Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE ROLE OF QUALITY FACTORS ON LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS ADOPTION FROM INSTRUCTORS’ PERSPECTIVES

learning management systems have been largely used in universities for teaching, student learning, curriculum, and staff development. However, just providing higher education institutions with a learning management system does not guarantee a success. Quality assurance of these systems has become a central concern for practitioners, researchers, and system providers. In this context, this empirical research investigates quality factors that can contribute to learning management system adoption. In addition, the study developed a research model based on TAM and information systems success model by integrating associated quality indicators inclusive of system quality, service quality, information quality, and instructor quality. Quantitative data using questionnaire gathered from 365 lecturers in Palestine universities were inspected to evaluate the influence of various constructs on lecturers’ adoption of learning management systems using structural equation modeling analysis technique. The research findings show that information quality, system quality, service quality, and instructors’ quality can contribute to e-learning management system adoption with regards to their beliefs. This Research contributes positively to the limited literature on assessing the quality predictors of learning management system adoption.
A Mini Atlas of H-Band Spectra of Southern Symbiotic Stars

Symbiotic stars are interacting binary systems composed of an evolved star (generally a late-type red giant) and a degenerate or dwarf companion in orbit close enough for mass transfer to occur. Understanding the status of the late-type star is important for developing binary models for the symbiotic systems as it affects the transfer of matter needed to activate the hot component. Infrared observations have been very useful in probing the nature of late-type stars in symbiotic systems. This work presents a set of symbiotic stars observed with SOAR/OSIRIS (R∼3000) in the H-band. We aimed to search for possible molecular circumstellar emission, to characterize the cool companion in these systems, and to confront the new findings with those obtained from the previous K-band classifications. We detected molecular emission from just one object, BI Cru, which displays the second-overtone CO-bands. To fit the observed photospheric CO absorption bands, we used the MARCS atmosphere models. We present our results as a mini atlas of symbiotic stars in the near-infrared region to facilitate the comparison among different observed symbiotic systems.
A new thermocline-PCM thermal storage concept for CSP plants . Numerical analysis and perspectives

Thermocline storage concept has been considered for more than a decade as a possible solution to reduce the huge cost of the storage system in CSP plants. However, one of the drawbacks of this concept is the decrease in its performance throughout the time. The objective of this paper is to present a new thermocline-PCM storage concept which aims at circumventing this issue. The concept proposed is built of different solid filler materials and encapsulated PCMs combined into a multi-layer storage tank with molten salt as heat transfer fluid. The performance evaluation of each of the prototypes proposed is virtually tested by means of a detailed numerical methodology which considers the heat transfer and fluid dynamics phenomena present in these devices. The virtual tests carried out are designed so as to take into account several charging and discharging cycles until equilibrium is achieved, i.e. the same amount of energy stored in the charging phase is delivered in the discharge. As a result, the dependence of the storage capacity on the PCMs temperatures, the total energy stored/released, as well as the efficiencies of the storing process have been compared for the different thermocline, PCM-only and multi-layered thermocline-PCM configurations. Based on this analysis the selection of the best option for a given case/plant is proposed. ©2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and peer review by the scientific conference committee of SolarPACES 2013 under responsibility of PSE AG.
The Use of Concept Maps as a Work Methodology in Online Learning Environment-an Exploratory Study

This study aimed to understand how the use of concept maps is perceived, as a working method in the construction of individual knowledge and in helping collaborative work. The participants were 21 postgraduates e-learning students from an educational field. This study and its preliminary results show the potential of the conceptual maps as a working tool, as well as the methodology adopted by us to promote not only individual learning but also collaborative work. As a general observation, concept maps were considered a tool that allows a better understanding and representation of the different theme contents. However, the construction of concept maps in group is a more complex process. In any process of education activities are a key element as mediators of the teachinglearning process. They can take different styles and meet different objectives depending on the competencies that you wish to achieve. Concept maps it’s a multi-sensory tool that uses visuo-spatial orientation to integrate information helping students organize and retain it. This role is reinforced when we are working with students in online due to its ability to help organizing the knowledge and to facilitate the construction of collaborative work. At this level, it promotes discussion and negotiation among the participants of the team leading to a collaborative knowledge construction process.
1 Visual head counts : a promising method for efficient 2 monitoring of diamondback terrapins 3

