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Luminous red novae (LRNe) are transients characterized by low luminosities and expansion velocities, and are associated with mergers or common envelope ejections in stellar binaries. Intermediate-luminosity red transients (ILRTs) are an observationally similar class with unknown origins, but generally believed to either be electron capture supernovae (ECSN) in super-AGB stars, or outbursts in dusty luminous blue variables (LBVs). In this paper, we present a systematic sample of 8 LRNe and 8 ILRTs detected as part of the Census of the Local Universe (CLU) experiment on the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF). The CLU experiment spectroscopically classifies ZTF transients associated with nearby ($, 32 pages, 16 figures. Submitted to ApJ, comments welcome

Cuscuta (dodder) includes ca. 200 species of plant obligate stem parasites with enormous ecological and economical significance. Inflorescences have been historically used in Cuscuta for species descriptions and identification keys, but no comprehensive study exists to date. The main objectives of this study were to survey the diversity and evolution of inflorescences and to uncover their possible form-function relationships. The inflorescence architecture of 132 Cuscuta taxa was analysed using herbarium specimens and eight species were grown to study their inflorescence development. Inflorescence traits were mapped into a genus phylogeny obtained from a combined analysis of nuclear ITS and plastid trnL-F sequences. To test the hypothesis that inflorescence architecture is connected to sexual reproduction, correlations between inflorescence traits (using Principal Components), sexual reproductive traits (pollen/ovule ratios, corolla length and diameter), fruit charaters (fruit length and width), and the modes of dehiscence were analyzed. Based on their development, three major types of inflorescences were observed: “Cuscuta type”, a simple, monochasial scorpioid cyme; “Monogynella type”, a compound monochasial scorpioid cymes with the longest primary axes having prolonged vegetative growth and giving the appearance of thyrses; and “Grammica type”, a compound monochasial scorpiod cymes with up to five orders of axes. Maximum likelihood analyses suggested Monogynella as the ancestral type, while Cuscuta and Grammica were derived. Overall, the total length of axes exhibited a reduction trend throughout the genus evolution, but it was not correlated with the pedicels length. Inflorescences with similar architectures may exhibit contrasting pollen-ovule ratios. Positive significant correlations were noted between the size of the flower traits and pollen-ovule ratios. Several modes of dehiscence had statistically significant different total axes lengths, suggesting that the infructescence architecture is connected to the modes of dehiscence in Cuscuta and therefore seed dispersal.

Tidal disruption events (TDEs) are bursts of electromagnetic energy released when supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies violently disrupt stars that pass too close. TDEs provide a new window to study accretion onto supermassive black holes; in some cases, this accretion leads to launching of a relativistic jet, but the necessary conditions are not fully understood. Here, we report the optical discovery of AT2022cmc, a rapidly fading source located at redshift z=1.19325. Observations of a bright counterpart at other wavelengths, including X-rays, sub-millimeter, and radio, supports the interpretation of AT2022cmc as a jetted TDE containing a synchrotron ``afterglow.'' Using 4 years of Zwicky Transient Facility survey data, we calculated a rate of 0.02 ^{+ 0.04 }_{- 0.01 } Gpc^{-3} yr^{-1} for jetted TDEs based on the luminous, fast-fading red component, thus providing a measurement complementary to the rates derived from X--ray and radio observations (Brown et al., 2015), confirming that ~1% of TDEs have on-axis jets. Forthcoming observations of AT2022cmc could resolve the jet through high-resolution imaging, while optical surveys have the potential to unveil a population of cosmological flares of the AT2022cmc class.

Background Recent trials have shown that low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL‐C) Methods and Results We performed a prospective cohort study and recruited consecutive Chinese patients with ischemic stroke with magnetic resonance angiography of the intra‐ and cervicocranial arteries performed at the University of Hong Kong between 2008 and 2014. Serial postevent LDL‐C measurements were obtained. Risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in patients with mean postevent LDL‐C P P Conclusions A mean LDL‐C

