Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE INFLUENCE OF EU MEMBER COUNTRIES’ ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ON THEIR CITIZENS’ PRO-ENVIRONMENTAL ATTITUDES

The present paper aims to determine the influence of EU member countries’ economic development on their citizens’ pro-environmental attitudes using a path analysis. In this sense, we have used the results of the 2012 survey on the „Attitudes of Europeans towards building the single market for green products”, as well as the 2012 statistical information referring to EU member countries’ economic development, provided by Eurostat. The results indicated which macroeconomic variables exert a significant influence on each pro-environmental attitudinal component. Future studies may consider using less macroeconomic variables in order to identify their influence on different pro-environmental attitudinal components.
Feasibility Study of Solar Water Heaters in Algeria, a Review

According to the statistics announced by Algeria’s Ministry of Energy and Mine, residential and service sectors account for 40% of total energy consumption of the country of which a huge amount is dedicated to space heating and sanitary hot water. Therefore, using solar water heater (SWH) for providing a major part of this energy demand seems necessary in line with socio-economic development and continuous improvement of standards of living. Applications such as space and water heating are not well-developed in Algeria and no need to say that using energy management software packages is an excellent solution for enhancing management applications of energy development-based systems. Therefore current study uses TSOL and MeteoSyn software packages to investigate the potential of using SWHs for a residential apartment in 37 stations in Algeria. Results indicated that In Salah, Tamanrasset, and Adrar stations that respectively accounted for 85.6%, 81.2%, and 76,7% of total thermal demand provision were the most suitable ones for SWH usage. Also, given the results it can be observed that in case of using SWH in 37 stations, 150160 kWh of thermal energy for space heating and 99861 kWh for sanitary hot water is produced which, due to not using fossil fuels for generating this thermal energy, savings up to 56783 kg in CO2 emissions are obtainable annually.
Laser-based measurements of 18O/16O stable isotope ratios (δ18O) in wine samples

Wine counterfeiting is an international, multi-billion dollar issue, with some estimates suggesting that up to 5% of wines sold at auctions or secondary markets are fraudulent. Isotope ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS) measurements of the 18O/16O stable isotope ratio (δ18O) of water-in-wine have been used for wine authentication; however, these analyses are time-consuming and costly. In this preliminary study, off-axis integrated cavity output spectroscopy (OA-ICOS) is used to quantify δ18O in wines. This laser-based method has been extensively used to study water isotopes for hydrological and medical applications. Recently, the development of a spectral contaminant identifier (SCI) has extended the application of these OA-ICOS analyzers to contaminated water samples (eg, plant, soil, and leaf waters). Here, we utilize OA-ICOS with the SCI to characterize wine samples (9%–15% ethanol), and show that the laser-based instrument provides a δ18O measurement precision of ±0.07‰ (1σ) and agrees with IRMS to within ±0.63‰ (1σ). Moreover, by training the SCI on isotopically-characterized wines, the agreement with IRMS improves to within ±0.30‰ (1σ). The utility of the instrument is demonstrated by measuring watered and mixed wines. The method presented here can be readily extended to address other food authentication applications.
Cardiac magnetic resonance findings predict increased resource utilisation in elective coronary artery bypass surgery

