Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Globalisation and growth: are we heading for convergence

This paper, devoted to the study of globalisation, analyses two distinct but closely related issues. Firstly, it aims at evaluating disparities in the degree of globalisation observed in a sample of 101 countries over the period 1970-2005. Secondly, it tries to shed some light to the much debated issue of whether globalisation affects economic growth and, in so doing, whether convergence in globalisation brings about convergence in per capita income. The results obtained are both encouraging: on the one side, it is shown that there has been a clear process of globalisation convergence; on the other, the paper concludes that globalisation has been one of the main drivers of economic growth, thus fostering convergence in per capita income.
Concerning the shapes of finite-dimensional compacta

It is shown that two "tamely" embedded compacta of dimension 2k + 2) have the same (Borsuk) shape if and only if their complements are homeomorphic. In particular, two k-dimensional closed submanifolds of E2k+2 have the same homotopy type if and only if their complements are homeomorphic.
Knowledge and Practice of Nursing Staff about Sharp Waste Management in Selected Hospitals of Military (Tehran) and Non- Military (Qom) in 2012

Healthcare wastes are a major challenge in public health and comprise all types of wastes generated by healthcare centers, research facilities, and laboratories. The aim of this study was surveying the knowledge and practice of nursing staff about sharp waste management in selected military (Tehran) and non- military (Qom) hospitals in 2012. This was a descriptive-analytical study on 143 nursing stuff in Military and Non-Military hospitals. Data was collected using a self-report questionnaire. Statistical tests such as the student t-test, one-way analysis of variance and Pearson correlation were used to data analysis. The mean age of participants was 32(±6.3) and the majority were female. The mean score of knowledge was 54.7(±14.4) and their knowledge classified on a moderate level. Also, the mean score of practice was 65.44(±11.6) and was classified on a moderate level. The means of these variables were higher among personnel of Military than Non-Military. There were positive correlations between knowledge, practice and age variables (P<0.05). The findings showed that there is a considerable deficiency about knowledge and practice of the participants’ in study, from fundamentals of desirable management of sharp waste. As a result, the design and performance of proper educational programs are suggested for them.
Proton Transport in Aqueous Ionic Solutions

The anomalously fast transport of protons through water has been subject of research in chemistry, biology and physics for over 200 years. However, there is still little understanding on how solutes would influence this process. Reported here is an investigation on the mobility of protons in concentrated aqueous salt solutions in a microfluidic device. The influence of weakly and strongly hydrating cations and anions is investigated for solutions of 0.1 M HCl with varying concentrations of MgSO4, Cs2SO4 and Mg(ClO4)2. The proton mobility is measured by determining the proton diffusion coefficient using a pH sensitive fluorophore, imaging the microfluidic device with a fluorescent microscope. Increasing the concentration of the salts was found to have an apparent suppressive effect on the proton mobility. The salts containing sulphate were found to influence the protons most and to a similar degree. However, this influence was largely traced back to the buffering effect of the sulphate ions, which decreases the free proton concentration, and therefore decreases the apparent proton diffusion coefficient. Initial re-analysis of these results surprisingly indicates an increase of the actual proton diffusion coefficient. Mg(ClO4)2, not possessing any buffering property, was found to have little suppressive effect for the lower concentrations (0.5 and 1.0 M), however for higher concentrations (2.0 and 3.0 M) proton diffusion was found to be up to 5 times slower compared to the reference measurements.
VARIATION IN CAPTURE RATES OF UNDERSTORY BIRDS IN EL REY NATIONAL PARK, NORTHWESTERN ARGENTINA

Montane forests located in northwestern Argentina are important areas for conservation but have received little study. We used mist nets in a preliminary survey of understory birds at El Rey National Park, Salta; the park encompasses 44,162 ha over an altitudinal range from 700 to 2300 m. Study sites were at two elevations representing distinct forest types: Selva Basal (SB; 900-1200 m) and Selva de Mirtaceas (SM; 1200-1600 m). Birds were sampled during the dry and wet seasons 1994 and during the dry season 1996. We captured 660 birds (359 in SB; 301 in SM) representing 42 species (38 in SB; 31 in SM). Number of species per sample ranged from 17 to 27 but differences were largely due to difference in number of captures. Considerable variation in capture rates was noted between seasons and elevations. Importance of fruit in the diet was substantially greater during the wet season. Accepted 22 August 1997. Kf! Y words: Argentina, diet, elevational gradient,' fruit, migrant, mist net, montane forest.
Factors affecting college students’ brand loyalty toward fast fashion: A consumer-based brand equity approach

