Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modelling price transmission and volatility spillover in the Slovenian wheat market

ABSTRACT Interdependence between first and second moments of producer and consumer wheat prices in Slovenia is assessed, in light of the recent major historical events that the country has undergone, as well as the recent rumours of cartel agreements between millers causing a decline in farm-gate prices, while leaving consumer prices untouched. A threshold vector error correction and multivariate generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity model with exogenous variables is applied. Results indicate that price-level adjustments mainly favour retailers by increasing their marketing margins. Important second-moment interactions are also identified. Increases in international wheat stocks reduce producer prices, while higher interest rates increase their instability.
Investigation of wing crack formation with a combined phase‐field and experimental approach

Fractures that propagate off of weak slip planes are known as wing cracks and often play important roles in both tectonic deformation and fluid flow across reservoir seals. Previous numerical models have produced the basic kinematics of wing crack openings but generally have not been able to capture fracture geometries seen in nature. Here we present both a phase‐field modeling approach and a physical experiment using gelatin for a wing crack formation. By treating the fracture surfaces as diffusive zones instead of as discontinuities, the phase‐field model does not require consideration of unpredictable rock properties or stress inhomogeneities around crack tips. It is shown by benchmarking the models with physical experiments that the numerical assumptions in the phase‐field approach do not affect the final model predictions of wing crack nucleation and growth. With this study, we demonstrate that it is feasible to implement the formation of wing cracks in large scale phase‐field reservoir models.
Do Islamic banks financially perform better than conventional banks?: a comparative study of Pakistani banks

Pakistan has a majority of Muslims population, but the general public is not well aware of the culture of Islamic banking. Not only the non Muslims but among Muslims, separate groups have different attitudes, opinions, views and understanding toward Islamic banking activities e.g. risk management in Islamic banks, profitability, liquidity, and solvency. In this study, financial ratios are used to compare the performance of Islamic and Conventional banks. This study finds that Pakistani Islamic banks are significantly less profitable and less efficient while Islamic bank are more solvent (less risky) as compared to the Conventional banks. But there is no significant difference in the liquidity position of Islamic and Conventional banks.
INVERTEBRATE FAUNA ASSOCIATED WITH TORPEDOGRASS, PANICUM REPENS (CYPERALES: POACEAE), IN LAKE OKEECHOBEE, FLORIDA, AND PROSPECTS FOR BIOLOGICAL CONTROL

Abstract Torpedograss, Panicum repens L. , is an adventive, rhizomatous grass species that has become an invasive weed of terrestrial, wetland, and aquatic environments in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. Until recently, strategies for controlling torpedograss in the USA have focused almost exclusively on mechanical and chemical methods, either alone or in combination, with varied results. A survey of the arthropods and nematodes currently associated with the plant in Lake Okeechobee, Florida, was conducted as part of a feasibility study to determine whether torpedograss is an appropriate target for a classical biological control program. Overall, approximately 4,000 arthropods and 400 nematode specimens were collected. Sweep, clipped vegetation, and soil core samples were dominated by representatives of the arthropod orders Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Acari. Lesion nematodes of the genus Pratylenchus were commonly associated with the roots of torpedograss. None of the organisms collected were torpedograss specialists. Although classical biological control of torpedograss is feasible based on the extent of the infestation, economic losses, resistance to conventional controls, and the report of a potentially host specific natural enemy in India, the botanical position of this grass weed will require a formal risk assessment before proceeding with a classical biological control program.
A Hardware Structure for FAST Protocol Decoding Adapting to 40Gbps Bandwidth

FAST protocol is a kind of Data Compression Protocols which is widely used in Highfrequency trading. So far, implements of fast protocol decoding mainly depend on software. On the other hand, transmission delay of decoding can be effectively decreased by customized hardware instead of software. However, most of FPGA hardware architectures are serial. A parallel FPGA hardware structure for fast protocol decoding adapting to 40Gbps bandwidth is proposed in this paper. The structure includes 3 modules: field dividing module, field matching module and parallel decoding units. The practicability and efficiency of the proposed architecture is verified in System C platform and it takes 173ns to decode a message whose field number is 64. At last, influence of three factors to transmission delay is discussed in this paper, including decoding unit number, field type and sequence length of message.
Crosstalk prediction on wire bundles by Kriging approach