Background: Morbidity following coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery is difficult to predict and leads to increased healthcare costs. We hypothesised that preoperative cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) findings would predict resource utilisation in elective CABG. Methods: Over a 12-month period, elective CABG patients were invited to undergo CMR one day prior to CABG. Gadolinium-enhanced CMR was performed using a trueFISP inversion recovery sequence on 1.5 tesla scanner (Sonata, Siemens). Clinical data were prospectively collected. Admission costs were quantified based on standardised actual cost-per-day. Admission cost > median was defined as "increased". Results: Of 458 elective CABG cases, 45 (10%) underwent pre-operative CMR. Preoperative characteristics (mean (standard deviation) age 64 (9) years), mortality (1%) and admission duration (median (interquartile range 7 (6, 8) days) were similar in patients who did or did not undergo CMR. In the CMR patients, eight (18%) and 11 (24%) patients had reduced left ventricular (LV) systolic function by CMR (LVEF<55%) and echocardiography, respectively. Late enhancement (LE) with gadolinium was detected in 17 (38%) patients. The average cost-per-day was $2,723. The median (range) admission cost was $19,059 ($10,891 to $157,917). CMR LVEF (odds ratio (OR) [95% confidence interval (CI)] 0.93 [0.87 to 0.99]; p=0.03) and stroke volume index (OR 1.07 (95% CI 1.00 to 1.14); p=0.02) predicted increased admission cost. CMR LVEF (p=0.08) and EuroScore tended to predict actual admission cost (p=0.09), but SV by CMR (p=0.16) and LV function by echocardiography (p=0.95) did not. Discussion: In this exploratory investigation, preoperative CMR findings predicted admission duration and increased admission cost in elective CABG. The cost-effectiveness of CMR for risk stratification in elective CABG merits prospective assessment.
A dual porosity model of high-pressure gas flow for geoenergy applications

This paper presents the development of a dual porosity numerical model of multiphase, multicomponent chemical–gas transport using a coupled thermal, hydraulic, chemical, and mechanical formulation. Appropriate relationships are used to describe the transport properties of nonideal, reactive gas mixtures at high pressure, enabling the study of geoenergy applications such as geological carbon sequestration. Theoretical descriptions of the key transport processes are based on a dual porosity approach considering the fracture network and porous matrix as distinct continua over the domain. Flow between the pore regions is handled using mass exchange terms and the model includes equilibrium and kinetically controlled chemical reactions. A numerical solution is obtained with a finite element and finite difference approach and verification of the model is pursued to build confidence in the accuracy of the implementation of the dual porosity governing equations. In the course of these tests, the time-splitting approach used to couple the transport, mass exchange, and chemical reaction modules is shown to have been successfully applied. It is claimed that the modelling platform developed provides an advanced tool for the study of high-pressure gas transport, storage, and displacement for geoenergy applications involving multiphase, multicomponent chemical–gas transport in dual porosity media, such as geological carbon sequestration.
Activities of methionine-γ-lyase in the acidophilic archaeon “Ferroplasma acidarmanus” strain fer1

Biogeochemical processes on exposed pyrite ores result in extremely high levels of sulfuric acid at these locations. Acidophiles that thrive in these conditions must overcome significant challenges, including an environment with proton concentrations at pH 3 or below. The role of sulfur metabolism in the archaeon "Ferroplasma acidarmanus" strain fer1's ability to thrive in this environment was investigated due to its growth-dependent production of methanethiol, a volatile organic sulfur compound. Two putative sequences for methionine- Γ-lyase (EC 4.4.1.11), an enzyme known to carry out A,Γ-elimination on L-methionine to produce methanethiol, were identified in fer1. Bioinformatic analyses identified a conserved pyridoxal-5+-phosphate (PLP) binding domain and a partially conserved catalytic domain in both putative sequences. Detection of PLP-dependent and L-methionine-dependent production of A-keto compounds and thiol groups in fer1 confirmed the presence of methionine-Γ-lyase activity. Further, fer1 lysate was capable of processing related substrates, including D-methionine, L-cysteine, L-cystathionine, and L/D-homocysteine. When the two putative fer1 methionine-Γ- lyase gene-coded proteins were expressed in Escherichia coli cells, one sequence demonstrated an ability to carry out A, Γ-elimination activity, while the other exhibited Γ-replacement activity. These fer1 methionine-Γ-lyases also exhibited optimum pH, substrate specificity, and catalytic preferences that are different from methionine-Γ-lyases from other organisms. These differences are discussed in the context of molecular phylogeny constructed using a maximum likelihood algorithm based on methionine-Γ-lyase sequences from a diverse selection of organisms.
Size distribution of chlorophyll a biomass and primary production in a temperate estuary (Southampton Water): the contribution of photosynthetic picoplankton