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the factors affecting consumer’s fast fashion brand loyalty by examining US college students’ perceptions and loyalty toward fast fashion. Design/methodology/approach Using consumer-based brand equity approach, a research model which examines the factors affecting consumer’s brand loyalty in the fast fashion context was proposed. It was hypothesized that consumer’s perceptions of fast fashion, including brand awareness, perceived quality, perceived value, brand personality, organizational associations, and brand uniqueness, affect consumer brand loyalty. Based on the valid data from 419 US college students, this study employed structural equation modeling to investigate the factors affecting US college students’ brand loyalty toward fast fashion. Findings Results reveal that for the US college students, brand awareness, perceived value, organizational associations, and brand uniqueness are the contributing factors to generating consumer’s loyalty toward fast fashion brands. Originality/value Due to the fact that fast fashion has become a key feature of the global fashion industry over the last decade, there is phenomenal growth in the availability of fast fashion brands in the US markets. This study provides valuable insights about young consumers’ perceptions of fast fashion brands and the factors’ contributions to their brand loyalty.
Dynamic biomass burning emission factors and their impact on atmospheric CO mixing ratios

Biomass burning is a major source of trace gases and aerosols, influencing atmospheric chemistry and climate. To quantitatively assess its impact, an accurate representation of fire emissions is crucial for the atmospheric modeling community. So far, most studies rely on static emission factors (EF) which convert estimates of dry matter burned to trace gas and aerosol emissions. These EFs are often based on the arithmetic mean of field measurements stratified by biome, neglecting the variability in time and space. Here we present global carbon monoxide (CO) emission estimates from fires based on six EF scenarios with different spatial and temporal variability, using dry matter emission estimates from the Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED). We used the TM5 model to transport these different bottom‐up estimates in the atmosphere and found that including spatial and temporal variability in EFs impacted CO mixing ratios substantially. Most scenarios estimated higher CO mixing ratios (up to 40% more CO from fires during the burning season) over boreal regions compared to the GFED standard run, while a decrease (~15%) was estimated over the continent of Africa. A comparison to atmospheric CO observations showed differences of 10–20 ppb between the scenarios and systematic deviations from local observations. Although temporal correlations of specific EF scenarios improved for certain regions, an overall “best” set of EFs could not be selected. Our results provide a new set of emission estimates that can be used for sensitivity analyses and highlight the importance of better understanding spatial and temporal variability in EFs for atmospheric studies in general and specifically when using CO or aerosols concentration measurements to top‐down constrain fire carbon emissions.
Construction Technology Adoption Cube: An Investigation on Process, Factors, Barriers, Drivers, and Decision Makers using NVivo and AHP Analysis

Due to the complexity, high-risk and conservative character of construction companies, advanced digital technologies do not become widely adopted in the short term, while vendors make determined efforts to overcome this and disseminate their technologies. This paper presents the methods of an investigation addressing the extremely complex issues related to the current practices of digital technology adoption in construction. It discusses how construction companies follow a specific logical process linked to need, project objectives, the characteristics of the adopting organization and the characteristics of the new technology to be adopted. The study aims to demonstrate a novel method of data collection and analysis, such as data and methodological triangulation techniques, including the use of NVivo and AHP to explore how companies make the decision to uptake new technology (e.g., advanced crane, tunnel boring machine or drones) by focusing on customer and vendor activities, their interactions, contributing factors and people involved in the process. The major original contribution of this paper is developing an innovative methodological cube for investigating the Construction Technology Adoption Process (CTAP) covering technology adoption, acceptance, diffusion and implementation concepts. CTAP is a framework that delineates the phases of the process that customer organizations use when deciding to adopt a new digital technology and the parallel vendor activities. The significance of these contributions is that they enable vendors to understand how to match their strategies with customer expectations in each phase of CTAP. It also provides a benchmark for new construction companies to use the current best practices of decision making. Future research is warranted to more clearly delineate any differences with respect to developing nations or related industries such as mining and property management.
Tidal and seasonal effects on transport of pink shrimp postlarvae

