Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Conservation Status Assessment of the Egg-mimic Darter (Percidae: <i>Etheostoma pseudovulatum</i>) Using a Multi-faceted Approach

The imperiled Egg-mimic Darter (Etheostoma pseudovulatum) is a headwater-adapted fish restricted to an area less than 1000 km2 in Tennessee. It is found in only six tributaries of the Duck River and the large, mainstem of this system may act as a barrier to dispersal, restricting population connectivity. The only status assessment of this species was over two decades ago; genetic diversity and the degree of population connectivity have never been evaluated. We conducted a conservation status assessment using a multi-faceted approach to better inform conservation management plans, including examining its current distribution, assessing habitat quality, estimating abundance, population size and haplotype diversity, and evaluating historical population connectivity. Surveys were conducted in spring and fall (2014) and population size was estimated using the Petersen mark-recapture method at a subset of localities, which were then regressed to obtain population estimates at all localities. Haplotype diversity and population connectivity were examined using the mitochondrial ND2 gene. The Egg-mimic Darter was present at all localities and was relatively abundant, comparable to historical observations. Habitat quality did not appear to be substantially degraded. Overall haplotype and nucleotide diversity were low compared to widespread darters and comparable to other imperiled darters; however, demographic analyses indicated the species has remained stable over contemporary and historical timeframes. The Egg-mimic Darter has likely maintained gene flow historically at five of the six tributary systems, suggesting the mainstem Duck has not been a long-standing barrier to dispersal. One haplotype was shared across all tributary systems except Beaverdam Creek, which had a largely unique assemblage of haplotypes. Overall, the conservation status of the Egg-mimic Darter appears to be stable. However, we recommend regular monitoring with special consideration given to smaller tributary systems and the genetically distinct Beaverdam Creek population. Even though there was evidence of historical population connectivity, the risk of local extirpation remains, considering the small population sizes in several tributary systems. We also recommend assessments of contemporary genetic structure and population connectivity.
Oxygen defects and Fermi level location in metal-hafnium oxide-silicon structures

We describe an in situ method for measuring the band bending of Si substrates in complex metal-oxide-semiconductor systems using femtosecond pump-probe photoelectron spectroscopy. Following deposition of metal layers (Pt, Re, or Re oxide) on the high-k dielectric HfO2, measurement of the band bending in the underlying Si provides a direct determination of the location of the Fermi level within the Si band gap at the Si-dielectric interface. Changes in the Fermi level with post-deposition anneals and oxygen exposure were correlated with valence and core photoelectron spectroscopy as well as capacitance-voltage measurements. These studies illuminate the roles that gate metal work function, modified by metal induced gap states and defects within the oxide, such as oxygen vacancies, play in defining the location of the Fermi level in metal-oxide-semiconductor structures.
Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Synopsis: General Aspects and Focus on Bangladesh

HEV is the most common cause of acute hepatitis globally. This review summarizes the latest knowledge on the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, testing, and treatment of HEV infection. We also focused on Bangladesh to highlight the distinct challenges and the possible remedies. In low-income settings, the virus is mainly transmitted between people by fecal contamination of drinking water causing large outbreaks, and sporadic cases. The disease is usually mild and self-limiting acute hepatitis. Still, pregnant women and their offspring in low-income countries are at particular risk for severe disease, with up to 20% maternal mortality. Despite the high burden of the disease, HEV remains a relatively neglected virus, with detection hampered by costly tests and a lack of suitable treatments. Molecular PCR diagnostics, together with ELISA antibody tests, remain the preferred methods for diagnosis of HEV; however, rapid bedside diagnostics are available and could offer a practical alternative, especially in low-income countries. One vaccine (HEV 239) is only available in China and Pakistan, as efficacy against the other genotypes remains uncertain. The effectiveness trial conducted in Bangladesh might lead the way in gathering more efficacy data and could, together with improved surveillance and raised awareness, dramatically reduce the global burden of HEV.
Situating the value of ecosystem services in rural Paraguay