Generating a range-wide population status of the diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys 10 terrapin spp.) is challenging due to a combination of species ecology and behavior, and limitations 11 associated with traditional sampling methods. Visual counting of emergent heads offers an efficient, 12 non-invasive and promising method for generating abundance estimates of terrapin populations 13 across broader spatial scales and can be used to explain spatial variation in population size. We 14 conducted repeated visual head count surveys at 38 predetermined sites along the shoreline of 15 Wellfleet Bay in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. We analyzed the count data using a hierarchical modeling 16 framework designed specifically to analyze repeated count data: the so-called N-mixture model. 17 This approach allows for simultaneous modeling of imperfect detection to generate estimates of true 18 terrapin abundance. We found detection probability was lowest when skies were overcast and when 19 wind speed was highest. Site specific abundance varied but we found that abundance estimates 20 were, on average, higher in unexposed sites compared to exposed sites. We demonstrate the utility 21 of pairing visual head counts and N-mixture models as an efficient method for estimating terrapin 22 abundance and show how the approach can be used to identifying environmental factors that 23 influence detectability and distribution. 24
Evaluation with an Estimated Behavior Policy

We consider the problem of off-policy evaluation in Markov decision processes. Off-policy evaluation is the task of evaluating the expected return of one policy with data generated by a different, behavior policy. Importance sampling is a technique for off-policy evaluation that re-weights off-policy returns to account for differences in the likelihood of the returns between the two policies. In this paper, we study importance sampling with an estimated behavior policy where the behavior policy estimate comes from the same set of data used to compute the importance sampling estimate. We find that this estimator often lowers the mean squared error of off-policy evaluation compared to importance sampling with the true behavior policy or using a behavior policy that is estimated from a separate data set. Intuitively, estimating the behavior policy in this way corrects for error due to sampling in the action-space. Our empirical results also extend to other popular variants of importance sampling and show that estimating a non-Markovian behavior policy can further lower large-sample mean squared error even when the true behavior policy is Markovian.
Testing Spatial Aspects of Auditory Salience

Auditory salience describes the extent to which sounds attract the listener’s attention. So far, there have not been any published studies testing if the location of sound relative to the listener influences its salience. In fact, not many experiments in general test auditory attention in a fully spatialised setting, with sounds in front and behind the listener. We modified two experimental methods from the literature so that they can be used to test spatial salience - one based on oddball detection and artificially created sounds, the other based on self-reported attention tracking in a more ecologically valid scenario. Each of these methods has its advantages and each presents different challenges. However, they both seem to indicate that high frequency sounds arriving from the back are slightly less salient. We believe this result could likely be explained by loudness differences.
USE OF MICROSEISMIC MONITORING FOR ROCKBURST MANAGEMENT AT VALE INCO MINES

Seismic systems provide characterization of mine seismicity and represent a monitoring tool for the management of seismic hazard and rockbursting. Seismic data is employed at all Vale Inco mines in the Sudbury Basin to evaluate and perform mine development activities by optimized stope sequencing, destress blasting and ground support. It is also used for the calibration of numerical models and the identification of major seismically active geological structures for strategic placement of secondary or enhanced support. Seismic monitoring is essential in the assessment and mitigation of seismic hazard and risk, thus minimizing the exposure of equipment and personnel through the use of re-entry protocols.
Contemporary ethnic minority entrepreneurship in the UK Journal Item