A wide variety of interconnections among electronic devices are performed by means of randomly twisted bundle of wires, particularly for transport and industrial applications. This work examines the crosstalk analysis of such bundles. A new model based on fractals for describing the position of wires winding throughout a bundle is presented. It allows the wires' meandering degree to be tuned simply by means of a parameter (the fractal dimension). It also allows for a statistical analysis of crosstalk because it can simulate independent different realizations of the same interconnection. An efficient multifactor prediction method known as "Kriging" is applied in order to describe the crosstalk as a function of the input factors (cable loads, cable height above the ground plane, etc.) of the cable model. It allows for a drastic reduction in the simulation time insofar as it predicts the crosstalk at untried combinations of the input factors from a small base of input combinations. In comparing the crosstalk simulated using the fractal model with the experimental measurements good agreement was found.
Geomagnetic disturbance intensity dependence on the universal timing of the storm peak

The role of universal time (UT) dependence on storm time development has remained an unresolved question in geospace research. This study presents new insight into storm progression in terms of the UT of the storm peak. We present a superposed epoch analysis of solar wind drivers and geomagnetic index responses during magnetic storms, categorized as a function of UT of the storm peak, to investigate the dependency of storm intensity on UT. Storms with Dst minimum less than −100 nT were identified in the 1970–2012 era (305 events), covering four solar cycles. The storms were classified into six groups based on the UT of the minimum Dst (40 to 61 events per bin) then each grouping was superposed on a timeline that aligns the time of the minimum Dst. Fifteen different quantities were considered: seven solar wind parameters and eight activity indices derived from ground‐based magnetometer data. Statistical analyses of the superposed means against each other (between the different UT groupings) were conducted to determine the mathematical significance of similarities and differences in the time series plots. It was found that the solar wind parameters have no significant difference between the UT groupings, as expected. The geomagnetic activity indices, however, all show statistically significant differences with UT during the main phase and/or early recovery phase. Specifically, the 02:00 UT groupings are stronger storms than those in the other UT bins. That is, storms are stronger when the Asian sector is on the nightside (American sector on the dayside) during the main phase.
A complex Langevin approach to ultracold fermions

The theoretical treatment of Fermi systems consisting of particles with unequal masses is challenging. Even in one spatial dimension analytic solutions are limited to special configurations and numerical progress with Monte Carlo simulations is hindered by the sign-problem. To circumvent this issue, we exploit the Complex Langevin approach and study one-dimensional mass-imbalanced two-component Fermi gases with attractive and repulsive interactions. We find perfect agreement with results obtained by other methods in a range of parameter space. Promisingly, our approach is not limited to the specific model presented here and can easily be extended to finite spin polarization and, most notably, can also be applied in higher dimensions.
Species composition, relative abundance and habitat association of rodents in Yekoche Forest, East Gojjam, Ethiopia

A study on species composition, relative abundance and habitat association of rodents in Yekoche Forest was carried out from September, 2014 to April, 2015 during both wet and dry seasons. Data were collected using live trap and snap trap. A total of 841 individual of rodents were trapped using both live trap and snap trap. Rodent species such as yellow spotted brush-furred rate (Lophuromys flavopunctatus) (24.5%), African grass rat (Arvicanthis niloticus), (23.5%), Broad beaked dolphins (Pelomys harringtoni) (19.1%), Ethiopian narrow headed rat (Stenocephalemys albicaudata) (20.7%) and house mouse (Mus musculus) (12.1%) were recorded. Most of the rodent species prefer Acacia grassland habitats and agricultural farmland. Bushland and riverine vegetation provided less number of rodent individuals. Highest numbers of rodents were recorded during the wet season (56.8%) than the dry season (43.2%). All age groups were represented in the population of the captured species. Abundance of rodents was significantly differed between dry and wet seasons. The study area was highly affected by human activity, as a result rodents species were reduced. Therefore, community based conservation need to be implemented in the study area. Key words: Habitat association, relative abundance, rodents, species diversity, Yekoche Forest.
Field application of biopolymer-coated Beauveria bassiana F418 for clover root weevil ( Sitona lepidus ) control in Waikato and Manawatu

Clover root weevil (CRW) (Sitona lepidus) continues to have a severe impact on white clover in pastures in the North Island of New Zealand. Trials were established in October 2005 as part of a continuing evaluation of the insect-pathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana F418 strain for management of this pest. F418 was applied as a rice + biopolymer formulation, targeting CRW larvae in the clover root feeding zone (3-5 cm below the surface). Overall, there was a reduction in CRW numbers at all of the test sites. The number of larvae recovered was significantly lower in F418-treated than control plots after 3 weeks, and the number of pupae was similarly lower in F418 than control plots after 6 weeks. Higher levels of fungal propagules were recovered from 0-6 cm in the soil profile than 6-10 cm.
Discovery of extreme [O III] λ5007 Å outflows in high-redshift red quasars

