Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Peru's Regional Growth and Convergence in 1979-2017: An Empirical Spatial Panel Data Analysis

Este artículo analiza el proceso de convergencia espacial del crecimiento en las 24 regiones del Perú durante el período 1979-2017. Realizamos un análisis exploratorio de datos espaciales con estadísticas globales y locales, como Moran I, para proporcionar evidencia empírica de las dependencias espaciales en el PIB per cápita regional. Luego, estimamos la ecuación de convergencia utilizando modelos de panel espacial que controlan la heterogeneidad espacial y la interdependencia espacial, así como otras características económicas estructurales a nivel regional. Los resultados empíricos muestran que la convergencia espacial es una conclusión muy confiable durante este período y demuestran que los derrames regionales del PIB per cápita espacial juegan un papel esencial en la determinación del crecimiento a nivel local. Además, se prefiere el modelo Spatial Durbin en la formación de cuatro grupos de convergencia. El primer clúster es muy productivo y dinámico; el segundo conglomerado está compuesto por regiones selváticas y de productividad negativa; el tercer conglomerado está formado por regiones moderadamente productivas y costeras; y el cuarto grupo está compuesto por regiones estancadas y montañosas. Por último, estos resultados pueden ser fundamentales para dar un mayor enfoque a las políticas gubernamentales a largo plazo dirigidas a las regiones pobres y estancadas.
Compilation of a map of vertical crustal movements in Eastern Canada using polynomial spline

In order to obtain representations of the recent Vertical Crustal Movements (VCM) in Eastern Canada, algebraical polynomial surfaces of different orders were computed based on sea level data records from 17 reliable tide gauges and 2972 filtered relevelled segments of the first-order Canadian levelling network in the region. The resulting velocity surfaces indicated only the crude features of VCM mostly because of the sparsity of data coverage. In an attempt to obtain a more physically meaningful VCM map, without increasing the degree of polynomials, we decided to divide Eastern Canada into two zones: Maritimes zone and Southern St. Lawrence River zone. The border of these two zones is dictated by the actual data distribution and the preliminary knowledge of the geodynamics of the area (See figure 1). The vertical movement was then represented by a different polynomial surface in each zone. The polynomials were joined together at the interval knots along the border in such a way that a certain degree of smoothness (differentiability) of the resulting function was guaranteed. In this paper, we use polynomial spline function to produce such a continuous surface. In general, if we divide the area of study into m zones and the degree of the polynomials is n, the resulting function is a polynomial spline function of degree n with m zones. A given spline polynomial in the m-th zone looks as follows:
PERCEPTUAL TRAINING AFFECTS L2 PERCEPTION BUT NOT CROSS- LINGUISTIC SIMILARITY

L2 learners need to detect differences between native and target language sounds in order to categorize them, and thus perceive and produce them, accurately. The current high variability perceptual training study explored the effect of identification and discrimination training on the perceived similarity between Spanish and English vowels and on the ability to identify and discriminate target English sounds. Cross-linguistic similarity was assessed by means of perceptual assimilation tasks. The results showed that a 6-session perceptual training regime was insufficient to affect crosslinguistic similarity relations, as no consistent change in perceived similarity between L1 and L2 vowels was observed from pretest to posttest. Despite this, training was effective in improving identification and discrimination of L2 vowels. Further, posttest scores were replicated four months later, showing long-term effects of perceptual training on L2 perception. Results are discussed in terms of the relationship between cross-linguistic similarity and categorization of L2 sounds.
BIOFERTILIZER : A NOVEL FORMULATION FOR IMPROVING WHEAT GROWTH , PHYSIOLOGY AND YIELD

