nils-herrmann/clean_scirepeval huggingface dataset:
Methodology and calibration for continuous measurements of biogeochemical trace gas and O2 concentrations from a 300-m tall tower in central Siberia

We present an integrated system for measuring atmospheric concentrations of CO2, O2, CH4, CO, and N2O in central Siberia. Our project aims to demonstrate the feasibility of establishing long-term, continuous, high precision atmospheric measurements to elucidate greenhouse gas processes from a very remote, mid-continental boreal environment. Air is sampled from five heights on a custom-built 300-m tower. Common features to all species' measurements include air intakes, an air drying system, flushing procedures, and data processing methods. Calibration standards are shared among all five measured species by extending and optimising a proven methodology for long-term O2 calibration. Our system achieves the precision and accuracy requirements specified by the European Union's "CarboEurope" and "ICOS" (Integrated Carbon Observing System) programmes in the case of CO2, O2, and CH4, while CO and N2O require some further improvements. It was found that it is not possible to achieve these high precision measurements without skilled technical assistance on-site, primarily because of 2–3 month delays in access to data and diagnostic information. We present results on the stability of reference standards in high pressure cylinders. It was also found that some previous methods do not mitigate fractionation of O2 in a sample airstream to a satisfactory level.

Field of study: Environmental science
Modelling and simulation of the growth and enzyme production of Trichoderma reesei Rut C30

The growth of the fungus Trichoderma reesei Rut C30 on cellulosic materials, especially potato pulp, and the enzyme synthesis in batch and fed-batch cultures were investigated by Klingspohn (1990). Based on these experimental data, a comprehensive model was set up describing the uptake of substrate for growth, maintenance and enzyme synthesis including the enzymatic hydrolysis of the substrate (Bader, 1991). The model equations consist of non-linear systems of ordinary differential and algebraic equations. The model parameters were identified by means of the experimental results. The simulation results correspond well with the experimental data. Model computations for different operational conditions show the range of validity and the performance of the model. Possibilities of improvements of the yield and productivity can be deducted.

Field of study: Biology, Engineering
The Chicago School versus Public Utility Regulation

The Chicago School, while it has served to promote discussion on regulation of public utilities, has not provided adequate alternatives or consistent, unbiased criticism. Representatives of the Chicago School tend to be uncompromising in their position concerning the inability of government regulations to promote efficient allocation of resources. The Chicago School is also criticized for oversimplifying the issues. Historically, while the Chicago School saw all forms of monopoly as the great enemy of democracy, it has shown a trend since the 1960's of looking at private monopoly as a lesser evil than public monopoly. This shift in emphasis has included a proposed passive role for the government, preservation of the market, emphasis on abstract policies, and reliance on the consumer as the final arbiter. A review of these positions points out their limitations.

Field of study: Economics
Hot phonons in an electrically biased graphene constriction.

Phonon-carrier interactions can have significant impact on device performance. They can be probed by measuring the phonon lifetime, which reflects the interaction strength of a phonon with other quasi-particles, in particular charge carriers as well as its companion phonons. The carrier phonon and phonon-phonon contributions to the phonon lifetime can be disentangled from temperature-dependent studies. Here, we address the importance of phonon-carrier interactions in Joule-heated graphene constrictions in order to contribute to the understanding of energy dissipation in graphene-based electronic devices. We demonstrate that gapless graphene grants electron-phonon interactions uncommon significance in particular at low carrier density. In conventional semiconductors, the band gap usually prevents the decay of phonons through electron-hole generation and also in metals or other semimetals the Fermi temperature is excessively large to enter the regime where electron-phonon coupling plays such a dominant role as in graphene in the investigated phonon temperature regime from 300 to 1600 K.

Field of study: Physics
Copper-bearing encrustations: a tool for age dating and constraining the physical–chemical regime during the late Quaternary in the Wadi Araba, southern Jordan