Size-fractionated chlorophyll a (chl a) biomass and primary production rate (>3 pm, 1-3 pm and < l pm) and picophytoplankton abundance (both prokaryotic and eukaryotic) were investigated in Southampton Water (south coast of England), with routine sampling at 2 stations, representative of conditions in the mid and outer estuary. In the mid estuary the cycle of chl a biomass in the >3 pm size fraction was characterized by a small spring peak and a more intense summer peak. In the outer estuary a chl a maximum in the >3 pm size fraction occurred in spring; phytoplankton in this size fraction may have been nutrient limited in summer at this station. Phycoerythrin-containing picocyanobacteria, eukaryotic picophytoplankton cell numbers, and chl a biomass and primary production rate by the < l pm size fraction all showed a positive correlation with temperature and peaked during summer at both stations. The 1-3 and <l pm size fractions contributed around 14 and 6%, respectively, to the estimated annual rate of depth-integrated plankton community primary production. These results suggest that the impact of the photosynthetic picoplankton diminishes in an increasing eutrophication gradient, from offshore (>50%) to coastal (ca 20%) and estuarine waters (<10%). This pattern in relation to a eutrophication gradient was also apparent on a seasonal basis, the <l pm fraction having its maximum significance at times of lowest overall chl a concentration. It is thus suggested that factors limiting growth and accumulation of larger phytoplankton are the primary cause of an increase in the relative significance of picophytoplankton.
Effects of Mega Doses of Phytase on Growth Performance, Bone Status and Nutrient Excretion of Broilers Fed Diets Containing High Levels of Rice Bran

Phytate in poultry rations containing rice bran (RB) critically reduce poultry performance while increasing N and P excretion. The objective of this study was to determine whether the anti-nutritive problems associated with higher inclusions of rice bran in poultry rations (up to 40%) could be mitigated with mega doses of phytase. Twenty days old male broiler chicks (n=180) in 60 floor pens were fed on 10 dietary combinations of a completely randomized factorial design (2×5). Two dietary rice bran (RB) levels (20 or 40%) and five levels (0, 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 FTU/kg diet) of phytase (Natuphos 500) were main factors. Cage-wise daily feed/water intakes and body weights on day 28, 35 and 42 were determined. Weekly and total weight gain and feed conversion ratio were determined. Cr2O3 mixed diets were fed from day 35 to determine illeal digestibility of crude protein, phosphorus (P) and dry matter. On day 42, following a 12-hour fast, two birds from each pen were humanely slaughtered to determine visceral organ weights. Fat free tibia ash contents and latency-to-lie test done on day 28, 35 and 42 were used as bone parameters. Growth performance parameters were not enhanced significantly due to mega doses of phytase. Negative effects like body weight reductions affected latency to lie time increments and further confirmed by insignificancy of tibia ash increments. Phytase significantly improved the crude protein digestibility. The optimum levels of phytase for the best crude protein digestibility with 20% and 40% dietary rice bran were 3000 and 4000 FTU/kg, respectively. Digestibility values of P and dry matter also affected. Supplementation of mega doses of phytase improved illeal crude protein digestibilities but not growth performances and bone status. Mega doses of phytase did not mitigate the adverse effects of 40% rice bran included broiler diets.
VULNERABILITY TO HIV IN ADOLESCENTS : A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY AT A COUNSELING AND TESTING

The present study aimed to identify the vulnerability profile of HIV-positive adolescents at a Counseling and Testing Center (CTA) and its relationship with the individuals’ level of education. It is a retrospective cross-sectional study carried out from 2002 to 2010 at a CTA in Southern Brazil. Sample consisted of 100 HIV-positive subjects of both sexes, aged between 13 and 19 years. The average age was 17.7 years; female subjects made up 65 % of the sample and had the highest educational attainment (8 to 11 years of schooling). There were no significant differences between the categorical variables that comprise vulnerability and sex. Vulnerability profile highlighted feminization, an association between low level of education and the following variables: “reason not to use condoms with a stable partner”; “drug use in the last year”; “sexually transmitted diseases in the last year”; and sexual intercourse as a “ type of exposure”. The researchers emphasize the need to implement educational programs for the prevention of HIV/AIDS in adolescents.
Stochastic dynamic optimization of consumption and the induced price elasticity of demand in smart grids