Bacillus cereus and Pseudomonas moraviensis strains were inoculated singly as well as in consortium with two different carriers i.e., maize straws and sugarcane husk in the formulation of biofertilizer. Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) strains used in biofertilizer were phosphate solubilizer and exhibited strong antifungal activities. Both PGPR used in formulation was maintained 15–16.5×10 cfu g in carrier material after 40d. The field experiment was conducted at Quaid-e-Azam University Islamabad on wheat for two consecutive years (2011-2012) simultaneously in pots and field. Plants sampling for growth and physiological parameters was made after 57d of sowing and at maturity for yield parameters. Single inoculation of Pseudomonas moraviensis and Bacillus cereus with maize straw and sugarcane husk increased plant height and fresh weight by 18-30% and protein, proline, sugar contents and antioxidant activities by 25-40%. There were 20% increases in spike length, seeds/spike and seed weight in single inoculation. Co-inoculation of PGPR further increased plant growth, physiology and yield by 10-15% over single inoculation with carriers. PGPR consortium with sugarcane husk and maize straw (biofertilizer formulation) increased 20-30% plant growth chlorophyll, sugar, protein contents, antioxidants activities and yield parameters. It is inferred that carrier based biofertilzer effectively increased growth, maintained osmotic balance and enhanced the activities of antioxidant enzymes and yield parameters.
Needle Phobia in Cancer Patients : An Ignored Subject , a Nightmare for Cancer Patients

Needle phobia, the extreme fear of needles and needle procedures is often caused by a painful conditioning experience and maintained by avoidant behavior. Patients with needle phobia simply avoid health care due to fear of needles. Recently recognized as a medical-psychological condition, needle phobia presents a challenge in the treatment of cancer patients, who must undergo regular blood draws and other needle procedures. A detailed history of needle phobia should be taken at face value and patients with a history of vasovagal needle phobia should undergo needle procedures in a medical setting equipped to handle syncopal episodes. Strategies to reduce pain and anxiety during needle procedures are available but underused. Herein, we present the case of a 40 year old cancer patient with extreme needle phobia and describe the subtypes, pathophysiology and management of this condition.
Experience of thyroid surgery at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan

Background: Thyroid disorders are common surgical pathology in our part of world. Most commonly encountered complication after thyroid surgery are hypocalcaemia, hoarseness of voice, wound infection, seroma formation and thoracic duct injuries secondary to modifi ed neck dissections. The aim of this study is to share the experience of thyroid surgery at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan with rest of the world.
Factors influencing organizational change and health-Evidences from the Indian pharmaceutical sector

The scholarly and intellectual interest in pharmaceutical industry results from its highly ‘closed’ innovation model, pricing policies, regulatory barriers and dynamics of boundaries of the firm (Foss and Rasmussen, 2014). The Indian pharmaceutical industry will grow to US$ 55 billion by 2020 driven by steady rise in affordability and a steep jump in market access. Articulating the insights and revelations by transcending through the 150 years old history of Indian pharmaceutical industry, it is not very surprising to find that ability to change and adopt are the key survival instincts which this industry has exhibited. The current state of its health is due to existing capabilities to change, adopt and reconfigure its competencies in light of external happenings. This magnitude of growth will lead towards a market size at par with developed markets other than the US, Japan and China and in terms of volumes it will be next to the US (McKinsey, 2013). The pharmaceutical and medical report by McKinsey & Company (2013) and its research related to the Indian pharmaceutical sector has embarked upon four fundamental questions: How can the industry stimulate the growth drivers? What are the most attractive opportunities in Indian markets? Which capabilities will differentiate the leaders of tomorrow? Would the way organizations are structured and managed need to change as the range of opportunities becomes diverse? This complexity calls for an investigation into the status of organizational health of the Indian pharmaceutical sector identifying the key enablers which have catapulted this industry from a weak health configuration to global recognition. Before we proceed with the framework, model and empirical investigation, it is important to trace the enablers of this development in the industry so far. Researchers dealing with business and industry history have divided the evolutionary path in four stages with an objective to explain the industry dynamics in minutest detail. The objective of this research is to examine the internal firm-specific dynamism and more recent trends. Once research broadly understands the challenges and obstacles faced by this industry, it is possible to explore the Research Paper Factors influencing organizational change and health Evidences from the Indian pharmaceutical sector
Households Perception on Invasive Alien Plants Species in Tigray , Ethiopia

