatment(P0.05);the pH value was the highest(pH 7.31) in heavy grazing and was not significantly different among fencing,light and moderate grazing treatment;soil organic carbon was reduced with increasing grazing intensity in plant growing stages;soil total nitrogen was not significant different among light,moderate and heavy grazing treatment.However,soil ammonium-N and nitrate-N increased along the increasing of grazing intensities over the whole plant growing stages;soil available phosphorus shared the same trend as total phosphorus that they had the highest value under moderate grazing.Our result suggested that the moderate grazing was effective way to protect biodiversity and improve grassland productivity,while fencing is beneficial for recovering of the degraded alpine meadow.
Simultaneous nonlinear spectral broadening and temporal contrast enhancement of ultrashort pulses in a multi-pass cell

We study both numerically and experimentally the use of two third-order nonlinear temporal filtering techniques, namely nonlinear ellipse rotation and cross-polarized wave generation, for simultaneous nonlinear spectral broadening and temporal contrast enhancement of mJ energy, 30 fs titanium:sapphire laser pulses in a multi-pass cell. In both cases, a contrast enhancement greater than 3 orders of magnitude is observed, together with record high conversion efficiencies. Careful balancing of nonlinearity and dispersion inside the multi-pass cell helps tune the spectral broadening process and control the post-compressed pulse duration for specific applications.
Ecological assets valuation of the Tibetan Plateau

Based on a series of1∶1000000maps of natural resources of China,6categories of ecological assets were divided,which included forest,grassland,farmland,wetland,water body and desert.By means of GIS,the1∶4000000Ecological Assets Map of Tibetan Plateau was compiled and the relative data were calculated.According to partial global ecosystem services value evaluation results obtained by Costanza et al.(1997)along with responses of ecological questionnaire s from specialists of China,this paper established the ecosystem services value unit area of Chinese terrestrial ecosystems.We used the ecological assets value table as a basis and also adjusted price value by biomass and then,the ecological assets value of the Tibetan Plateau was estimated.The results indicated that ecosystem services value of Tibetan Plateau is some 9363.9×10 8 yuan annually,accounting for17.68%of annual ecosystem services value of China and0.61%of the world.The value of soil formation and disposition provided by ecosys-tem s is the highest,which occupies19.3%of the total ecosystem services value and then,the value of waste treatment takes up16.8%,water conservation value,16.5%and biodiversity,16%. The forest and the grassland ecosystem s offered the main ecosystem services value,being31.3%and48.3%of the total value provided by different ecosystem types,respectively.
Construction of a High-Density Paulownia Genetic Map and QTL Mapping of Important Phenotypic Traits Based on Genome Assembly and Whole-Genome Resequencing

Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping based on a genetic map is a very effective method of marker-assisted selection in breeding, and whole-genome resequencing is one of the useful methods to obtain high-density genetic maps. In this study, the hybrid assembly of Illumina, PacBio, and chromatin interaction mapping data was used to construct high-quality chromosomal genome sequences of Paulownia fortunei, with a size of 476.82 Mb, a heterozygosity of 0.52%, and a contig and scaffold N50s of 7.81 Mb and 21.81 Mb, respectively. Twenty scaffolds with a total length of 437.72 Mb were assembled into 20 pseudochromosomes. Repeat sequences with a total length of 243.96 Mb accounted for 51.16% of the entire genome. In all, 26,903 protein-coding gene loci were identified, and 26,008 (96.67%) genes had conserved functional motifs. Further comparative genomics analysis preliminarily showed that the split of P. fortunei with Tectona grandis likely occurred 38.8 (33.3–45.1) million years ago. Whole-genome resequencing was used to construct a merged genetic map of 20 linkage groups, with 2993 bin markers (3,312,780 SNPs), a total length of 1675.14 cm, and an average marker interval of 0.56 cm. In total, 73 QTLs for important phenotypic traits were identified (19 major QTLs with phenotypic variation explained ≥ 10%), including 10 for the diameter at breast height, 7 for the main trunk height, and 56 for branch-related traits. These results not only enrich P. fortunei genomic data but also form a solid foundation for fine QTL mapping and key marker/gene mining of Paulownia, which is of great significance for the directed genetic improvement of these species.
Measuring TPACK in 2-Year Public College Faculty