This paper focuses on the adscriptions of value to ecosystem services in rural Paraguay. The study relies in primary data obtained through fieldwork in the San Pedro Department, Paraguay. The paper questions the devaluation of ecosystem services while including a smallholders’ perspective. Transitions from traditional family farms to industrial farming are contextualized in changing landscapes and socio-cultural patterns
Optical continuum properties of the NLS1 galaxy Mrk 335 in 1995-2004

We present results of UBVRI photometry of Mrk 335 in 1995-2004. This object has a large amplitude of variability, reaching about 1.1, 0.9, 0.7 mag in the U, B, V and 0.3 mag in the Rc, Ic bands, respectively. This photomerical behaviour as well as the spectral energy distribution in the optical part of the spectrum is typical of Seyfert 1 galaxies. The structure function (SF) analysis of Mrk 335 has shown that the variability of Mrk 335 can be caused by stochastic superposition of independent flares in a wide interval of durations, the longest of which has a duration of about several hundred days. The slope of the power-law portion of the SF b ∼ 0.6-0.7 for the time scale from several days to several hundreds of days. It is close to the estimates for disk instability models. The estimate of the extension of the instability zone in an accretion disk (about 300Rs) is also evidence that the instability in an accretion disk is able to explain the long-term optical variability. A cross-correlation function (CCF) shows some evidence that the delay of fluxes in the V,R, I bands relative to the U band can be of some days, and there is a tendency for lags lo be systematically higher for the R, I bands than for B, V.
Recruitment of inhibitory neuronal pathways regulating dopaminergic activity for the control of cocaine seeking

Drug seeking is associated with the ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopaminergic (DA) activity. Previously, we have shown that brief optogenetic inhibition of VTA DA neurons with 1 s pulses delivered every 9 s attenuates cocaine seeking under extinction conditions in rats without producing overt signs of dysphoria or locomotor sedation. Whether recruitment of neuronal pathways inhibiting VTA neuronal activity would suppress drug seeking remains unknown. Here, we asked if optogenetic stimulation of the lateral habenula (LHb) efferents in the rostromedial tegmental nucleus (RMTg) as well as RMTg efferents in VTA would reduce drug seeking. To investigate this, we measured how recruitment of elements of this inhibitory pathway affects cocaine seeking in male rats under extinction conditions. The effectiveness of brief optogenetic manipulations was confirmed electrophysiologically at the level of electrical activity of VTA DA neurons. Real‐time conditioned place aversion (RT‐CPA) and open field tests were performed to control for potential dysphoric/sedating effects of brief optogenetic stimulation of LHb‐RMTg‐VTA circuitry. Optogenetic stimulation of either RMTg or LHb inhibited VTA DAergic neuron firing, whereas similar stimulation of RMTg efferents in VTA or LHb efferents in RMTg reduced cocaine seeking under extinction conditions. Moreover, stimulation of LHb‐RMTg efferents produced an effect that was maintained 24 h later, during cocaine seeking test without stimulation. This effect was specific, as brief optogenetic stimulation did not affect locomotor activity and was not aversive. Our results indicate that defined inhibitory pathways can be recruited to inhibit cocaine seeking, providing potential new targets for non‐pharmacological treatment of drug craving.
Metastable ferromagnetic phase formation in 35–50 at. % Mn—Ga thin films

Thin Mn—Ga films with the composition of 35–50 at. % Mn were fabricated by means of a conventional vacuum evaporation method on glass and NaCl substrates heated at 473 K. The metastable ferromagnetic phase was formed in the samples as well as the Mn2Ga5 phases. The analysis of the x‐ray and microbeam electron diffraction patterns suggested that the crystal structure of this phase was correlated with a long‐range ordered structure composed of a certain number of the Mn2Ga5 cell. It was demonstrated that the presence of the metastable phase affected the magnetic properties; the metastable single‐phase films had a high coercivity up to about 320 kA/m and a fairly large saturation magnetization of about 550 mT, which were comparable to those for the MnGa‐σ‐phase and AlMn‐τ‐phase.
Dispositivos wearables y los riesgos a la privacidad: una revisión de la literatura