A survey of invasive alien plants was conducted in Tigray regional state in 2016. The survey was focused on respondents’ observation, familiarity, benefit, challenge and the type of plants threatened by invasive alien species. The respondent in this study was randomly selected based on their location and abundance of invasive alien plants. The data were collected from 180 respondents and out of these 142 were males and 38 were females. The major benefits obtained due to presence of invasive alien plants were firewood, construction material, fence, termite control and food to children. The identified invasive alien plant species were found to destroy all herbaceous plant species which were known to grow in the area, particularly grasses, herbaceous plants, cultivated crops and trees/shrubs. The weeding frequency was one or two times in the study area, but now dramatically increased five to six times since invasion occurred. The invasion caused environmental, economic and social problems, decline in crop production, increasing in cost of production, reduced pasture lands, change water flow, injuries and poisons to humans and animals and formation of impenetrable thickets. Even though all respondents were familiar with invasive alien plants present in their surroundings, their levels of awareness were not the same across the study area. Therefore, creation of awareness is advisable by both governmental and nongovernmental agencies at the community and individual levels to make prevention and management actions of invasive alien plants more effectively.
Clinical, haematobiochemical, radiographic and ultrasonographic features of traumatic reticuloperitonitis in bovines.

Study was conducted to compare the clinical, haematobiochemical, radiographic and ultrasonographic features of traumatic reticuloperitonitis in bovines. Clinical cases (4 cows and 17 buffaloes) presented with a history of anorexia, fever, decreased milk yield and loss of defecation/scant faeces, were used. Haematological picture revealed neutrophilic leucocytosis with left shift and blood biochemical status showed elevated levels of total protein, albumin, and fibrinogen. Decreased plasma concentration of sodium, potassium and chloride was observed in majority of the cases. Radiographic examination revealed presence of multiple metallic foreign densities in the reticulum of the bovines. Ultrasonographically, morphological changes of reticular wall and reticulophrenic adhesions in cases of localised peritonitis were visualized. The presence of anechoic fluid without echogenic margins, not restricted to reticulum and sometimes with floating fibrinous shreds was observed in cases of diffuse peritonitis. Ultrasonography in B mode and B+ mode found helpful for the diagnosis of traumatic reticuloperitonitis and differentiation of localised peritonitis from diffuse peritonitis.
A Preliminary Study on the Age Variation of the Voicing Contrast in Wenzhou Wu Chinese

Wu Chinese, spoken in the Southeastern part of China, still preserves an ancient feature of Middle Chinese, the phonological voicing contrast. The current study aims to investigate the age variation on the phonetic nature of voicing contrast in Wenzhou dialect of Wu using speech production data obtained from the electroglottography signal. True voicing contrast could be found in fricatives and intervocalic obstruents but not in initial plosives or affricates in both old and young speakers’ speech. For the young speakers, significant differences could be observed in phonation type of the vowels following all types of consonants: modal vowels after phonologically voiceless consonants and breathy vowels after phonologically voiced ones. However, the old speakers do not show a consistent contrast in phonation type of the following vowels. Therefore, there is apparent generational change related to the role of voice quality in the phonetic realisations of the voicing contrast.
Cross-language Differences in the Perception of Fricative Transitions: Behavioural and EEG Measures

This study examined how transition cues affect the perception and categorization of /f/ and /s/ by native Cantonese, Mandarin, and English speakers. Previous work had suggested that speakers of languages with small fricative inventories are much less dependent on formant transitions, likely because they can distinguish among their native-language fricatives using spectra alone. The present study investigated this issue by combining behavioural and EEG measures (a phoneme monitoring task and P300 measure integrated in an active oddball paradigm) for language groups that differed in their fricative inventories. The stimuli were spliced with vowels such that the formant transitions were congruent or incongruent with the fricatives. The results revealed that all groups attended to formant transitions when identifying fricatives, despite their differing language backgrounds and fricative inventories.
Studying Audit in UiTM : Challenges and Preferred Learning Styles from Students ’ Perspective