Cuscuta (dodder) is one of the few angiosperm genera characterised by multiple fruit indehiscence/dehiscence modes. Dodder fruit is a capsule with thin pericarp and contains one to four seeds. In some species fruits open at the base (circumscissile dehiscence; DE) while in others they remain closed (indehiscent; IN). IN has evolved multiple times from DE, and is most common in the North American clades of subgenus Grammica. In addition, different forms of “irregular dehiscence” have been anecdotally reported. To determine fruit types and assess homology, we explored fruit development, structure and ultrastructure together with a comparative morphology and character evolution study of other fruit traits. Because it is commonly assumed that IN is associated with a loss of dispersal capability when diaspores contain several seeds, we studied the geographical distribution of species with DE and IN fruits in North America to ascertain whether the latter are less widely distributed than DE species. To determine the putative dispersal advantage(s) of IN we studied the floatability of both capsules and seeds of C. gronovii, a species with IN fruits. Also, in this species we examined the effects of the fruit on seed germination. Pericarp structure/ultrastructure revealed three distinct fruit types: DE, with an abscission zone (AZ); IN without an AZ, and irregularly dehiscent capsules (IrA) which lack an AZ but open because of the thin endocarp cell walls at the fruit base. A fourth functional fruit type, the irregularly dehiscent type B capsules (IrB) was noted, in which dehiscence apparently occurs because of mechanical pressures created among ripening IN fruits within the dense infructescences of the same plant. IrA fruits were posited to be an intermediate evolutionary step between DE and IN fruits; IrA and IrB fruits are not homologous. The only statistically significant fruit trait associated with the dehiscence mode is the size of the interstylar aperture which is larger in IN fruits than in DE capsules. Although not statistically significant, species with IN fruits appear to be more widely distributed in N America that species with DE capsules suggesting an enhanced dispersal capability of IN fruits. Also, species with IN fruits possess a significantly higher northern latitudinal limit in North America. Capsules of C. gronovii were capable of floating for at least one week longer than their seeds indicating that long-distance dispersal by water is possible under certain conditions. Seeds of C. gronovii not removed from their IN fruits exhibited a delayed germination pattern compared to removed seeds, which heightened germination bet hedging and may prevent sibling competition for the same host plants.

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) is performing a three-day cadence survey of the visible Northern sky (~3$��$). The transient candidates found in this survey are announced via public alerts. As a supplementary product ZTF is also conducting a large spectroscopic campaign: the ZTF Bright Transient Survey (BTS). The goal of the BTS is to spectroscopically classify all extragalactic transients brighter than 18.5 mag at peak brightness and immediately announce those classifications to the public. Extragalactic discoveries from ZTF are predominantly Supernovae (SNe). The BTS is the largest flux-limited SN survey to date. Here we present a catalog of the761 SNe that were classified during the first nine months of the survey (2018 Apr. 1 to 2018 Dec. 31). The BTS SN catalog contains redshifts based on SN template matching and spectroscopic host galaxy redshifts when available. Based on this data we perform an analysis of the redshift completeness of local galaxy catalogs, dubbed as the Redshift Completeness Fraction (RCF; the number of SN host galaxies with known spectroscopic redshift prior to SN discovery divided by the total number of SN hosts). In total, we identify the host galaxies of 512 Type Ia supernovae, 227 of which have known spectroscopic redshifts, yielding an RCF estimate of $44\% \pm1\%$. We find a steady decrease in the RCF with increasing distance in the local universe. For z, 22 pages, 10 figures. Submitted to ApJ

Extracting general rules from specific examples is important, as we must face the same challenge displayed in various formats. Previous studies have found that bimodal presentation of grammar-like rules (e.g. ABA) enhanced 5-month-olds' capacity to acquire a rule that infants failed to learn when the rule was presented with visual presentation of the shapes alone (circle-triangle-circle) or auditory presentation of the syllables (la-ba-la) alone. However, the mechanisms and constraints for this bimodal learning facilitation are still unknown. In this study, we used audio-visual relation congruency between bimodal stimulation to disentangle possible facilitation sources. We exposed 8- to 10-month-old infants to an AAB sequence consisting of visual faces with affective expressions and/or auditory voices conveying emotions. Our results showed that infants were able to distinguish the learned AAB rule from other novel rules under bimodal stimulation when the affects in audio and visual stimuli were congruently paired (Experiments 1A and 2A). Infants failed to acquire the same rule when audio-visual stimuli were incongruently matched (Experiment 2B) and when only the visual (Experiment 1B) or the audio (Experiment 1C) stimuli were presented. Our results highlight that bimodal facilitation in infant rule learning is not only dependent on better statistical probability and redundant sensory information, but also the relational congruency of audio-visual information. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KYTyjH1k9RQ.

This research investigates the maximum potential energy that can be made available by efficiently installing photovoltaic (PV) systems on buildings throughout a city, from the central business district (CBD) out to low density suburbs. The purpose of this is to evaluate the contribution that electricity from PVs can make to reduce the electricity load of a city, supply the needs of a mixture of building types, reduce peak electricity demand and contribute towards the charging of electric vehicles (EVs). Having established the maximum potential, intermediate stages in PV penetration can be backcasted. The results indicate that low dense suburbia is not only the most efficient collector of solar energy but that enough excess electricity can be generated to power daily transport needs of suburbia and also contribute to peak daytime electrical loads in the city centre. This challenges conventional thinking that suburbia is energy inefficient. While a compact city may be more efficient for the internal combustion engine vehicles, a dispersed city is more efficient when distributed generation of electricity by PVs is the main energy source and EVs are the means of transport.