En la actualidad, está en auge del uso de dispositivos que se pueden llevar puestos (wearable devices, en inglés): tanto niños como adultos han incorporado en su día a día este tipo de dispositivos adicionales al celular, que hoy son una extensión más del ser humano. Esta investigación hace una revisión de qué son los wearables, su uso y los riesgos que implican para el usuario en cuanto a su privacidad y su seguridad. Se eligió la metodología de identificación y control de riesgos entre los resultados de una revisión de alcance en la literatura pertinente.
Thermal stability of recorded information at high densities

Simulations have been carried out with the purpose of identifying the thermal stability limits on data storage density in longitudinal recording on thin film media. The simulations use a combination of molecular dynamics based upon the Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equation of motion and a Monte Carlo method for dealing with magnetic viscosity. Based upon the limits on media coercivity imposed by available heads and SNR considerations, but assuming that sufficient head resolution can be achieved, an upper bound of about 36 Gbit/in. /sup 2/ is projected.
A double-blind randomized clinical trial of Dracocephalum kotschyi Boiss. in the patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome

Background and purpose: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a disease that shows its impacts on many populations worldwide. It is known as a functional disorder of the gastrointestinal tract followed by diarrhea and fecal inconsistency. Due to the lack of treatment in the allopathic medicine system for IBS, people in the western world use different herbs as alternative medicine. In the present study, we evaluated the dried extract of Dracocephalum kotschyi against IBS. Experimental approach: In a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 76 diarrhea-predominant IBS patients were randomly assigned to two equal groups: the control group (given the placebo capsule containing 250 mg of dibasic calcium phosphate) and the treatment groups (given the capsule containing 75 mg of the dry extract of D. kotschyi and 175 mg of dibasic calcium phosphate as filler). The study was conducted based on Rome III criteria. We studied symptoms included in Rome III criteria and divided the study into the duration of drug administration and four weeks after drug administration. These groups were compared with those of the control group. Findings/Results: Significant improvements were found in the quality of life, temperament, and IBS symptoms throughout the treatment duration. Quality of life, temperature, and IBS symptoms were slightly decreased in the treatment group 4 weeks after stopping the treatment. While concluding the study, we found D. kotschyi effective against IBS. Conclusion and implications: Whole extract of D. kotschyi modulated symptoms of IBS patients and improved their quality of life.
Diagnostic Utility of Bedside Lung Ultrasonography in Neonates with Respiratory Distress

Background: Lung Ultrasound (LUS) has recently become an important method for diagnostic examination and monitoring of lung disease. Many lung diseases, such as respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), transient tachypnea of the newborn (TTNB), pneumonia were diagnosed by chest X-ray, but can now easily be diagnosed with LUS. LUS has many advantages over X-ray including accuracy, reliability, low cost, radiation free, simple investigation, do multiple times, results are obtained immediately. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate role of LUS in neonates with respiratory distress (RD) within 4 hours of life and to calculate the sensitivity, specificity, and negative and positive predictive value of LUS for RDS and TTNB, using an external reader blinded to the clinical condition. Design and Methods: Neonates born at a gestation from 28 weeks to 40 weeks born in the hospital and developing RD on first 4 hours of life were enrolled. The diagnosis based on clinico-radiological features as ascertained by the treating neonatologist was considered gold standard. Just before LUS, the RD was objectively scored using Modified Silverman Andersen score. X-ray and LUS were performed bed side within 4 hours of life. Images were captured and stored and interpreted by the Radiologist who was blinded to the neonate’s clinical condition. LUS were interpreted according to observational index included pleural A lines, B lines, Air bronchogram and Lung consolidation. Based on LUS findings, differentiation between RDS, TTNB, MAS and Pneumonia were made. Results: 100 neonates were studied. 22 infants had a final diagnosis of RDS and 64 of TTNB. LUS showed a Sn of 100% and Sp of 89.7%, with a PPV of 73.3% and a NPV of 100 % for RDS, and a Sn of 82.8% and Sp of 100% with a PPV of 100% and a NPV of 76.6% for TTNB. Conclusion: LUS is a reliable method to diagnose RDS and TTNB in newborns with RD with high sn and sp.
Measuring the Value of Housing Quality