Black hole feedback is now a standard component of galaxy formation models. These models predict that the impact of black hole activity on its host galaxy likely peaked at z=2-3, the epoch of strongest star formation activity and black hole accretion activity in the Universe. We used XShooter on the Very Large Telescope to measure rest-frame optical spectra of four z~2.5 extremely red quasars with infrared luminosities ~10^47 erg/sec. We present the discovery of very broad (full width at half max= 2600-5000 km/sec), strongly blue-shifted (by up to 1500 km/sec) [OIII]5007A emission lines in these objects. In a large sample of obscured and red quasars, [OIII] kinematics are positively correlated with infrared luminosity, and the four objects in our sample are on the extreme end both in [OIII] kinematics and infrared luminosity. We estimate that ~3% of the bolometric luminosity in these objects is being converted into the kinetic power of the observed wind. Photo-ionization estimates suggest that the [OIII] emission might be extended on a few kpc scales, which would suggest that the extreme outflow is affecting the entire host galaxy of the quasar. These sources may be the signposts of the most extreme form of quasar feedback at the peak epoch of galaxy formation, and may represent an active "blow-out" phase of quasar evolution.
Effectiveness of Implementing a Tutor Training Workshop for Problem Based Learning Class Tutors at the Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University

Background: The Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University was established to become the first Problem- Based Learning school in the Middle East. In a problem-based-learning tutor should know well both the content of the problems and how to facilitate the small-group learning process, A tutor training program needs to be developed that will morph tutors from teachers to facilitators. Aim: The aim of this study was to measure the educational effectiveness of implementing a tutor training workshop at The Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University. Methodology: A quasi-experimental, Pre-program/post-program non-equivalent comparison group design was applied in this study. The target population was randomly assigned to intervention and control groups, a total number of 28 tutors in each group. The study passed through three stages: “preparatory’’, “design” and “implementation and evaluation” stages. The data was collected by: needs assessment questionnaire, tutors self-satisfaction questionnaire, student satisfaction questionnaire administered before and after the implementation, questionnaire to assess tutors’ and students’ satisfaction with tutors’ performance. Six steps approach to curriculum development was used as a method for planning and implementing the tutor training workshop. The first three levels of Kirkpatrick’s model of evaluation of educational interventions (reaction, learning, and behavior) were applied in this study to evaluate effectiveness of the workshop. Results: Results showed an overall tutor satisfaction with the training workshop. More than 70% of workshop participants agreed that the workshop furthered their understanding of PBL as educational strategy and their role as tutors. The mean of the pretest was 5.42 and the mean of post-test was 7.1, the results also shows that there was a statically significance difference between the results of the pre-and the post-tests for the workshop at p ≤ 0.05. Results also showed improvement of the intervention group performance. The average score for the overall performance of the tutor was (7.67 ± 1.20) in the intervention group compared with the control group (6.54 ± 2.02). Conclusion: The study concluded that tutor training workshop was effective in improving tutor facilitation skills in the areas of constructive active learning, self- directed learning, collaborative learning, intra-personal behavior as tutor, and increase educational effectiveness of the PBL sessions from students’ point of views. Tutor training workshop enhanced tutor performance in intervention group compared to the control group. The tutor training workshop increases tutors’ self satisfaction with their performance and enhances students’ satisfaction with tutor performance. Tutor training was effective as it incorporated adult learning principles (was relevant and interactive); experiential learning; arose from needs assessments; rewarded participation; encourage active participation; had clear goals and a theoretical framework
All that she wants is a(nother) baby’? Longing for children as a fertility incentive of growing importance

Abstract The article discusses the existence and outlook of an evolved desire to have children. Twin studies have found a genetic basis for conscious attempts to get pregnant. This heritable disposition increasingly affects societies of wide female reproductive choice (Kohler et al 1999). Based on 106 stories written by Finnish women in 2006, I analyse the symptoms, triggers and behaviour related to longing for babies. I suggest that a strong longing for first or subsequent children is an affective incentive of growing importance in low-fertility societies. Female desire for babies appears in two main forms: as part of a generally care-oriented personality and as a sudden, surprising and largely physical longing. The first type conforms to previous research on nurturing (Miller 1986; Foster 2000) while the second type has not been much studied yet. For both types, a desire to have children is often related to physical age, falling in love, previous pregnancies and to exposure to babies of kin and peers. I.
Multivariate Screening Model for Later Word Reading Achievement: Predictive Utility of Prereading Skills and Cognitive Ability