This thesis presents a mathematical model of consumer behavior in response to stochastically-varying electricity prices, and a characterization of price-elasticity of demand created by optimal utilization of storage and the flexibility to shift certain demands to periods of lower prices. The approach is based on analytical characterization of the consumer's optimal policy and the associated value function in a finite-horizon stochastic dynamic programming framework. A general model is first presented, which incorporates both load-shifting and storage, and then, the model is decoupled into two subproblems, one for load-shifting and the other for storage. The study of optimal utilization of storage, which is performed analytically and in the presence of ramp constraints, reveals, as a particularly compelling finding, that the value function is a convex piece-wise linear function of the storage state. Moreover, it is shown that the expected monetary value of storage increases with price volatility, and that when the ramping rate is finite, the value of storage saturates quickly as the capacity increases, regardless of price volatility. Furthermore, it is shown that although the demand for electricity is often deemed to be highly inelastic, optimal utilization of local storage capacity induces a considerable amount of price elasticity of demand. The study of the load-shifting problem is performed under both perfect and partial information about price distribution. It is shown that load-shifting induces considerable consumer savings that increase with price volatility. Furthermore, it is shown that the opportunity to optimally schedule the shiftable loads creates a considerable amount of price elasticity, even when the aggregate consumption over a long period remains insensitive to price variations.
Gene Expression Analysis of the Anti-obesity Effect by Apple Polyphenols in Rats Fed a High Fat Diet or a Normal Diet

We previously reported that ingestion of apple polyphenols reduced the weight of visceral adipose tissue and the triglyceride content of blood and liver in rats fed a high-fat diet (1). To further elucidate the mechanism of the improvement of lipid metabolism by dietary polyphenols, the effects of feeding apple- and tea-derived catechins on hepatic gene expression profile was investigated using the GeneChip DNA microarray system. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed a normal diet, a high-fat diet, a high-fat diet supplemented with 1.0% apple polyphenols or a high-fat diet supplemented with 1.0% tea catechins for 9 weeks. Both polyphenols reduced the weight of visceral adipose tissue and the triglyceride content in blood and liver. Tea catechins increased the transcription of genes involved in cholesterol synthesis whereas apple polyphenols decreased the transcription of genes involved in fatty acid synthesis. Thus, each polyphenol exerts a different effect on hepatic gene expression. The reduction of the weight of visceral adipose tissue was also observed when apple polyphenols were fed with a normal-fat diet. The genes involved in fatty acid synthesis were down-regulated in both high fat and normal diets. These results suggest that apple polyphenols and tea catechines improve lipid metabolism through different manner of action. Apple polyphenols widely inhibit the expressions of genes involved in fatty acid synthesis.
Ungulate behavioral responses to the heterogeneous road‐network of a touristic protected area in Africa

Understanding how wildlife responds to road and traffic is essential for effective conservation. Yet, not many studies have evaluated how roads influence wildlife in protected areas, particularly within the large iconic African National Parks where tourism is mainly based on sightings from motorized vehicles with the consequent development and intense use of roads. To reduce this knowledge gap, we studied the behavioral response and local spatial distribution of impala Aepyceros melampus along the heterogeneous (with variation in road surface type and traffic intensity) road-network of Kruger National Park (KNP, South Africa). We surveyed different types of roads (paved and unpaved) recording the occurrence of flight responses among sighted impala and describing their local spatial distribution (in relation to the roads). We observed relatively few flight responses (19.5% of 118 observations), suggesting impalas could be partly habituated to vehicles in KNP. In addition, impala local distribution is apparently unaffected by unpaved roads, yet animals seem to avoid the close proximity of paved roads. Overall, our results suggest a negative, albeit small, effect of traffic intensity, and of presence of pavement on roads on the behavior of impala at KNP. Future studies would be necessary to understand how roads influence other species, but our results show that even within a protected area that has been well-visited for a long time, wildlife can still be affected by roads and traffic. This result has ecological (e.g., changes in spatial distribution of fauna) and management implications (e.g., challenges of facilitating wildlife sightings while minimizing disturbance) for protected areas where touristic activities are largely based on driving.
Cultural Values and Career Goal of Gen-x and Gen-y Employees: Evidence From Selected Malaysian Companies

