Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gel formation of pectin from okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench) leaves, pulp and seeds

Okra plant particularly its fruit is highly mucilage which composed of pectin and high content of carbohydrate. Byproducts of okra plant such as leaves and matured fruits will be discarded whenever the young fruits are harvested which eventually leads to environmental pollution. Those byproducts have potential to become plant-based alternative for bovine and pork related gelatin. This study aimed to determine the gel formation of pectin extracted from okra plant byproducts particularly the leaves, pulp (skin without seeds) and seeds. Pectin was extracted using a sequential extraction with the applications of hot buffer (HB) and hot buffer with chelating agents (CH). CH extraction gave the highest pectin yield (>40%) compared to HB and DA. The HB fraction harbored highly purified pectin due to high anhydro uronic acid content and degree of esterification. The highest pectin yield was extracted from seeds with an overall fraction yield of 86%, followed by the leaves (75%) and pulp (71%). The pectin was blended with konjac glucomannan (KG) in 5.0:1.6 ratio to form gel and stored for 16 18hr at 4°C ± 1.0. The gel formed using HB extraction was found to have significantly lower (p < 0.05) gel strength than HB with CH extraction. This study concluded that HB and CH pectin extracts derived from okra leaves, pulp and seeds have good potential to become gelling agent.
Randomized controlled trial of internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy comparing standard weekly versus optional weekly therapist support

Internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT) is effective for treating anxiety and depression. The relative benefits of offering standard weekly compared to optional weekly therapist support in conjunction with ICBT within routine care has not been examined. Patients seeking ICBT for depression and or anxiety in routine care were randomized to standard (n = 92) or optional (n= 88) weekly support. The optional approach resulted in therapists receiving half as many messages from (1.70 vs. 3.96) and sending half as many messages to patients (3.62 vs. 7.29). Optional Support was associated with lower completion rates (56.6% versus 82.4%), but, similar to Standard Support, resulted in large reductions on the GAD-7 (within Cohen’s d≥ 1.08; avg. reduction ≥47%) and PHQ-9 (within Cohen’s d≥ 0.82; avg. reduction ≥43%) at post-treatment and 3-month follow-up. Optional weekly support appears clinically effective and acceptable for many patients and may reduce costs, but safety requires monitoring given lower completion rates.
R T ] 3 0 D ec 2 01 5 Derived Equivalences of K 3 Surfaces and Twined Elliptic Genera ∗

We use the unique canonically-twisted module over a certain distinguished super vertex operator algebra—the moonshine module for Conway’s group—to attach a weak Jacobi form of weight zero and index one to any symplectic derived equivalence of a projective complex K3 surface that fixes a stability condition in the distinguished space identified by Bridgeland. According to work of Huybrechts, following Gaberdiel–Hohenegger–Volpato, any such derived equivalence determines a conjugacy class in Conway’s group, the automorphism group of the Leech lattice. Conway’s group acts naturally on the module we consider. In physics the data of a projective complex K3 surface together with a suitable stability condition determines a supersymmetric non-linear sigma model, and supersymmetry preserving automorphisms of such an object may be used to define twinings of the K3 elliptic genus. Our construction recovers the K3 sigma model twining genera precisely in all available examples. In particular, the identity symmetry recovers the usual K3 elliptic genus, and this signals a connection to Mathieu moonshine. A generalization of our construction recovers a number of the Jacobi forms arising in umbral moonshine. We demonstrate a concrete connection to supersymmetric non-linear K3 sigma models by establishing an isomorphism between the twisted module we consider and the vector space underlying a particular sigma model attached to a certain distinguished K3 surface. ∗2010 Mathematics Subject Classification: 11F50, 14F05, 14J28, 17B69, 20C34, 20C35, 58J26 †E-mail: john.duncan@emory.edu ‡E-mail: sander@berkeley.edu
University of Groningen Experimentally quantifying the effect of nest-site depth on the predation risk and breeding success of Blue Tits Fokkema,