Transport simulations were conducted to investigate a large seasonal peak in postlarvae of the pink shrimp Farfantepenaeus duorarum that occurs every summer on the northwestern border of Florida Bay. Daily vertical migration, a known behavior in pink shrimp postlarvae, was assumed in all scenarios investigated. A Lagrangian trajectory model was developed using a current field derived from a 3 yr ADCP (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) time series. To fit the estimated planktonic development time of pink shrimp, the model simulated larvae traveling at night over a 30 d period. We investigated 2 types of effects: (1) the effect of mismatch periodicity between tidal constituents and daily migration, and (2) the effect of seasonal changes in night length. The maximum eastward displacement with the semidiurnal lunar tidal constituent (M 2 ) was 4 km, with periods of enhanced transport in both summer and winter. In contrast, eastward displacement with the semidiurnal solar tidal constituent (S 2 ) and the lunisolar diurnal K 1 was 65 km and the period of maximum distance occurred in summer every year. Because the periods of S 2 and K 1 are so close to the 24 h vertical migration period, and the eastward current (flood) of these constituents matches the diel cycle over extended intervals, they can induce strong horizontal transport during summer. Thus, diel vertical migration can interact with the S 2 and the K 1 tidal constituents and with the annual cycle of night length to produce a distinct annual cycle that may enhance transport of pink shrimp and other coastal species during summer in shallow areas of the Gulf of Mexico.
Modelling Conditional Volatility of Saving Rate by a Time-Varying Parameter Model

Abstract—The present paper used time-varying parameters which are based on the score function of a probability density at time t to model volatility of saving rate. We used a scaled likelihood function to update the parameters of the model overtime. Our results revealed high diligence of time-varying since the location parameter is greater than zero. Furthermore, we discovered a leptokurtic condition on saving rate’s distribution. Kapetanios, Shin-Shell Nonlinear Augmented Dickey-Fuller (KSS-NADF) test showed that the saving rate has a nonlinear unit root; therefore, it can be modeled by a generalised autoregressive score (GAS) model. Additionally, value at risk (VaR) and conditional tail expectation (CTE) indicate that 99% of the time people in Lesotho are saving more than spending. This puts the economy in high risk of not expanding. Therefore, the monetary policy committee (MPC) of Lesotho should revise their monetary policies towards this high saving rates risk.
Investor sentiment in the Chinese stock market: an empirical analysis

This article focuses on investor sentiment and its relationships to stock returns and volatility in the Chinese stock market. By using mutual fund flows as a substitute for investor sentiment for different stocks, this study finds that investor sentiment has a tremendous impact on stock returns in the Chinese stock market. However, some of our results are inconsistent with previous research. Since the Chinese stock market is still an emerging capital market, one explanation for the inconsistency is that investor sentiment has comparatively stronger impact on stock returns in China.
Are the total mass density and the low-mass end slope of the IMF anticorrelated?

We conduct a detailed lensing, dynamics and stellar population analysis of nine massive lens early-type galaxies (ETGs) from the X-Shooter Lens Survey (XLENS). Combining gravitational lensing constraints from HST imaging with spatially-resolved kinematics and line-indices constraints from Very Large Telescope (VLT) X-Shooter spectra, we infer the low-mass slope and the low cut-off mass of the stellar initial mass function (IMF): x_{250}=2.37^{+0.12}_{-0.12} and M_{low, 250}= 0.131^{+0.023}_{-0.026} M_{⊙}, respectively, for a reference point with σ⋆ ≡ 250 km s-1 and Reff ≡ 10 kpc. All the XLENS systems are consistent with an IMF slope steeper than Milky Way-like. We find no significant correlations between IMF slope and any other quantity, except for an anticorrelation between total dynamical mass density and low-mass IMF slope at the 87 per cent CL [dx/d log (ρ) = -0.19^{+0.15}_{-0.15}]. This anticorrelation is consistent with the low-redshift lenses found by Smith et al. that have high velocity dispersions and high stellar mass densities but surprisingly shallow IMF slopes.
The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Employment Opportunities: Panel Data Analysis: Empirical Evidence from Pakistan, India and China