Previous accounting education literature documents mixed evidence regarding student’s perception and opinion on accounting. The perceptions will influence learning and performance. Auditing, as a sub-set of the accounting discipline can be presented as an organized system, by which the auditor’s tasks can be broken down into a series of steps such as planning, tests of controls, substantive tests and statutory matters, in this way the teaching method of lecturing with routine problem solving was found inadequate. The possibility for challenges and difficulties arise, for both students and lecturers, when the educational methodology is inconsistent with the inherent nature of the subject. Therefore the teaching methods must be improved to promote creative thinking and selfdevelopment. This study offers three objectives. Firstly, to ascertain the student’s perceptions on learning audit course, secondly it aims to identify the preferred teaching methods and lastly, to identify the challenges they faced in learning audit course. Interestingly, our findings suggest positive perception on auditing course. This study also discovered a few challenges in studying audit course, and highlight real case example as a preferred teaching method. This study contributes to the accounting curriculum for designing the best teaching methods for audit course.
Reproduction, growth, and mortality of red drum Sciaenops ocellatus in Florida waters

Florida Marine Research Institute. Department of Natural Resources 100 8th Avenue SE. St. Petersburg. Florida 3370 J Reproduction, Growth, and Mortality of Red Drum Sciaenops acellatus in Florida Waters Abstract. -Commercial and recreational catches of red drum Sciaenops ocellatus were sampled from Tampa Bay and Mosquito/upper Indian River Lagoon, Florida, between August 1981 and March 1983. Males matured at smaller sizes and younger ages than did females. Males matured when they were 350-799 mm FL (ages 1-3), and females matured when 550-899 mm (ages 3-6). In 1981 and 1982, red drum spawned between August and November, with peak spawning occurring in September-October. Histological evidence suggested that spawning occurred in nearshore Gulf of Mexico waters, in passes, and in the estuary. Ages determined from thin sections of otoliths were validated by length-frequency and marginal-increment analyses for fish ages 1-3 and by observations of oxytetracycline-marked fish for ages 5, 12, 16, and 18. Growth was rapid through age 4 or 5 but then slowed markedly. Growth rates of males and females were similar on each coast. Estimates for the von Bertalanffy growth equation parameters K and to were not significantly different between coasts; however, L"" was significantly greater on the Atlantic coast. Therefore, predicted lengths of Atlantic fish were greater at all ages. Maximum observed lengths were 980 mm on the Gulf coast and 1110 mm on the Atlantic coast. Maximum observed ages of sampled fish were 24 years on the Gulf coast and 33 years on the Atlantic coast. The range of 95% confidence intervals for estimates of total annual mortality rate on the Gulf coast was 87-98% for ages 2-4; on the Atlantic coast, the range was 50-76% for ages 2-6.
SHAPE MEMORY ALLOY CONFINED CONCRETE UNDER CYCLIC LOADING : EXPERIMENTAL TESTING AND MODELING

The idea of using shape memory alloy (SMA) spirals to apply active confinement to concrete prior to loading without the need for mechanical prestressing was first proposed in 2008 and previous studies show the promise of this new technique for seismic applications to significantly improve concrete strength and ductility. However, there is limited knowledge about the stress-strain behavior of SMA confined concrete and lack of robust analytical models that are able to predict three dimensional (3-D) behavior of concrete confined with SMA spirals under cyclic loading accurately. This research focused on addressing these knowledge gaps. A comprehensive experimental program is conducted on SMA confined concrete cylinders with different concrete strengths, spiral pitches and confining pressures to explore their effects on the stress-strain behavior of SMA confined concrete. Next, the experimental results are utilized to develop a new constitutive model for SMA confined concrete within the framework of Drucker-Prager plasticity model. The proposed constitutive model for SMA confined concrete is validated using experimental results. This model is able to take into account the unique behavior of SMA confined concrete, which involves a combination of both active and passive confinement, and is capable of simulating the 3-D stresses of SMA confined concrete.
Effect of graded doses of potassium on growth , yield and nutrient uptake of mulberry ( Monts alba L . ) in eastern sub-Himalayan region

