nils-herrmann/clean_scirepeval huggingface dataset:
Presence of DDT metabolites in water, sediment and fish muscle tissue from Lake Prespa, Republic of Macedonia

Organochlorine pesticides were determined in water and sediment samples collected from the littoral zone of Lake Prespa, as well as from its three main tributaries (the rivers Golema, Brajcinska and Kranska), during the period 2004 to 2006. In addition, muscle tissue samples of barbus fish (Barbus prespensis Karaman, 1928) collected from the littoral zone of Lake Prespa were also analysed. The obtained results give an overview of the contamination levels of these problematic compounds at their potential sources in the river mouths, in the potentially affected, species-rich littoral section of the lake and in the muscle tissue of one selected fish species, collected near the rivers’ deltas. Special attention was paid to the presence of some DDT metabolites (1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene (p,p′–DDE); (1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (p,p′–DDD) and 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (p,p′–DDT). The extraction of pesticides from water samples was done by liquid-liquid partition in dichloromethane. For the sediment and fish tissue we used solid-liquid extraction. The extracted residues were analyzed on a gas chromatograph equipped with an electron capture detector (GC-ECD). The results of the respective studies indicated the presence of DDT metabolic forms in the samples of the three analysed matrixes. The highest levels of presence for these pollutants were found in the muscle tissue of the fish samples. The total DDTs content in the analysed muscle tissue samples range from 11.67 to 13.58 μg kg−1of fresh tissue. The average total DDTs content for the sediment samples were within the range of 2.32 to 4.17 μg kg−1 of dry sediment. Higher DDT metabolites content were found in the sediments collected from the rivers than in the samples from the littoral zone. The lowest average total concentrations of DDTs, on the other hand, were recorded in the water samples and ranged between 0.036 and 0.057 μg L−1. The obtained results indicated that the dominant metabolic form in the samples of the three investigated matrixes (water, sediment and fish tissue) from Lake Prespa was p,p′-DDE. There was a very good linear correlation in this study between the content of DDT's (total DDT metabolites) detected and the percentage of total organic material in the sediment. The detected concentrations are clearly below the toxicity thresholds; consequently, severe effects on the endemic species of Lake Prespa are not very likely.

Field of study: Agricultural and Food sciences
Exponential asymptotics with a small exponent

Analytic and numerical solutions are considered to a simple model problem which contains a surprisingly complicated solution structure. Asymptotic solutions are sought when a parameter that appears as an exponent in the independent variable is small, the solution then exhibiting a sudden change in slope over a region that is exponentially thin. A straightforward approach using matched asymptotic expansions immediately reveals inadequacies of this method due to the requirement of an outer solution that needs to be evaluated beyond all orders in order to match to a suitable inner solution. This behaviour is elucidated by studying first the asymptotic structure of the solution using an exact integral, which explicitly reveals the need for the inclusion of exponentially small terms in the expansions. It is then shown how a direct asymptotic solution of the differential equation can be obtained by using Borel summation to evaluate the outer solution to exponential accuracy. Further, as a practical alternative, it is shown how these exponentially improved approximations can be made when an exact numerical solution is available and without recourse to the general term of the outer or inner expansions.

Field of study: Mathematics
Discrete analysis of bile acid in serum and bile with 3 alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase and diaphorase immobilized onto alkylamine glass beads.

3alpha-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3alpha-HSD) from Pseudomonas testosteronei and diaphorase (lipoyl dehydrogenase) from Clostridium spp were immobilized individually onto alkylamine glass beads through glutaraldehyde coupling. A cost-effective enzymic colorimetric method for determination of bile acid in the serum and bile was developed employing mixture of the immobilized enzymes. The method was based upon measurement of NADH generated from NAD+ during oxidation of bile acid by immobilized 3alpha-HSD with a color reagent consisting of nitrobluetetrazolium (NBT) chloride salt and immobilized diaphorase in 0.065 M sodium phosphate buffer (pH 7.0). The minimum detection limit of the method was 4.8 pmol/L in the serum and 19.5 micromol/L in bile. The per cent recovery of added bile acid in the serum and bile was 89.1 and 95.0, respectively. Within and between batch coefficients of variation (CV) for bile acid determination were <1.0% and <0.2% in the serum and <0.2% and <0.6% in bile, respectively. A good correlation for bile acid in the serum (r1= 0.95) and in bile (r2 = 0.93) was obtained by a standard chemical method (a commonly used method in India) and the present method. The mixture of immobilized 3alpha-HSD and diaphorase lost 30% of its initial activity after 4 months of regular use. The cost of bile acid determination for 100 the serum and bile samples by the present method was found to be lower than by a commercially available method (Sigma kit 450-A).