The alluvial–fluvial drainage system in the Wadi Araba, southern Jordan, incised into Cambrian clastic sedimentary and felsic igneous rocks giving rise to a disseminated Cu–(Mn) mineralization of diagenetic and epigenetic origin along the southern branch of the Dead Sea Transform Fault (=DSTF). During the Late Pleistocene and Holocene, the primary Cu sulfides were replaced by secondary minerals giving rise to hypogene to supergene encrustations, bearing Cu silicates, Cu carbonates, Cu oxychlorides and cupriferous vanadates. They occur in fissures, coat walls and developed even-rim/meniscus and blocky cements in the arenites near the surface. The first generation cement has been interpreted in terms of freshwater vadose hydraulic conditions, while the second-generation blocky cement of chrysocolla and malachite evolved as late cement. The Cu–Si–C fluid system within the Wadi Araba drainage system is the on-shore or subaerial facies of a regressive lacustrine regime called the “Lake Lisan Stage”, a precursor of the present-day Dead Sea. Radiocarbon dating (younger than 27,740 ± 1,570 years), oxygen-isotope-based temperature determination (hot brine-related mineralization at 60–80 °C, climate-driven mineralization at 25–30 °C) and thermodynamical calculations let to the subdivision of this secondary Cu mineralization into four stages, whose chemical and mineralogical composition was controlled by the variation of the anion complexes of silica and carbonate and the chlorine contents. The acidity of the pore water positively correlates with the degree of oxidation. The highest aridity and most intensive evaporation deduced from the thermodynamical calculations were achieved during stage 3, which is coeval with late Lake Lisan. Geogene processes causing Cu-enriched encrustations overlap with man-made manganiferous slags. The smelter feed has been derived mainly from Cu ore which developed during Late Pleistocene in the region.

Field of study: Environmental science
Physicochemical And Geotechnical Characterization And Application Of Berriasian Clays Of Djebel Oust (North Of Tunisia)

The study of Djebel Oust Berriasian clays shows an abundance of illite (66%), the presence of kaolinite (16%), a fair amount of interstratified illite/smectite (10%) and chlorite (8%). The geochemical analysis proves that these clays are siliceous, Ca-rich and aluminous. The iron rate is 4.7%. The geotechnical study indicates that these clays are little to fairly plastic, and adapt fast to drying. Also, the study shows that firing shrinkage is little. In the light of these results, these clays could be used in manufacturing of the ceramic pieces.

Field of study: Materials science
State of development of scholastic curriculum of physical education in elementary and middle schools in China

The authors conducted a questionnaire survey on the state of development of scholastic curriculum of physical education by 144 physical education teachers in elementary and middle schools in 8 cities in provinces such Jiangsu,and revealed the following findings:in 83.3% of the cities a local sports and health curriculum imple-mentation plan has been established by combing with actual local circumstances;in 68.4% of the schools a scholas-tic physical education curriculum has been actively developed according to the requirements of 3-level curriculum management system;79.2% of the teachers have understood the essence of the Curriculum Standard;the top 3 fac-tors that affect the development of scholastic curriculum are the intensity of support of school leaders,initiatives of the teachers and conditions of playground facilities.These findings reflect that the development of scholastic cur-riculum is looking good generally,but the initiatives of the teachers still need to be exerted,and attention should be paid to the innovative development of scholastic curriculum with features.

Field of study: Education
A joint latent class changepoint model to improve the prediction of time to graft failure

The reciprocal of serum creatinine concentration, RC, is often used as a biomarker to monitor renal function. It has been observed that RC trajectories remain relatively stable after transplantation until a certain moment, when an irreversible decrease in the RC levels occurs. This decreasing trend commonly precedes failure of a graft. Two subsets of individuals can be distinguished according to their RC trajectories: a subset of individuals having stable RC levels and a subset of individuals who present an irrevocable decrease in their RC levels. To describe such data, the paper proposes a joint latent class model for longitudinal and survival data with two latent classes. RC trajectories within latent class one are modelled by an intercept-only random-effects model and RC trajectories within latent class two are modelled by a segmented random changepoint model. A Bayesian approach is used to fit this joint model to data from patients who had their first kidney transplantation in the Leiden University Medical Center between 1983 and 2002. The resulting model describes the kidney transplantation data very well and provides better predictions of the time to failure than other joint and survival models.

Field of study: Mathematics
Investigation of substituted 1,3-oxazolidines using 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy

The characteristics of the 1H and 13C NMR spectra of 1,3-oxazolidines with substituents in the 2-, 3-, and 5-positions have been studied. The relation of the spectral characteristics to the structure and configuration of the compounds has been examined, and information on the transmission of the substituent effect through the atoms of nitrogen and oxygen has been obtained.

Field of study: Chemistry
Effect of anisotropy on the propagation of concentration-elastic waves in crystals with the generation of nonequilibrium local disorder carriers

The effect anisotropy has on the propagation of concentration elastic waves in crystals subjected to the action of laser pulses generating carriers of disorders in the crystalline structure is studied. The existence of four dispersion wave modes—one quasi-longitudinal, two quasi-transverse, and one quasi-concentration—is established. For transversely isotropic and cubic crystals, phase velocities and attenuation (or amplification) increments of waves are determined for different directions of their propagation.