Abstract Based on an extensive sample of individual dwelling units, this article estimates the market value, or the implicit prices, of specific aspects of the bundles of residential services consumed by urban households. Quantitative estimates were obtained by regressing market price of owner- and renter-occupied dwelling units on measures of the qualitative and quantitative dimensions of the housing bundle. The measures of residential quality associated with individual dwelling units were obtained by using factor analysis to aggregate some 39 indexes of the quality of narrowly defined aspects of the dwelling units, structures, parcels, and micro-neighborhoods. The analysis indicates that the quality of the bundle of residential services has about as much effect on the price of housing as such objective aspects as the number of rooms, number of bathrooms, and lot size. The analysis also confirms the influence of neighborhood schools on the value of residential properties and indicates that rental propert.
Strong luminescence from dislocation-free GaN nanopillars

GaN nanostructures were prepared on Si(111) by a hot-wall epitaxy technique employing the modified two-step growth method. Isolated hexagonal pillar-like GaN nanostructures (GaN nanopillars) with the typical diameter, height, and density of 200–300nm, 0.5–1μm, and 3–4×108cm−2, respectively, are self-organized without intentional pre-processing to the Si substrate. The photoluminescence and cathodoluminescence (CL) measurements show the strong near-band-edge emissions without the yellow band at room temperature. Stronger CL is obtained from the GaN nanopillars in comparison to single-crystalline GaN. The obtained strong CL is related to high crystal quality of the dislocation-free GaN nanopillars.
A Unified Approach to the Approximation of Multivariate Densities

Approximation of a density by another density is considered in the case of different dimensionalities of the distributions. The results have been derived by inverting expansions of characteristic functions with the help of matrix techniques. The approximations obtained are all functions of cumulant differences and derivatives of the approximating density. The multivariate Edgeworth expansion follows from the results as a special case. Furthermore, the density functions of the trace and eigenvalues of the sample covariance matrix are approximated by the multivariate normal density and a numerical example is given
Tropical Pacific and North Atlantic Sea Surface Temperature Patterns Modulate Mississippi Basin Hydroclimate Extremes Over the Last Millennium

Mississippi River basin floods impart large socioeconomic impacts over the central United States. Improving flood predictability depends on our understanding of the dynamical controls on Mississippi basin hydroclimate. However, short instrumental records make it difficult to constrain the connections between flooding and climate variability. Here, we use the Paleo Hydrodynamics Data Assimilation product, spanning the Last Millennium, to investigate the impacts of tropical Pacific and North Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST) variability on hydrological extremes across the Mississippi River and its major tributaries. Wet extremes are associated with strong El Niño‐like warming over the tropical Pacific, but specific SST patterns matter: dry (wet) conditions occur during Central Pacific (Eastern Pacific) El Niño events. The influence of North Atlantic SSTs is less clear, but cool SSTs contribute to Ohio basin wet extremes. These results are relevant for seasonal‐to‐interannual flood hazard prediction on the fourth largest river basin in the world.
Linear spectral problems, non-linear equations and the ∂-method

It is known that a number of non-linear partial differential equations and systems can be linearised, in principle, by solving an inverse scattering problem for an associated linear equation or system. The formal inverse scattering problem in one or several dimensions can generally be formulated precisely as a delta -problem. The authors concentrate on the delta method and the closely related features of the inverse scattering transform.
Leveraging Community-University Partnerships to Develop a Strength-Based and Individualized Approach to Humanizing Housing Service Delivery for Individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)