Predation is a key factor in the nesting preferences of birds. Studies indicate that cavity-breeding birds prefer deeper nest sites, possibly because they are more safe from predation. We studied the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus), a cavitybreeding passerine, to test (1) whether nest-site depth affects breeding success and (2) whether potential effects of nest-site depth on breeding success are related to predation risk. We performed 2 experiments to separate effects of nest-box depth from potential effects of the quality of the breeding pair. In the first (free-choice) experiment, Blue Tits competed for scarce deep nest boxes that were provided well before nest-box choice, enabling an association between nest-box quality and bird quality. In the second (forced-choice) experiment, we randomly altered nest-box depth after Blue Tits had chosen a nest box, thus disconnecting the association between nest-box quality and bird quality. We found no evidence that the occurrence of signs of predation was related to nest-box depth. However, we did find clear positive effects of nest-box depth (1) on clutch size and hatching success throughout the study area and (2) on fledging success, the number of fledglings, and the overall probability of nest success, specifically in parts of the study area with high predation. We found no indication of independent effects of parental quality on breeding success. Parents also seemed to perceive the shallower boxes as more risky; in shallower boxes, nest thickness was decreased, irrespective of the local predation pressure during the free-choice experiment. Parents nesting in shallow boxes may have had lower breeding success because of (1) increased actual (but undetected) predation and (2) reduced reproductive investment by parents, based on the latter’s experience with predation or an evolutionary response to past predation risk.
LOCAL ANALYTIC CONJUGACY OF SEMI-HYPERBOLIC MAPPINGS IN TWO VARIABLES, IN THE NON-ARCHIMEDEAN SETTING

In this note, we consider locally invertible analytic mappings of a two-dimensional space over a non-archimedean field. Such a map is called semi-hyperbolic if its Jacobian has eigenvalues λ1 and λ2 so that λ1 = 1 and |λ2| ≠ 1. We prove that two analytic semi-hyperbolic maps are analytically equivalent if and only if they are formally equivalent, applying a generalized version of an estimation scheme from our earlier work [A. Jenkins and S. Spallone, A p-adic approach to local dynamics: Analytic flows and analytic maps tangent to the identity, Ann. Fac. Sci. Toulouse Math. (6) 18(3) (2009) 611–634].
Evaluating the Usability of a Study Support Mobile App for Higher Education

Mobile learning (m-learning) is increasingly adopted in Higher Education (HE) given that almost all undergraduates own mobile devices with Wi-Fi and fast Internet connections. In HE, undergraduates are required to spend a significant proportion of time on self-study as well as use effective learning strategies during self-study to achieve academic success. Therefore, the use of mobile applications opens a wealth of opportunities for undergraduates to learn by giving them continuous access to learning materials as well as enabling them to study at their own pace. However, undergraduates’ use of mobile applications may be influenced by the applications’ usability. The current study examines the usability of a mobile app developed to support learning in HE to shed light on undergraduates’ experience using a mobile learning application in HE context for self-study and study support. While the results reveal a good level of acceptance in terms of learnability, efficiency, and satisfaction, further findings indicate that the app needs slight improvements in terms of memorability and errors. There are two key outcomes of this study, as a study support tool, the results show that undergraduates may rely on such apps for practicing and testing knowledge rather than using the app as a tool for studying. As a usability study, we did not only examine the memorability, efficiency, user satisfaction, and learnability, but also assisted ourselves in obtaining plentiful suggestions for further improvements of the app based on student experiences. Author
lognP and log3P: Accurate Analytical Models of Point-to- point Communication in Distributed Systems

-Many existing models of point-to-point communication in distributed systems ignore the impact of memory and middleware. Including such details may make these models impractical. Nonetheless, the growing gap between memory and CPU performance combined with the trend toward large-scale, clustered shared memory platforms implies an increased need to consider the impact of middleware on distributed communication. We present a general software-parameterized model of point-to-point communication for use in performance prediction and evaluation. We illustrate the utility of the model in three ways: 1) to derive a simplified, useful, more accurate model of point-to-point communication in clusters of SMPs, 2) to predict and analyze point-topoint and broadcast communication costs in clusters of SMPs, and 3) to express, compare and contrast existing communication models. Though our methods are general, we present results on several Linux clusters to illustrate practical use on real systems.
Annual budget and seasonal variation of aboveground and belowground net primary productivity in a lowland dipterocarp forest in Borneo