This paper seeks to compare the influence of dimensions of cultural values of self-enhancement, self-transcendence, conservation, and openness to change on career goal among Gen-X and Gen-Y employees in selected Malaysian industrial companies. This study used the Social Cognitive Career Theory as its underlying theoretical framework. A total of 264 personnel from oil and gas, information, communication and technology (ICT), as well as banking and insurance companies participated in the study of whom 48 and 216 are Gen-X and Gen-Y employees, respectively. The multiple linear regression analysis found self-enhancement and conservation predicted significantly the career goal of Gen-X; while self-enhancement, self-transcendence, conservation predicted significantly the career goal of Gen-Y, with the explanatory power of the former (33%) being greater than the latter (28%). Recommendations for human resource management and future research are discussed.
When nonmanuals meet semantics and syntax: towards a practical guide for the segmentation of sign language discourse

This paper aims to contribute to the segmentation of sign language (SL) discourses by providing an operational synthesis of the criteria that signers use to segment a SL discourse. Such procedure was required when it came to analyse the role of buoys as discourse markers (DMs), which is part of a PhD on DMs in French Belgian SL (LSFB). All buoy markers found in the data had to be differentiated in terms of scope: some markers (like most list buoy markers) seemed to be long range markers, whereas others (like most fragment buoy markers) seemed to have a local scope only. Our practical guide results from a hierarchized and operationalized synthesis of the criteria, which explain the segmentation judgments of deaf (native and non-native) and hearing (non-native) signers of LSFB who were asked to segment a small-scale (1h) corpus. These criteria are a combination of non-manual, semantic and syntactic cues. Our contribution aims to be shared, tested on other SLs and hopefully improved to provide SL researchers who conduct discourse studies with some efficient and easy-to-use guidelines, and avoid them extensive (and time-consuming) annotation of the manual and non-manual cues that are related to the marking of boundaries in SLs.
Cytolethal distending toxin as virulence factor, protective antigen, and target for vaccine development

Correspondence: Teresa Lagergard Medicinaregatan 7A, Box 435, Institute of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University fg Gothenburg, 405 30 Goteborg, Sweden Tel +46 31 786 6220 Fax +46 31 786 6210 Email teresa.lagergard@microbio.gu. se Abstract: This review explores the cytolethal distending toxin (CDT) as a virulence factor, protective antigen, and a vaccine candidate in diseases caused by the following bacterial pathogens: Haemophilus ducreyi (HdCDT), Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Campylobacter jejuni, and Helicobacter hepaticus. The review highlights some of the important evidence indicating that CDT is not only a commonly invoked virulence factor involved in pathogenesis of infection caused by these bacteria, but is also a protective antigen, such that specific antibodies will neutralize cell damage caused by the toxin. This justifies the development of toxoids as vaccine candidates. The first immunogenic toxoid was produced by formaldehyde treatment of HdCDT and has been used to study the involvement of antibodies in protection against infection and its use as a future vaccine component. The development of such toxoid vaccines may facilitate the studies of protection and immunoprophylaxis in diseases caused by CDT-producing bacteria.
Axion absorption and the spin temperature of primordial hydrogen

An absorption dip in the spectrum of the cosmic microwave background observed by the EDGES experiment suggests an unexplained reduction of the hydrogen spin temperature at cosmic redshift z ~ 17. The mass of dark-matter axions could correspond to the hyperfine splitting of 5.9 micro-eV, between the triplet (H1) and singlet (H0) state. We calculate the rate for a+ H0 H1 in two ways, and find that it is orders of magnitude smaller than the CMB-mediated transition rate, so irrelevant. As a result, this process cannot be used to rule in or out dark matter axions of mass = hyperfine splitting. The axion rate nonetheless has interesting features, for example, on balance it heats the spin temperature, and the axion couplings to protons and electrons contribute on equal footing.