Field of study: Physics
Determination of free and total bisphenol A in the urine and feces of orally and subcutaneously dosed sheep by high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

An analytical procedure has been introduced to enable a study of the excretion of free bisphenol A (BPA), total BPA and its main metabolite bisphenol A glucuronide (BPA–GLUC). In the experiment, in which 100 μg/kg b. w. BPA was administered daily to one Istrian Pramenka sheep for 5 days with consecutive urine and feces samples being taken, BPA and total BPA were determined in samples using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence detection. Because of their good recovery, precision, and sensitivity, the methods have also proved applicable to further ecotoxicological studies of free BPA, BPA–GLUC and total BPA. The results were subsequently compared with reported field studies of BPA in livestock excreta.

Field of study: Agricultural and Food sciences
Herbicide and fertilizers promote analogous phylogenetic responses but opposite functional responses in plant communities

Throughout the world, herbicides and fertilizers change species composition in agricultural communities, but how do the cumulative effects of these chemicals impact the functional and phylogenetic structure of non-targeted communities when they drift into adjacent semi-natural habitats? Based on long-term experiment we show that fertilizer and herbicides (glyphosate) have contrasting effects on functional structure, but can increase phylogenetic diversity in semi-natural plant communities. We found that an increase in nitrogen promoted an increase in the average specific leaf area and canopy height at the community level, but an increase in glyphosate promoted a decrease in those traits. Phylogenetic diversity of plant communities increased when herbicide and fertilizer were applied together, likely because functional traits facilitating plant success in those conditions were not phylogenetically conserved. Species richness also decreased with increasing levels of nitrogen and glyphosate. Our results suggest that predicting the cumulative effects of agrochemicals is more complex than anticipated due to their distinct selection of traits that may or may not be conserved phylogenetically. Precautionary efforts to mitigate drift of agricultural chemicals into semi-natural habitats are warranted to prevent unforeseeable biodiversity shifts.

Field of study: Environmental science
Constant light exposure causes oocyte meiotic defects and quality deterioration in mice.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) exposes us to prolonged illumination, that adversely affects female reproduction. However, it remains to be clarified how prolonged light exposure affects oocyte meiotic maturation and quality. To this end, we exposed female mice to a constant light (CL) of 250 lux for different durations. Our findings showed that CL exposure for 7 weeks reduced the oocyte maturation rate. Meanwhile, CL exposure caused greater abnormalities in spindle assembly and chromosome alignment and a higher rate of oocyte aneuploidy than the regular light dark cycle. CL exposure also induced oxidative stress and caused mitochondrial dysfunction, which resulted in oocyte apoptosis and autophagy. Notably, our results showed that CL exposure reduced the levels of α-tubulin acetylation, DNA methylation at 5 mC, RNA methylation at m6A and histone methylation at H3K4me2 but increased the levels of histone methylation at H3K27me2 in oocytes. In summary, our findings demonstrate that constant bright light exposure causes oocyte meiotic defects and reduces cytoplasmic quality. These results extend the current understanding of ALAN-mediated defects in female reproduction.

Field of study: Environmental science
Ethnic disparities in clinical severity and services for alcohol problems: results from the National Alcohol Survey.

This study reports lifetime estimates of the extent of unmet need for alcohol services across the 3 largest ethnic groups in America, and examines factors that may contribute to ethnic differences in service use. Prior studies report mixed findings as to the existence of ethnic disparities in alcohol services, with some suggesting that minorities are over-represented in treatment settings.



Drawing on the most recent National Alcohol Surveys, we compare rates and factors associated with the lifetime service use for alcohol problems among Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics who meet lifetime criteria for alcohol abuse or dependence.



While bivariate analyses revealed few ethnic differences in service use, there were significant differences by ethnicity in multivariate models that included alcohol problem severity and its interactions with ethnicity. At higher levels of problem severity, both Hispanics and Blacks were less likely to have utilized services than comparable Whites. Hispanics, on the whole, reported higher-severity alcohol problems than Whites. Yet, they were less likely to have received specialty treatment and multiple types of alcohol services, and were more likely to cite economic and logistical barriers as reasons for not obtaining care.



Future efforts to study ethnic disparities in alcohol services should utilize analytic approaches that address potential confounding between ethnicity and other factors in service use, such as alcohol problem severity. Our findings suggest that Hispanics and Blacks with higher-severity alcohol problems may utilize services at lower rates than comparable Whites, and that, particularly for Hispanics, this may in part be attributable to financial and logistical barriers to care.

Field of study: Medicine
Synthesis of Morpholinyl and Piperazinyl Derivatives of Polyfluorodibenz[b,f]-1,4-oxazepines

A series of polyfluoro-substituted dibenz[b,f]-1,4-oxazepines with morpholinyl-4 or 4-R-piperazinyl-1 groups in positions 3, 7, or 11 has been synthesized.