Tropical forests are thought to have among the highest values of net primary productivity (NPP) on Earth, but comprehensive data on NPP have rarely been collected for tropical forests, especially outside of the Neotropics. In this study, we quantify aboveground and belowground NPP, along with additional environmental factors over a 1–2 year period in a lowland dipterocarp forest in Borneo. The site is characterized by high annual rainfall and typically no month of the year when the forest is under water stress. We estimated the total NPP to be 15.89 ± 0.90 Mg C ha−1 yr−1 (mean ± standard error) for a forest plot on clay soils and 12.79 ± 0.68 Mg C ha−1 yr−1 for a forest plot on sandy loam soils. Of this productivity, the allocation to aboveground NPP is 81.8 ± 6.0%/80.4 ± 6.0% and to belowground NPP is 18.2 ± 3.7%/19.6 ± 2.6% on clay and sandy loam, respectively. Fine root productivity (NPPfine roots) shows stronger seasonal variation relative to other components of NPP. There is evidence suggesting interannual variation in NPPfine roots, leaf flush, NPPlitterfall, and NPPACW. This is the first attempt to describe how the biomass of a Bornean tropical forest is allocated to the various components of NPP over the seasonal cycle. The study highlights the marked seasonality of a tropical forest even under largely aseasonal environmental conditions, as well as the important effect of contrasting seasonality on different soil types.
Evaluating the Performance of Socially Responsible Investment Funds: A Holding Data Analysis

This paper investigates the performance of regular mutual funds compared to Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) mutual funds, over the time period of January 2001 to September 2007. The paper extends the research on the performance of SRI funds by using holding data of regular funds to create replicating portfolios. In the replicating portfolios, unethical investments are excluded according to a norm-based screening list, hence creating artificial SRI funds. The replicating portfolio returns are then used as a benchmark to compare against the SRI funds’ and regular funds’ returns. Results from the study indicate that an exclusion of companies according to norm-based screening can improve a fund’s performance. However, when looking specifically at the fund management of SRI funds, the results point towards inferior performance compared to regular funds.
Difference in the Treatment Effectiveness of Woodworking Wastewater between Polyaluminium Chloride-Based Coagulants

in the work, a comparative study of the efficiency of coagulation of a model solution, simulating woodworking wastewater, with the known composition of polyaluminium chloride (РАС) with aluminium sulphate and a new РАС-based composite coagulant was carried out. It has been found that, in comparison with the known composition, the developed composite coagulant makes it possible to enhance the efficiency of the wastewater treatment and to decrease the content of residual aluminium therein, which enables the return of the treated water in the technological cycle. The enhancement of the coagulation ability of the developed composite coagulant relative to the known composition of РАС with aluminium sulphate is governed by the formation, in the AlCl 3 /РАС system, of polynuclear Аl-complexes with a high-molecular structure. This is testified by the results of the comparative study of those coagulants by the Ferron and ion mass spectroscopy methods.
Corporate diversity and corporate social environmental disclosure of listed manufacturing companies in Nigeria

This study examined the impact of corporate diversity on corporate social environmental disclosure of registered manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The study considered both industrial and consumer goods firms, respectively, consisting a total of 37 firms. A total of 17 firms was selected for this study using purposive random sampling spanning the period 2012–2016. While the content analysis technique was engaged to ascertain the extent of corporate social environmental disclosure, the study adopted the following variables (board size, foreign directors, and gender) as measures for corporate diversity. Findings from the study revealed that board size, foreign directors and gender had a significant positive influence on the extent of corporate social environmental disclosure of the selected firms. On the other hand, the presence of an independent director and non-executive director had an insignificant positive influence on corporate social environmental disclosure. Thus, the study recommends that a large and diverse board with experience, expertise and women involvement would enhance mandatory environmental audit and environmental grievance mechanism report, and if necessary, an ecological committee would be established, and also community leader on the board would contribute enormously to the going concern of the business.
The effectiveness of a nationwide intervention programme to prevent and counter school bullying in Ireland