Field of study: Biology, Chemistry, Physics
Transaction management in design databases

Conventional data base systems are not suitable for handling advanced applications encountered in engineering, such as CAD/CAM, CASE, CAE, and VLSI design. The data bases in such environments, also called design data bases, are characterized by the presence of many complex data objects denoted by a large number of small tables, as opposed to a few large tables encountered in conventional data bases. The transaction model used in tracking data bases for banking, inventory control, and other such applications use view serializability as the correctness criterion. While view serializability is appropriate for tracking data bases, it is unnecessarily restrictive for engineering data bases. We propose a transaction model that is suitable for accessing shared design data based on coserializability. The transaction model supports long-duration transactions with intermediate commit points. In addition to the conventional nested transaction hierarchy, the model allows for cooperation between nested design transactions needed in a design environment.

Field of study: Computer science, Engineering
Effects of Attitude Action Identification on Congruence between Attitudes and Behavioral Intentions toward Social Groups

Attitude Representation Theory (ART) holds that attitude-relevant responses are informed by mental representations of the attitude object, which include the individual’s actions toward that object. Action Identification Theory (AIT) holds that the same action can be identified at multiple levels. Individuals who identify their actions at lower levels have less flexibility in how they perform the action, and thus enact the action less consistently. An integration of ART and AIT suggested that individuals who spontaneously (Experiment 1) or through manipulation (Experiments 2 and 3) identify their attitude-relevant actions toward a social group at lower levels might display less attitude-intention congruence than would individuals who identify their attitude-relevant actions at higher levels. ART and AIT are discussed as having links with each other and with other theories of attitude and judgment processes.

Field of study: Psychology
Local vibrational mode spectroscopy of Si donors and Be acceptors in MBE InAs and InSb studied by infrared absorption and Raman scattering

Samples of InAs and InSb either singly or doubly doped with Si and Be impurities have been studied using FTIR absorption spectroscopy and Raman scattering. Localized vibrational modes of 28SiIn donors and 9BeIn acceptors have been identified at 359 and 435 cm-1 respectively in InAs. The two impurities give corresponding lines at 316 and 414 cm-1 in InSb. Comparisons are made with the behaviour of the same impurities in compensated of p-type GaAs. Strong resonance effects relating to the incident photon energy are found in the Raman spectra of 20SiIn donors.

Field of study: Materials science
Life sustaining treatment at end-of-life in Japan: do the perspectives of the general public reflect those of the bereaved of patients who had died in hospitals?

To compare the perspectives of the general public and of the bereaved of patients who had died in hospitals on life sustaining treatment (LST).



Two self-administered questionnaire surveys were conducted in a city in Japan. The general public survey was mailed to a stratified sample of 1000 residents aged 20 and over, of which 419 (42%) responded. The bereaved survey was mailed to 427 family members of patients who had died in the city's 6 hospitals, of which 205 (48%) responded.



In the general public survey, 44% had discussed LST with their family; 30% thought physicians discussed them with the patient or family; if a family member were to have cancer 57% did not want LST, if frail, 69%. In the bereaved survey, 39% had discussed LST with the patient; 80% had the respondent's preferences followed by the physician; 23% had not wanted LST for cancer, 39% for a frail condition.



The LST preferences of a family member were known by less than half of the respondents in both surveys. When compared with the general public, the bereaved evaluated the physician's attitude more positively and the proportion who did not want LST was less.