Field of study: Chemistry
Reawakening Canada's china policy

It is an exciting time to be talking about Canada’s policy towards China. But for the first time the reason lies less in the dramatic changes occurring in China itself, which continue, but rather in the fresh thinking about China going on here in Canada. We are in one of those periods in which old alignments and assumptions are being questioned and new ones put onto the table. This rethink is being driven partly by global factors. China’s rise to greater diplomatic and economic pre-eminence, for example, is forcing Western nations to ask how they might respond to that rise in a useful fashion. American policy towards China, meanwhile, has reverted to more realist underpinnings since the terrorist attacks of September 2001, forcing other nations to take the lead on certain aspects of the China issue. At the same time, there are distinctive domestic reasons that have turned those necessary conditions into sufficient ones. The ferment is of course linked to the election of a new Conservative government in 2006, with explicit promises to change our approach to China. But this is not a partisan issue: members of parliament from all parties,1 as well as public opinion polls, have long shown a broad concern with the drift in our China policy. Rather, what is happening is a democratization of our China policy that reflects a more general democratization of our foreign policy (McCormick 2006). For the first time, the mandarins of Canada’s China policy – Sinologists, business interests, “old friends of China,” and steady-as-she-goes bureaucrats – are being challenged by citizen-barbarians at the gates. The zheng (official, appropriate, civilized) is being challenged by the ye (wild, barbaric, uncivilized). Let me explain why I think the ye best serves Canada’s interests as well as those of China’s people – why, in other words, the barbarians are the better diplomats – and why this moment is so critical not only for Canada’s relations with China but also for the future of our place in the world.

Field of study: Political science
Constraints on proper folding of the amino terminal domains of group III metabotropic glutamate receptors.

The glutamate binding site of the G-protein coupled metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) is contained within the large extracellular amino terminal domain (ATD) of the receptor. In this study, we examined the ligand binding properties and cellular dispositions of the membrane-bound mGluR4 and mGluR8 subtypes of mGluRs, and a series of truncated versions of these receptors. Truncation of the ATDs of mGluR4 and mGluR8 40 amino acids upstream of the first transmembrane domain produced soluble proteins that were secreted into the cell culture media of transfected human embryonic kidney cells. The soluble receptors retained ligand binding capabilities. Additional constructs of the ATDs of mGluR4 and mGluR8 were assessed for their ability to bind the agonist [(3)H]L-AP4 and for secretion from cells. A shorter mGluR4 construct truncated 98 amino acids upstream from the first transmembrane domain failed to bind [(3)H]L-AP4, while the analogous mGluR8 construct displayed a low level of binding. Unlike the full-length receptors, which were expressed on the cell surface, or the soluble constructs which were secreted, the shorter constructs were primarily associated with intracellular membranes. These observations suggest that the cysteine-rich region may be important for efficient secretion, but not absolutely obligatory for ligand binding. Surprisingly, longer constructs encoding the entire ATDs of mGluR4 and mGluR8 failed to bind ligand and were localized intracellularly. Together, these findings demonstrate that there are strict limitations on the proper folding of truncated versions of the ATDs of mGluR4 and mGluR8. Specifically, all of the leucine-isoleucine-valine binding protein homology region, and part of the cysteine-rich region is required for optimal secretion in a soluble form that retains ligand binding activity.

Field of study: Biology
Self-Monitoring and Self-Reinforcement of Studying by College Students

The present study involves examination of self-monitoring and self-reinforcement of studying to partial out the relative contributions of self-monitoring and self-reinforcement to change of behavior in number of minutes studied and test score. Undergraduate students were divided into groups and were asked to observe and record the number of minutes studied for an introductory psychology course. Reinforcers were points toward the student's course grade. It was predicted that study output would increase and thereby increase scores on course tests. After a 6-wk. experimental period, those students who self-reinforced in their natural environment significantly increased their study time. There was no significant difference between groups in test scores. These findings suggest self-reinforcement in a naturalistic context may increase time of study but not grades. The lack of relationship between time in study and test performance was discussed.

Field of study: Psychology
3D electro-thermal simulations of wide area power devices operating in avalanche condition

In this paper a novel 3D electro-thermal simulator for high power devices operating in avalanche condition will be presented. The proposed solution is based on two coupled systems: a 3D-FEM thermal simulator and a 2D electrical solver. The simulator has been implemented in MATLAB language. It is capable of simulating a large number of macro-cells composing a wide-area power devices operating in avalanche condition. The electrical solver uses a SPICE-like algorithm with a look-up-table description for every cell. The thermal problem is solved by a finite element method (FEM) in an iterative scheme with the electrical simulator. In order to prove the effectiveness of the simulator, we will present electro-thermal simulations in Unclamped Inductive Switching (UIS) conditions for a high power Trench-IGBT.

Field of study: Engineering