The present study used multiple regression to determine the predictive value of Kindergarten phonemic awareness, rapid serial naming, letter knowledge, and cognitive ability for predicting first-grade word reading and fluency. Participants were 131 first-grade students from a mid-Atlantic school system. A combination of predictor variables was found to be more effective than single measures in predicting later word reading and reading fluency, with cognitive ability, phonemic awareness, and letter knowledge contributing significantly to the prediction of skill. The results underscore the need to use a multivariate battery, rather than any single measure, along with consideration of intelligence, to identify children for early intervention.
THE REGIONAL ECONOMIC EFFECTS OF MILITARY BASE REALIGNMENTS AND CLOSURES IN GERMANY

We identify the causal effect of a reduction in military personnel on a number of socioeconomic indicators within the peripheries of military bases. The base realignments and closures in Germany are used as an exogenous source of variation that allows us to identify the effect of a demand shock on household income, output, unemployment, and tax revenue within a specified buffer zone around each base. The analysis covers 298 communities for the period 2003–2007. Consistent with evidence found elsewhere, we find that these base adjustments have only a marginal impact on the local community in which the bases are located.
Modeling spike occurrences in electricity spot prices for forecasting

Predicting the occurrence of extreme prices, so-called spikes, is one of the greatest challengeswhen modeling electricity spot prices. Despite the fact that recently new insights have beenachieved, the contemporaneous literature seems to be still at its beginning of understanding thedi fferentmechanisms that drive spike probabilities. We therefore reconsider the problem offorecasting the occurrence of spikes, in the Australian electricity market. For this purpose, we first discuss properties of the price data with a focus on the occurrence of spikes. We thenpropose simple models for the probability of spikes which take these properties into account. Themodels compare favorably for in- and out-of-sample forecasts to a competing approach based on theautoregressive conditional hazard model.
Organogenesis and Histogenesis of Mammary Gland in the Female Goat (Capra hircus)

The present study was carried out on the development of the mammary glands of 42 female foetii at different stages of their development ranging from 4.4 cm to 38.6 cm crown rump length (44-139 days). The mammary bud was observed between 4.4-6.0 cm crown rump length (44-49 days) as a group of undifferentiated epidermal cells below the stratum basale. The formation of primary sprout was initiated at 9.5 cm crown rump length (58 days) and its luminization was observed during 12.5 cm-13.0 cm crown rump length (64-66 days). At proximal end of primary sprout, the secondary sprouts were observed at 68 days and tertiary sprouts at 69-78 days. The teat cistern and gland cistern were observed at the age of 21.7 cm crown rump length (91 days) and were lined by double layer epithelium with superficial tall columnar and basal low cuboidal to flattened cells. At 32.5 cm crown rump length (122 days), the completely luminized streak canal, rosette of Furstenberg and teat canal were clearly noticed. At 38.6 cm crown rump length (139 days), the mammary glands showed high proliferative growth of gland cistern and surrounding ducts.
Approaches to Governance in Public projects – The Norwegian Case

This book mainly focuses governance through the lenses of private sector organizations and projects. In this chapter we try to supplement and contrast this perspective with a description of public sector and the differences this represent. One main point highlighted is the use of governance frameworks implemented to secure successful investment projects. Throughout this chapter Norway will be used as the main example. The reason for this is not only that both authors are Norwegian with wide experience doing research on Norwegian public projects. Actually, we claim that Norway is a pioneer in the area of governance of public projects, having introduced a governance scheme applied to all the largest state-funded investment projects across sectors, with external quality assurance of the planning documents as the essential element.
Physico-chemical and Sensory Evaluation of Market Yoghurt in Nigeria

This study examined the quality of some yoghurts made and sold in the Nigerian market. Nine commercially available brands of yoghurt drinks which represent seven different manufacturers were randomly selected. The samples included seven plain yoghurt and two fruit yoghurt samples. All yoghurt samples were analyzed for chemical properties (moisture%, ash %, total solids, SNF, fat, pH and titratable acidity) and the organoleptic tests (color, thickness, appearance, body, texture, taste, smell, flavor and over all acceptability). The results of the study showed that the physico-chemical composition of the manufactured yogurts was different. The pH values of the samples ranged between 3.70-4.33 which were reasonably suitable for yoghurt marketed in tropical areas. No direct relationship was observed between pH values and titratable acidity. There was marked variation in the % fat content of the products. The results of the sensory evaluation revealed that flavor with respect to taste and smell had significant influence (p<0.05) on overall acceptability of yogurt product. So, the yogurt manufacturers need to improve on the sensory properties in particular flavor and taste for better consumer acceptability. Also, they may improve on packaging by labeling to specifications that precisely represent the content and type.