Purpose – Ethnic minority entrepreneurs (EMEs) are traditionally associated with lower growth industry sectors. This study draws on the theory of mixed embeddedness to determine if more recent EMEs have been able to break out of lower growth sectors and if break out varies across ethnic minority groups. It also compares entrepreneurial quality in terms of weekly hours worked, weekly earnings and job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach – Quantitative inferential statistical analysis is undertaken on data drawn from the large scale, social sciences dataset for the UK, Understanding Society. Findings – The study finds that break out is not associated with being a recent EME but does vary across ethnic minority groups. Break out is found to be associated with gender, education, English language proficiency and occupational status. Some variation in entrepreneurial quality is found for both recent EMEs and across ethnic minority groups. Practical implications – Understanding the nature and quality of ethnic minority entrepreneurship is important since it informs public debate about migration, informs policy and shapes activities of future ethnic minority entrepreneurs. Originality/value – The study provides a theoretically grounded interpretation of the explanatory variables associated with EME break out and entrepreneurial quality. Secondly, it provides a large confirmatory study of break out and finally, it also finds an important
Book of ICETSR , 2014 , Malaysia Handbook on the Emerging Trends in Scientific Research

Previous studies have underlined that non-compliance with regulations/laws and unethical behaviors from corporate governance actors contribute to the poor corporate governance. However, majority of these studies only highlighting on the effectiveness of board of directors and managers, and very few evidence provided from the developing country(s). This study investigates the relationship between the distributions of power within two major internal corporate governance mechanisms: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Board of Directors (BOD) and the likelihood of financial statement fraud in Indonesian Public Listed Companies (PLCs) following allegation from the Indonesian Capital Market and Financial Institution Supervisory Board (ICFISMB) during 2001 to 2012. Our main contribution is visualized by incorporating and typifying the characteristic of power between these two corporate governance mechanisms in one of developing countries. An additional analysis on the individual demographic variables as the moderating effect in this relationship also provides a significant insight to this area. We employ principal component analysis on number of characteristic of power related to CEO and BOD to acquire each of three factors that characterize types of power between these key corporate governance actors. Furthermore, we extend the study by analyzing the dyadic pairing of low and high CEO and BOD power relationships and how they influence the likelihood of financial statement fraud in an emerging market country setting. The overall findings suggest when the BOD expert power increases (and to some extent when the BOD ownership power decreases), the likelihood of financial statement fraud decreases through a consistent monitoring and supervising mechanism. In particular, the individual demographic variable of BOD tenure moderates the influence of the dyadic relationship when CEO and BOD have both high level of power on the likelihood of financial statement fraud in Indonesian PLCs The findings of this study underline the need of the proactive/participatory boards in a company setting to mitigate the likelihood of financial statement fraud. This study supports the calls for maximizing the role of BOD in Indonesian companies comprehensively.
The Reliability of a Pediatric Balance Scale Based on the Raters’ Clinical Work Experience and Test Experience

Purpose: To investigate the rater reliability of a Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS) for children with cerebral palsy, and to investigate possible differences among raters according to their clinical work experience and testing experience. Methods: Study participants included 18 children with spastic cerebral palsy who could walk. They were instructed by pediatric physical therapists, two of whom had ten years of clinical work experience and two who had less than one year of experience. The children’s ability to achieve physical balance was videotaped for PBS items. The raters watched the tapes and evaluated each child twice. Rater reliability was analyzed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Differences between experienced and novice raters were analyzed using a paired t ‐ test. The statistical significance level was set to 0.05. Results: The total PBS scores averaged 45.78 ~ 48.00 and 45.72 ~ 47.67 for first and second tests. Intra ‐ rater reliability was very high (ICC=0.89 ~ 0.99), and the repeated measurement coincidence was high (p>0.05). Inter ‐ rater reliability was high (ICC=0.83 ~ 0.84), but there was a bit of a difference in the coincidence (p<0.05). The experienced raters’ reliability and coincidence were higher than those of the novices, and there were differences in reliance and coincidence between experienced and novice raters (p<0.05). Conclusion: Inter ‐ rater and intra ‐ rater reliability is very high. However, rater reliability showed defferences depending on clinical work experience and testing experience. When testing pediatric patients with the PBS, the rater’s clinical experience and test experience may affect the test results.
N ov 2 00 6 GLOBAL EXISTENCE OF NULL-FORM WAVE EQUATIONS IN EXTERIOR DOMAINS