This field report summarizes and advances key learnings for leveraging community–university partnerships addressing housing service gaps for high-risk, marginalized populations with complex needs. We describe our navigation of existing and forged intersections to develop a strength-based and individualized approach to humanizing housing service delivery for individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Our account is framed by four questions: why community and university partners came together to develop a responsive approach through the CanFASD network; who became key stakeholders in the partnership; how our humanizing housing approach is guiding the navigation of complexities inherent in service delivery for individuals with FASD; and what insights about creating intersections are we applying to our community-university partnerships.
Texturing of UHMWPE surface via NIL for low friction and wear properties

Wear is a major obstacle limiting the useful life of implanted ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) components in total joint arthroplasty. It has been a continuous effort in the implant industry to reduce the frictional wear problem of UHMWPE by improving the structure, morphology and mechanical properties of the polymer. In this paper, a new paradigm that utilizes nanoimprint lithography (NIL) in producing textures on the surface of UHMWPE is proposed to efficiently improve the tribological properties of the polymer. Friction and wear experiments were conducted on patterned and controlled (non-patterned) UHMWPE surfaces using a commercial tribometer, mounted with a silicon nitride ball, under a dry-sliding condition with normal loads ranging from 60 to 200 mN. It has been shown that the patterned UHMWPE surface showed a reduction in the coefficient of friction between 8% and 35% as compared with the controlled (non-patterned) surface, depending on the magnitude of the normal load. Reciprocating wear experiments also showed that the presence of surface textures on the polymer resulted in lower wear depth and width, with minimal material transfer to the sliding surface.
Formation of self-assembled GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots by low-temperature epitaxy

We report the direct formation of self-assembled GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots by low-temperature molecular beam epitaxy. To drive a three dimensional growth mode, the (1×1) AlGaAs surface was exposed alternately to the Ga and As sources. The resulting GaAs nanocrystals having {111} facets were clearly identified by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The emission spectra also confirmed the formation of dots. The transition to a three-dimensional growth mode is attributed to the limited surface migration of Ga adatoms on the AlGaAs surface, which has excess As at low substrate temperature.
O VI, N V, and C IV in the Galactic Halo. II. Velocity-Resolved Observations with the Hubble Space Telescope and Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer

We present a survey of N V and O VI (and, where available, C IV) in the Galactic halo, using data from the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) along 34 sight lines. These ions are usually produced in nonequilibrium processes such as shocks, evaporative interfaces, or rapidly cooling gas, and thus trace the dynamics of the interstellar medium. Searching for global trends in integrated and velocity-resolved column density ratios, we find large variations in most measures, with some evidence for a systematic trend of higher ionization (lower N V/O VI column density ratio) at larger positive line-of-sight velocities. The slopes of log [N(N V)/N(O VI)] per unit velocity range from -0.015 to +0.005, with a mean of -0.0032 ± 0.0022(r) ± 0.0014(sys) dex (km s-1)-1. We compare this data set with models of velocity-resolved high-ion signatures of several common physical structures. The dispersion of the ratios, O VI/N V/C IV, supports the growing belief that no single model can account for hot halo gas, and in fact some models predict much stronger trends than are observed. It is important to understand the signatures of different physical structures to interpret specific lines of sight and future global surveys.
Uniform asymptotic formulae for functions with transition points

in which R(x, w), Q(x, w) are regular at x=O, w=0 and f(x) has a simple zero at x=0; for (see ? 2) this may be reduced to the form (1.1) by a change of variables, regular at x = z = 0. When all the symbols denote real numbers, the solutions of (1.2) are monotonic or oscillating according as OffQ +4-1R2+ 2-1dR/dx is positive or negative; and when v is large, this quantity changes sign at a point near x = 0, on account of the simple zero of f(x) at x = 0. Thus as x passes through 0 the solutions change from monotonic to oscillating, and we may call x = 0 a transition point('). It is this transition which distinguishes our problem from the simpler one in which the x-region includes no zero of f(x). The guiding idea of the investigation is familiar: "approximately identical differential equations have approximately identical solutions. " A significant approximation to (1.1) will be an equation having the same features when z is near 0. Accordingly the project stated in the first paragraph is crystallized: the approximations to solutions of (1.1) are to be solutions of a differential equation of the sameform as (1.1). The simplest equation of this form is the Airy equation