Field of study: Medicine, Political science
Domino Michael/Retro‐Michael/Mukaiyama‐Aldol Reactions of 1,3‐Bis‐Silyl Enol Ethers with 3‐Acyl‐ and 3‐Formylbenzopyrylium Triflates – Synthesis of Functionalised 2,4′‐Dihydroxybenzophenones

The reaction of 1,3-bis-silyl enol ethers with 3-acyl- and 3-formylbenzopyrylium triflates, which can be generated in situ from 3-acyl- and 3-formylchromones, affords a great variety of functionalised 2,4′-dihydroxybenzophenones and 4-(2-hydroxybenzoyl)salicylates. These products are formed by a domino Michael/retro-Michael/Mukaiyama-aldol reaction. This methodology is successfully applied to the synthesis of novel UV-A/B and UV-B filters. Three 4-(2-hydroxybenzoyl)salicylic acids show a good in vitro activity in a selectin bioassay.

Field of study: Chemistry
Better Conditional Density Estimation for Neural Networks

The vast majority of the neural network literature focuses on predicting point values for a given set of response variables, conditioned on a feature vector. In many cases we need to model the full joint conditional distribution over the response variables rather than simply making point predictions. In this paper, we present two novel approaches to such conditional density estimation (CDE): Multiscale Nets (MSNs) and CDE Trend Filtering. Multiscale nets transform the CDE regression task into a hierarchical classification task by decomposing the density into a series of half-spaces and learning boolean probabilities of each split. CDE Trend Filtering applies a k-th order graph trend filtering penalty to the unnormalized logits of a multinomial classifier network, with each edge in the graph corresponding to a neighboring point on a discretized version of the density. We compare both methods against plain multinomial classifier networks and mixture density networks (MDNs) on a simulated dataset and three real-world datasets. The results suggest the two methods are complementary: MSNs work well in a high-data-per-feature regime and CDE-TF is well suited for few-samples-per-feature scenarios where overfitting is a primary concern.

Field of study: Computer science
The Development of School-running Characteristics Taking root in the Hometown of Overseas Chinese——The Example from Jiaying University

During the development of school-running characteristics,Jiaying University strengthened its orientation with overall planning,adjusted the discipline construction constantly according to the change of local industry demand,established the talent cultivation bases for trainning the practical talents,and integrated the core value of the Hakka culture into the talent cultivation through founding an institution for the Hakkas research."Taking root in the hometown of overseas Chinese,serving the mountainous area and carrying forward the Hakka culture" is the school-running characteristics of Jiaying University,which offers a typical example for other local colleges and universities.

Field of study: Education
A newly developed rapid uniform thermal cycle test system for electronic components

Electronic components are difficult to heat or cool uniformly and rapidly because of the low heat conduction properties of the materials used in these components. The present study reports a new rapid thermal fatigue test system that circulates a temperature-controlled air shower around test samples to realize both uniform and rapid temperature control. Since the proposed test system allows multi-unit integration of multiple test chambers, the simultaneous evaluation of several samples under various test conditions can be performed efficiently. Based on the results of the temperature profile measured for a practical electronic circuit board, the proposed system is confirmed to enable the target temperature to be approached rapidly while maintaining a uniform temperature distribution. The proposed system shortens the thermal cycle period from 60 min to 12 min while generating the same degree of crack damage and the same fracture mode of solder joints.

Field of study: Engineering
Teacher efficacy and its relationship to classroom management style among secondary school teachers of Kigali city, Rwanda

The purpose of this study was to examine relationship between each level of teacher efficacy and different components of classroom management style (instructional management, people management and behavior management).  This study investigated whether or not teachers are differing in classroom management styles and level of efficacy with reference to their gender.  One hundred and fifty teachers completed a standard teacher efficacy scale developed by Anita and Hoy (1990) and Attitude and Belief on Classroom control Inventory (ABCC) developed by Martin, Yin and Bardwin.(1997). Te results of the study revealed that the whole teacher efficacy had direct influence over classroom management, where as the teacher efficacy increased, Classroom management also increased linearly and significantly. It has been also found that male teachers were found to have higher levels on management than female teachers except for behavioral management and finally, most of the gender differences existed in the low teacher efficacy levels on management scores.