A }ield experiment was co11d11cted on a broirn fores/ soil having medium lel'el of a\'{/ilable K under rail1led condition in the Regional Sericult11ral Research Station, Kali111pong. /Vest Bengal to study the effect of graded doses of potassi11111 011 mulbeny (Morus alba l) Graded doses ql potassium (0 to 60 kg K_-0 ha-yr-) along a·ith recommended doses of nitrogen and phosphate were applied. Analysis of three years· pooled data revealed signtjicanl positive it! /luence of application of up to 60 kg K:O ha-yr· 1 on growth allrib11tes. yield. nutrient 11ptake. net return and benejit cost ratio.
The Belgian housing policy, its adverse effect on labour mobility and the negative externalities of homeownership

H policy is commonly in favour of homeownership. Throughout three extensive studies, we empirically analyse the relationship between housing tenure and labour market outcomes for Belgium. We validate the so-called Oswald hypothesis: a higher aggregate homeownership rate causes lower employment levels. Homeowners are less residentially mobile than tenants and are therefore expected to impede labour market flexibility. At the microeconomic level, however, no significant difference in unemployment duration is observed between homeowners and tenants. Instead, we reveal the importance of housing costs rather than housing tenure itself as the determining factor. This can explain the conflicting results in previous studies. The apparent contradiction between macroand micro-level results can only be explained by the negative externalities of homeownership. Its unfavourable effects are not concentrated within the segment of homeowners themselves. With this knowledge, we are able to deduce a number of policy recommendations to counter the effect.
Women and AIDS : developing a new health strategy

The lack of reliable data on womens sexual lives and the means by which socioeconomic and cultural factors affect sexual lives contribute to the weakness of AIDS prevention programs. The Women and AIDS Research Program supports researchers and practitioners in 17 projects in developing countries. Research findings so far indicate that women in societies where "good" women know little and say nothing about sex and where promiscuity is acceptable for males and condoms are proper only for illicit sex know little about their reproductive systems and tend not to recognize symptoms of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Further their partners control sexual activities. As a result of these findings ICRW has produced 11 recommendations which national and international agencies working in AIDS prevention efforts should adopt as priorities. These groups should inform women and girls about their own bodies sexuality and AIDS and other STDs. Women also need to know how to use condoms and how to negotiate condom use with their partner. Agencies must promote interpersonal education and mass media campaigns that alleviate the stigma of condoms and reduce its link with illicit sex. They must also create opportunities for individual counseling and support groups so women can share personal experiences and adopt new behaviors. Agencies must integrate STD services with current family planning and maternal health services to expand their accessibility. They need to have programs geared to men and adolescent boys which focus on promotion of sexual and family responsibility. They should promote biomedical research yielding a technology that women can use independently to avoid HIV transmission. ICRW also makes recommendations addressing the need to reduce socioeconomic obstacles to womens adoption of risk reduction behaviors. For example improving womens socioeconomic status is needed and involves expanding access to credit skills training employment and primary and secondary education.
Context Encoder for Analogies on Strings

We propose a model based on context encoder to solve formal analogies on strings like aaabbbccc : aaaabbbbcccc :: abc : x ⇒ x = aabbcc or ubid : tubid :: ofjid : x ⇒ x = tofjid. As a context encoder model, it consists of a generator and a discriminator. The generator attempts at generating the result of an analogical equation, while the discriminator attempts at discriminating solutions coming out of the generator against the real solution of the analogical equation. We conduct experiments on publicly available data sets to compare the performance of our model with a previously published method designed for the same task. Our results show slight increases in accuracy, in comparison to a fully connected neural network architecture.