The purpose of this paper is to set out what is known about (large-scale empirical research) and what has been done about (large-scale whole-school intervention programmes) bullying behaviour in Irish schools, with a view to indicating likely future developments in Irish anti-bullying action. Results from a 1993 nationwide representative survey of bullying behaviour in schools (O’Moore, Kirkham & Smith, 1997) are compared with those of a hitherto unpublished survey from 2004-2005 (the ‘ABC’ survey). Essentially, whilst the proportion of primary students involved in bully/victim problems was lower in the ‘ABC’ survey (35.3%) than it was in the 1993 nationwide survey (43.5%), the opposite was true for post-primary students (36.4% and 26.5% respectively). The background and methodology to two whole-school anti-bullying programmes in Ireland -one regional, the 1998-2000 Donegal Primary Schools Anti-Bullying Programme (O’ Moore & Minton, 2005), and one attempted nationwide initiative (the 2004-2006 ABC programme (Minton, 2007)- is presented, along with the programmes’ principal evaluation findings. Whilst the regional programme was evaluated as having produced statistically significant reductions in reports of having been bullied (19.6%), frequently bullied (50%), having bullied others (17.1%) and having frequently bullied others (69.2%) within the last three months (O’ Moore & Minton, 2005), the same levels of success were not obtained in the ABC programme initiative. A comparison of the implementation of the two programmes and a reflection on both contemporary and overall developments in the field of anti-bullying research and action in Ireland is undertaken, as indications for future directions are mapped out.
Feasibility and ef ﬁ cacy of nurse-led team management intervention for improving the self-management of type 2 diabetes patients in a Chinese community: a randomized controlled trial

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility and ef ﬁ cacy of nurse-led team management (NLTM) intervention at improving the self-management of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) at community settings in Changsha, Hunan, China. Background: China has become the country with the largest number of patients with diabetes, and that number is growing, causing increasing pressure on the health care system. At present, the main diabetes management model in China is teamwork guided by general practitioners. However, the number of general practitioners is insuf ﬁ cient, and their work is overloaded, which leads to poor outcomes of diabetes management. Therefore, it is important to explore alternative methods of diabetes management, such as NLTM. Patients and methods: In a randomized controlled trial, 171 T2D patients were randomized into the control or intervention arm. Participants in the control group received routine management from the community health service center, whereas the intervention group received 12 months NLTM intervention in addition to the standard care. The diabetes self-management scale, fasting blood sugar, and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were assessed at baseline and at 6 and 12 months after the start of the intervention. Results: Baseline data were comparable between arms. Repeated-measurement analysis showed that self-management of the intervention group improved compared with the control group after the intervention ( P <0.05). There were no signi ﬁ cant differences in HbA1c at 6 months, whereas after 12 months of intervention, there was a signi ﬁ cant difference in HbA1c between the two groups (F=10.114, P <0.05). The intervention had no signi ﬁ cant effect on fasting blood sugar. Conclusion: The NLTM intervention has resulted in an impact of practical signi ﬁ cance on T2D self-management, and was bene ﬁ cial for controlling the level of HbA1c. The study has demonstrated the feasibility and ef ﬁ cacy of using NLTM in the management of T2D in a Chinese community.
Using patient experience in optimizing the total knee arthroplasty patient journey