Field of study: Education
Tensile Properties of Different 1Cr18Ni9Ti Steel Welded Joint at Low Temperature

The fluences of welding methods on the low temperature tensile behavior of 1Cr18Ni9Ti steel welded joint were studied by means of precise multifunction material testing system and SEM. The results show that the strength and elongation of the TIG welded joint is higher than that of the MMA at 77K. The fracture surface of 1Cr18Ni9Ti steel welded joint exhibits hybrid tough fracture of dimple and tear ridge , and dimple of the TIG welded joint fracture surface is tiny and uniform.

Field of study: Materials science
Effect of laser power on cleaning mechanism and surface properties.

In this paper, the mechanism of laser dry cleaning was introduced, and the influence of different power on laser cleaning effect and surface performance after cleaning were investigated. The cleaning effect of 60-120 W cleaning power on the oxidized layer of a Q235 surface was analyzed by experiment and simulation. The results showed that the cleaning power of 70 W makes the surface performance after cleaning of the samples relatively optimized. The best cleaning power is 90 W. The sample surface of 100 W is the smoothest, but it causes slight damage to the matrix. The cleaning power of 120 W has the maximum friction coefficient, but it has the maximum damage to the matrix.

Field of study: Physics
Clinical and Pathologic Features of Acute Glomerulonephritis

Glomerulonephritis is a progressive kidney disease that involves the glomeruli, the individual filtering units of the kidney that produce urine. When the glomeruli become inflamed, the kidneys can't filter urine properly.  A sample of percutaneous renal biopsies for medical renal disease submitted to the nephro­pathology unit of University Hospital Center "Mother Theresa", Tirana, Albania from January 2010 to December 2011 were included.  A total of 239 biopsies were thus included in the study, 109 obtained during 2010 and 130 during 2011. The indications for renal biopsy, as obtained from the histopathology request forms, were used for the categorization of data, which were statistically analyzed using a standard chi-square test.  The nephrotic syndrome, if it occurs, proliferates and persists in patients with progressive renal insufficiency but subsides in others who are left with relatively unimpaired renal function and who may go on to recovery.  Nephrotic Syndrome, Acute renal failure, Non-nephrotic Proteinuria

Field of study: Medicine
[Pathogenic spectrum of enteroviruses associated with hand, foot and mouth disease by a GeXP™-based multiplex reverse transcription-PCR assay in Jinan, China, 2009-2012].

We investigated the pathogenic spectrum of enteroviruses associated with hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in Jinan, China. A total of 274 specimens with a clinical diagnosis of HFMD in Jinan from 2009 to June 2012 were used. A GenomeLab™ (GeXP)-based multiplex reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay was employed to simultaneously detect 15 serotypes of human enteroviruses: human enterovirus (EV)71; coxsackievirus A (CVA)16, 4, 5, 6, 9, and 10; CVB1, 3 and 5; echovirus (Echo) 6, 7, 11, 13 and 19. Results showed that all samples were enterovirus-positive, with the most common serotypes being EV71 (25.18%) and CVA16 (16.06%), followed by CVA10 (14.23%), CVA6 (7.30%), CVB1 (1.09%), Echo6 (0.73%), CVA9 (0.36%), CVB3 (0.36%) and co-infections (5.11%). CVA10 and CVA6 had the third and fourth highest prevalence of pathogens for HFMD, respec- tively. The most prevalent season for CVA10 was from April to August, with a peak in April; for CVA6 it was from April to August, with a peak in June. This is the first report of the pathogenic spectrum of en- teroviruses associated with HFMD in Jinan using the GeXP-based multiplex RT-PCR assay. These data will provide the scientific evidence for the prevention and control of epidemics, as well as therapy for HFMD patients.