Abstract. We provide a proof of global existence of solutions to quasilinear wave equations satisfying the null condition in certain exterior domains. In particular, our proof does not require estimation of the fundamental solution for the free wave equation. We instead rely upon a class of Keel-Smith-Sogge estimates for the perturbed wave equation. Using this, a notable simplification is made as compared to previous works concerning wave equations in exterior domains: one no longer needs to distinguish the scaling vector field from the other admissible vector fields.
MSEC 2017-2939 ( draft ) NUMERICAL MODELING OF METAL-BASED ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING PROCESS USING LEVEL SET METHODS

Modern computer technology enables people to simulate additive manufacturing (AM) process at high fidelity, which has proven to be an effective way to analyze, predict, and design the AM processes. In this paper, a new method is proposed to simulate the melting process of metal powder based AM. The physics is described using partial differential equations for heat transfer and Laminar flow. The level set methods are employed to track the motion of free surface between liquid and solid phases. The issues, including free surface evolution, phase changes, and velocity field calculation are investigated. The convergence problem is examined in order to improve the efficiency of solving this multiphysics problem.
The effects of training and spatial experience on the perception of the interior of buildings with a high level of complexity

The high level of complexity that is a compulsory result of the complex plan schemes worsens the perception and usage of locations. It was attempted in this research to determine the effects of education in architecture and spatial experience on the spatial complexity and the evaluations of the perception performance in the education buildings that have a high level of complexity. The research included the Selcuk University, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture Building and the students using this building. The subjects were asked about usage of the location and their spatial perception performance. Experiments were made on their recollection levels of the locations they use. Statistical analyses and reliability tests were made on the data obtained. Consequently, it was determined that training of the students did not cause a statistically significant variety in their perception of the buildings with a high level of complexity. The buildings evaluated as complex were then evaluated as simpler through an increase in experience.
Tremor Detection Algorithm for Parkinsonian Patients

This diploma thesis deals with development of a suitable method for detection of tremor in patients with Parkinson’s disease. The detection is based on recorded local field potentials of the Subthalamic nucleus (STN), captured through an electrode of a deep brain stimulation device. The main part of this work is dedicated to research of various properties of the STN signal, compared on tremor and non-tremor recordings in different patients. Features based on temporal, spectral, statistical, fractal and autocorrelation-related discovered properties of the signals are developed and implemented. Evaluation and comparison of the features is done on the available data during a classification process, using short sections of preprocessed signals. The results show great importance of spectral properties of the signal, which corresponds with previous research in this field. In particular, the frequency bands 0–1 and 3.5–5.5 Hz proved great significance to the problem, the latter corresponding with the tremor frequency found in the simultaneous EMG recordings. Classification based on multiple features showed very good results for 3 out of 5 patients, reaching up to 94% sensitivity with specificity equalling one. On the contrary, the method did not work with the two remaining patients, possible reason being substantial lack of training data.
Determinants of export diversification at the export margins : reference to transition economies

This paper investigates what determine export diversification in transition economies. As deducted from heterogeneous trade theory, the main variables of interest in our baseline specification are entry and trade costs. Few elements differentiate ours from previous analyses. Unlike majority of studies, that only observes determinants of overall diversification (usually measured by Theil index), we also observe diversification at the different margins of export growth (measured by within and between components of Theil index). It is not uncommon in empirical studies that export diversification is identified as extensive margin. Diversification on the intensive margin of export growth is not investigated much in the literature. In that sense, our focus on factors that affects diversification at the intensive margin is the novelty in this literature. Further, we aims add to the knowledge by focusing on sample of transition economies, which has not been done before. Considering that transition economies are large recipient of aid-fortrade, trade assistance that is expected to influence countries’ export diversification, we augmented baseline model for different categories of aid-for-trade. Up to date, this analysis is the first empirical analysis to tackle this issue. Based on the review of empirical literature, we recognised that dynamic of export diversification process, potential endogeneity of aid for trade, entry and trade costs, time invariant and slowly changing variables (distance, entry and export costs) and country’s heterogeneity are some of the issues that need to be addressed in the empirical investigation of the relationship between export diversification and its determinants. In order to account for the listed problems we opt for the 1 Business School, Staffordshire University . email:M.Balavac@staff.ac. uk Determinants of export diversification at the export margins: reference to transition economies