The objective was to explore how patients experienced their knee arthrosis journey within the hospital setting. Information was used to improve the patient journey and to achieve patient-centered care. Patients (>18 years, purposive sampling) were interviewed once at one point of their total knee arthrosis journey within the hospital setting. Patients were accompanied and observed during their hospital visit by one of the 19 healthcare professionals which were trained as interviewers. A qualitative research approach with in-depth and semi-structured interviews using a standardized interview guide were used to gather an in-depth understanding of the perceptions of patients. Interviews were written out with the emphasis on positive and negative feedback, quotes and observations that were made. The audio recordings were verbatim transcribed and coded using selective and open coding. Thirty-five semi-structured interviews were conducted. Five different themes were identified: overall experience, waiting, communication, information and facilities. Several easy fixes were dealt with immediately to improve service quality, productivity and the organization of the healthcare service. Other improvements were discussed with the stakeholders and were resolved directly or were planned for the long-term. Involving patients and let them collaborate with healthcare professionals is essential in optimizing patient-centered care. Most feedback was related to clarification and comprehensibility of the patient journey, to improve autonomy and to remove uncertainty of the patients. Continuity of care with medical personnel, personal attention and recognition of the problem are fundamental during the knee arthrosis patient journey.
Responses of alfalfa influenced by magnetic field and rhizobial inoculant

Plants are generally subjected to a combination of different conditions such as magnetic field and soil bacteria in their life. The present investigation tried to compare the effects and interactions of magnetic field and rhizobial inoculant in alfalfa. A pot experiment was performed under a natural condition by a factorial design to investigate the influences of magnetic field with 0.75 and 1.5 mT intensities on treated and untreated alfalfa seed with Sinorhizobium meliloti. Results showed that 1.5 mT magnetic intensity reduces growth parameters, protein content, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and peroxidase activity as a stress factor while superoxide dismutase activity, malondialdehyde, and reducing sugars content increased. Interaction of rhizobial inoculant and 1.5 mT intensity can reduce the damage caused by magnetic field generated in the plant. Application of 0.75 mT intensity and rhizobial inoculant (individual and together) led to a significant increase in growth parameters, protein content, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase enzyme activity while malondialdehyde and reducing sugars content reduced. Therefore, as an eco-friendly technique in agriculture, the application of 0.75 mT and rhizobial inoculant might improve the plant quality. This method could be used as a biofertilizer for vegetable production which reduces the environmental pollution caused by the application of biochemical fertilizers.
Seasonal Variation of PM2.5 Components Observed in an Industrial Area of Chiba Prefecture, Japan

In order to survey the seasonal variation of the chemical composition of particulate matter of 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5), PM2.5 was sampled from 8 February 2013 to 31 March 2014 in an industrial area of Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Chemical measurements of the sample included: ionic components (Na+, NH4+, Ca2+, Mg2+, K+, Cl−, NO3− and SO42−), carbonaceous components - organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC), and water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC). Also, secondary organic carbon (SOC) was measured based using the EC tracer method, and char-EC and soot-EC were calculated from the analytical results. The data obtained were interpreted in terms of temporal variation. Of the overall mean value of PM2.5 mass concentration obtained during the study period, ionic components, OC and EC accounted for 45.3%, 19.7%, and 8.0%, respectively. NO3− showed a unique seasonal distribution pattern due to a dependence on temperature and absolute humidity. It was estimated that an approximate temperature of 14°C, and absolute humidity of 7 g/m3 were critical for the reversible reaction of NH4NO3 (p) ⇋ NH3 (g)+HNO3 (g). The amount of OC and EC contributing to the monthly PM2.5 mass concentration was higher in autumn and winter compared to spring and summer. This result could be attributed to the impact of burning biomass, since WSOC and the ratio of char-EC/soot-EC showed a similar pattern during the corresponding period. From the comparison of monthly WSOC/OC values, a maximum ratio of 83% was obtained in August (summer). The WSOC and estimated SOC levels derived from the EC tracer method correlated (R=0.77) in summer. The high occurrence of WSOC during summer was mainly due to the formation of SOC by photochemical reactions. Through long-term observation of PM2.5 chemical components, we established that the degree to which the abovementioned factors influence PM2.5 composition, fluctuates with seasonal changes.