Two-year public colleges educate more than 50% of all U.S. undergraduates, yet graduation rates (29%) fall far below their 4-year counterparts (63%). It is critical for students of 2-year public institutions that their faculty have the appropriate knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to effectively guide students toward graduation. This study uses technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) theory to evaluate faculty KSAs. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses are used to demonstrate reliability, validity, and the 7-factor structure of the data. This instrument may be useful in pre-employment KSA assessment for potential new faculty, as well as identifying professional development opportunities for incumbent faculty.
THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN AIR POLLUTIONS AND RESPIRATORY DISEASES : STUDY IN THAILAND

The open burnings, coal mines, traffics, and forest fires have been recognized as the major sources of severe air pollution in the upper north of Thailand. However, there have been no clear evidences to show the associations between the air pollution and respiratory diseases in the area. We assessed the effects of air pollutants on the respiratory diseases in Maemoh District, Lampang Province, Thailand. The numbers of all 3,817 Sob-pad Sub district patients with respiratory diseases were recorded daily, for365 days , from January,1 to December31, 2007. The daily air pollutants, including particulate matter less than 10 μm (PM10), carbon monoxide (CO), ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2), and the meteorological parameters, including pressure, average temperature, relative humidity, rain quantity, sunshine duration, air quality index and the day of week were monitored. The air pollution and respiratory diseases were analyzed with the generalized linear model with Poisson regression. There were positive associations of SO2 at lag 4(P=0.006) and NO2 at lag1 (P=0.012) and respiratory diseases, but negative associations of PM10 at lag 2(P<0.001), Relative humidity at lag 2 (P<0.001), temperature at lag 6(P<0.001), pressure at lag 5(P<0.001) and air quality index at lag 4 (P=0.006) and respiratory diseases. To support this finding, future studies in the other areas and other populations of Thailand are needed.
TOUGH AND THE BOUNDARY ELEMENT METHOD IN THE ESTIMATION OF THE NATURAL STATE OF GEOTHERMAL SUBMARINE SYSTEMS

In this work we present a general updated description of geothermal submarine reservoirs and an evaluation of the amount of energy contained in these important natural systems. To estimate the natural state of these reservoirs we use the classical Boundary Element Method (BEM) and suggest a simple way to couple this technique to TOUGH2 through the INPUT file. Submarine geothermal reservoirs contain essentially an infinite amount of energy. The deep submarine heat is related to the existence of hydrothermal vents emerging in many places along the oceanic spreading centers between tectonic plates. These systems have a total length of about 65,000 km in the Earth’s oceanic crust. The deep resources are located at certain places along the rifts between tectonic plates of the oceanic crust at more than 2000 m below sea level. Shallow resources are found near to continental platforms between 1 m and 50 m depth and are related to faults and fractures close to the coasts. Both types of resources exist in the Gulf of California, Mexico. To model these systems the initial mathematical problem is expressed in terms of boundary integral equations, fundamental solutions and boundary conditions of mixed type. The field main functions are pressure and temperature. The versatility and power of the BEM allows the efficient treatment of very complex or unknown reservoir geometry, without requiring discretization of the whole domain occupied by the system. This capability permits efficient testing of different boundary conditions to estimate several thermodynamic initial states at any desired interior point of the domain occupied by the reservoir under specific conditions. Unfortunately, th e cla s s ic a l BE M is limited to single-phase flow in homogeneous media and cannot be fully applied to flow problems in heterogeneous systems. I n this last case there is no fundamental solution. To overcome this difficulty after an initial state is estimated, TOUGH2 can be used to improve the initial simulation. The few available data on hydrothermal vents are very useful to estimate the amount of energy flowing from the ocean floor. In this way, it is possible to estimate initial conditions knowing only heat fluxes and temperatures at fissures and chimneys using this hybrid technique.
Effects of Cloud Parameterization on the Simulation of Climate Changes in the GISS GCM

Abstract Climate changes obtained from five doubled CO2 experiments with different parameterizations of large-scale clouds and moist convection are studied by use of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) GCM at 4° lat × 5° long resolution. The baseline for the experiments is GISS Model II, which uses a diagnostic cloud scheme with fixed optical properties and a convection scheme with fixed cumulus mass fluxes and no downdrafts. The global and annual mean surface air temperature change (ΔTs) of 4.2°C obtained by Hansen et al using the Model II physics at 8° lat × 10° long resolution is reduced to 3.55°C at the finer resolution. This is due to a significant reduction of tropical cirrus clouds in the warmer climate when a finer resolution is used, despite the fact that the relative humidity increases there with a doubling of CO2. When the new moist convection parameterization of Del Genio and Yao and prognostic large-scale cloud parameterization of Del Genio et al are used, ΔTs is reduced to 3.09°C .