Field of study: Biology
Shrimps and leaves: Phytodetrital pulses and bioturbation in deposits of a river-dominated delta (Middle Jurassic Lajas Formation, Neuquén Basin, Argentina)

The Middle Jurassic Lajas Formation of the Neuquen Basin (Argentina) records mainly deltaic sedimentation. However, the precise role of the depositional mechanisms involved is still controversial. Well core YPF Nq. Laj-8 records the overall vertical transition from delta-front mouth bars to delta plain. Discrete mouth-bar successions typically comprise a lower unbioturbated sandstone unit that passes upwards into a more intensely bioturbated sandstone unit. Phytodetrital material is abundant through the mouth-bar succession forming distinct layers in the lower units and becoming part of the lining of the burrow walls of Ophiomorpha irregulaire and Gyrolithes isp. in the upper units, representing two successive developmental stages of deltaic sandy mouth bars. Layers rich in phytodetritus exhibiting the same characteristics have been traditionally interpreted in outcrop as mudstone drapes generated by tidal action during slack-water periods. However, more recent research suggests that these layers can be best regarded as produced by river-fed flows, which is consistent with a river-dominated delta model.

Field of study: Environmental science, Geography
β2-Adrenoceptor blockade partially restores ex vivo TNF production following hemorrhagic shock

The aim of the study was to assess the mechanisms through which leukocyte deactivation occurs upon hemorrhagic shock. In particular, the influence of β-adrenergic tone was evaluated. BALB/c mice were hemorrhaged and resuscitated 60 min after hemorrhage. Animals were sacrified 60 min later by exsanguination. Blood from exsanguination was cultured ex vivo with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and heat-killed Staphylococcus aureus Cowan I (SAC). Hemorrhage resulted in a major decrease of LPS-induced TNF production whereas IL-10 production was significantly enhanced. Selective β 2 -adrenoceptor antagonists (ICI 118,551) attenuated the decrease in TNF production and further enhanced IL-10 production. Hemorrhage did not alter SAC-induced TNF production levels whereas IL-10 production was increased. ICI 118,551 further increased the production of both TNF and IL-10. These data suggest that leukocyte deactivation after LPS stimulation is not a generalized phenomenon since TNF production was maintained when another microbial activator was used. IL-10 production was enhanced after hemorrhagic shock, independently of the nature of the trigerring agent. Finally, this study demonstrates that β 2 -adrenoceptor ligands play an important role in blood leukocyte deactivation to LPS after hemorrhagic shock.

Field of study: Medicine
Stabilization of the beat regime and alternating-sign optical nonreciprocity in the case of time-dependent self-diffraction of self-pumping waves in the active medium of a ring solid state laser

A new method is proposed for controlling the amplitude-frequency characteristics of a rotating ring solid-state laser with a homogeneously broadened gain profile of the active medium operating under mode-locked conditions. This method involves the use of ultrashort self-pumping pulses generated by a time-dependent diffraction acoustooptic feedback loop and characterized by a Doppler-modulated optical frequency. It was found experimentally that time-dependent self-diffraction of the main and self-pumping ultrashort pulses by interference population-inversion gratings induced in the active medium gives rise to a new nonreciprocal optical effect (self-induced alternating-sign difference between the frequencies of the counterpropagating waves) and stabilizes the beat regime in such a ring laser.

Field of study: Engineering, Physics
Confidence sets based on sequential Tests

For given (small) a and β a sequential confidence set that covers the true parameter point with probability at least 1 - a and one or more specified false parameter points with probability at most β can be generated by a family of sequen-tial tests. Several situations are described where this approach would be a natural one. The following example is studied in some detail: obtain an upper (1 - α)-confidence interval for a normal mean μ (variance known) with β-protection at μ - δ(μ), where δ(.) is not bounded away from 0 so that a truly sequential procedure is mandatory. Some numerical results are presented for intervals generated by (1) sequential probability ratio tests (SPRT's), and (2) generalized sequential probability ratio tests (GSPRT's). These results indicate the superiority of the GSPRT-generated intervals over the SPRT-generated ones if expected sample size is taken as performance criterion

Field of study: Mathematics