Background Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a highly morbid and fatal condition with high rate of cognitive impairment and negative impact in quality of life among survivors. Delayed cerebral infarction (DCI) is one the major factors for these negative outcomes. In this study we compared the circulating microRNA profiles of SAH patients and healthy individuals, and the circulating microRNA profiles of SAH patients with and without DCI. Methods Peripheral blood samples on Day 7 after the onset of SAH were subjected to microarray analysis with Affymetrix miRNA 3.0 array and quantitative PCR analysis. SAH patients with (N = 20) and without DCI (N = 20) and Healthy controls (N = 20) were included for analyses. Results We demonstrated that 99 miRNAs were found to be dysregulated in the SAH patient group with DCI. 81 miRNAs were upregulated and 18 were downregulated. Findings from KEGG pathway analysis showed that miRNAs and target genes for axon guidance and TGF-beta signaling were involved, implying that the resulted differential miRNA expression pattern reflect the results of SAH instead of etiology of the disease. miR-132-3p and miR-324-3p showed distinctive upregulations in qPCR [miR-132: 9.5 fold (95%CI: 2.3 to 16.7) in DCI group and 3.4 fold (95%CI: 1.0 to 5.8) in Non-DCI group; miR-324: 4924 fold (95%CI: 2620 to 7228) in DCI group and 4545 fold (95%CI: 2408 to 6683) in non-DCI group]. However, there were no significant differences in fold changes between SAH patients with and without DCI [fold change ratios (mean+/-SD): 2.7+/-4.2 and 1.1+/-1.1 for miRNA-132 and miRNA-324]. Conclusion Our study demonstrated that as compared to healthy control, miR-132 and miR-324 showed a upregulation in both SAH DCI and Non-DCI groups. However, the differences between the SAH DCI and non-DCI groups were not statistically significant.

Background Push-up exercises are widely used to build strength and endurance in muscles primarily across the upper body, and it is a recommended home-based strengthening exercise. Few biomechanics investigations of push-ups had been done focusing on the activation of upper limb major muscles in different hand positions. However, their results cannot fully explain the workload done by Triceps Brachial (TB), Pectoral Major (PM) and Anterior Deltoid (AD) with substantial quantifiable evidence. Objective The aim of this study is to measure the EMG signals of TB, PM and AD while performing push-ups in five different hand positions. Design and Particpants Twelve subjects performing push-ups using EMG to collect data to compare. The 5 different hand positions are neutral, narrow base, wide base, anterior and posterior positions. The mean of peak EMG signals of three repetitions were extracted for comparison. A non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis H test was applied and followed by Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test as the post hoc paired difference test. A Bonferroni correction of p=0.01 was applied which was derived from p=0.05/5. Results TB were activated significant more in anterior, neutral and narrow base when compared to wide base and posterior position. No significant differences found in PM and AD from different hand positions. Conclusions Higher muscle activation of TB in anterior, neutral and narrow base positions implies that the training effect of TB may be higher in the above-mentioned hand positions. Further study on the increase in muscle strength is needed to ensure the findings.

This paper describes a way of performing alignment of Portuguese-Chinese bilingual pairs from the given two documents. Extracting the alignment pairs is a critical step for building Portuguese-Chinese bilingual corpus for Example Based Machine Translation Systems (EBMT). In short, the proposed alignment system performs four steps: break down the document into sentences level, score each pair of sentence by different features, apply Singular Value Decomposition on the results, extract the aligned pair base on a similarity function.

Extracting the alignment pairs is a critical step for constructing bilingual corpus knowledge base for Example Based Machine Translation Systems. Different methods have been proposed in aligning parallel corpus between two different languages. However, most of them focus on structurally similar languages like English-French. This paper presents a method of cross aligning Portuguese-Chinese bilingual comparable corpus. The proposed approach is based on Singular Value Decomposition techniques and similarity measurement, which covers the problem in aligning structurally dissimilar corpus and enhances the accuracy of the alignment result.

This paper describes a new model for sentence alignment system of structurally different languages such as Chinese and Portuguese. The alignment may be one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-one and many-to-many. It is also not surprised that the first word or sentence of Chinese is a translation of the last word or sentence of Portuguese. In this proposed method, we try to combine the statistical approach and lexical approach in order to achieve the efficiency and accuracy. In our current research, we first complete the word level alignment by making use of the Chinese-Portuguese dictionary to get the basic translation rate between the two texts. However, the system cannot make a good decision in processing the word alignment by just only concerning the information achieved from the Chinese-Portuguese dictionary. This is because most often the named entities cannot be discovered from the dictionary and this causes the system make a wrong decision. In order to make the system more adaptive, we apply the maximum entropy model to align the named entities without perform the word segmentation for Chinese. Secondly, from the word level alignment, we achieve anchor point and process the sentence level alignment. We use the Hidden Markov Model (HMM) and Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) to get the statistical information of the sentences. For SVD model, we first set up a matrix which consists of the word level alignment statistic information. Then performs the two dimensional reconstruction of the original matrix. By comparing Figure 1 and Figure 2 (sample fragments of data), we can observe some relationships among the sentences and this can give an approximation of sentence alignment.

The problem of data sparseness is considered as a common problem for Statistical Corpus based Sense Disambiguation approaches [1]. Usually large amounts of data are required in the corpus to guarantee that all senses of an ambiguous word are presented. However, this is not easily achieved, especially for words that do not occur frequently in the training corpus. On the other hand, for languages that do not have large amount of digitized resources, the sparseness problem is even worse.