Over the past two decades, the continent of Asia received a large amount of FDI from developed regions. Additionally, in the Asia, India and China received a major chunk of foreign direct investment and FDI flows to Pakistan also increased significantly. Many studies show that the inflow of FDI plays a significant role in generating employment in host countries. The objective of this study is to undertake an empirical study on creation of employment opportunities by FDI during 1985–2008 in the Asian region. In this regard, we have taken the sample of three countries i.e. Pakistan, India and China from the same region. The Im-Pesaran-Shin (IPS) test of unit root is applied to find out the order of integration. The long run relationship is investigated through the Pedroni (1999) test of panel cointegration. At last, the Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) method is used for estimation of the impact of FDI inflows on employment levels in three countries. Implications for FDI policy are spelt out in the light of these empirical results.
Annual, Seasonal, and Interannual Variability of Air–Sea Heat Fluxes in the Indian Ocean

Abstract This study investigated the accuracy and physical representation of air–sea surface heat flux estimates for the Indian Ocean on annual, seasonal, and interannual time scales. Six heat flux products were analyzed, including the newly developed latent and sensible heat fluxes from the Objectively Analyzed Air–Sea Heat Fluxes (OAFlux) project and net shortwave and longwave radiation results from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP), the heat flux analysis from the Southampton Oceanography Centre (SOC), the National Centers for Environmental Prediction reanalysis 1 (NCEP1) and reanalysis-2 (NCEP2) datasets, and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts operational (ECMWF-OP) and 40-yr Re-Analysis (ERA-40) products. This paper presents the analysis of the six products in depicting the mean, the seasonal cycle, and the interannual variability of the net heat flux into the ocean. Two time series of in situ flux measurements, one taken from a 1-yr Arabian Sea Experim.
Extended estimations of neoclassical transport for the TJ-II stellarator: The bootstrap current

This work extends previous Monte Carlo estimations of neoclassical transport for the TJ-II stellarator [V. Tribaldos, Phys. Plasmas 8, 1229 (2001)] to include, for the first time, the bootstrap current in low collisionality electron cyclotron resonance heated (ECRH) plasmas. The calculations are based on the mono-energetic coefficients calculated with DKES [W. I. van Rij and S. P. Hirshman, Phys. Fluids B 1, 563 (1989)] and MOCA codes. It is shown that despite the difficulties of calculating these coefficient in the long mean free path for TJ-II configurations, the bootstrap current can be accurately estimated based on the moderate temperatures measured in this device with and without enforcing momentum conservation [H. Maasberg et al., Phys. Plasmas 16, 072504 (2009)]. The computed bootstrap current is found to be in fair agreement with the currents being measured in ECRH regimes. Finally, the effect of the bootstrap current on the rotational transform profile is discussed.
An Assessment of Wine Knowledge Amongst Global Consumers

Purpose – The importance of product class knowledge is well documented in consumer behaviour literature. The purpose of this study is to assess the knowledge of consumers in New Zealand, Australia, the UK and USA as it pertains to the specific product class of wine. Design/methodology/approach – The authors adapted or introduced tests to analyse consumer objective knowledge, subjective knowledge and familiarity with the product class of wine. Interviewer administered questionnaires were completed with 399 respondents inside supermarkets, general liquor stores and specialty wine stores in New Zealand, Australia, the UK and USA. Findings – The research found a positive correlation between subjective and objective knowledge, and another between familiarity and objective knowledge. Actual wine knowledge was found to be higher amongst Australian consumers than those from the other nations. Objective knowledge was also found to have significant relationships with gender, education and store choice. Research implications – The findings suggest practical implications for wine producers and marketers in terms of segmenting the market or successfully appealing to consumers based on their level of wine knowledge. Originality/value – The authors extended earlier product class knowledge research by examining wine consumers in multiple countries with regards to objective knowledge, subjective knowledge and familiarity.
WDR26 in Advanced Breast Cancer: A Novel Regulator of the P13K/AKT Pathway

Abstract : The PI3K/AKT pathway is one of the most deregulated pathways in breast cancers (70%), and a major contributor to tumor progression. PI3Ks and AKTs comprise of multiple isoforms that play a critical role in a wide variety of physiological progresses. Moreover, during cancer progression, different PI3K and AKT isoforms may have different and even opposite roles. Notably, PI3K and AKT2 have been identified as the major isoform that contribute to breast cancer growth and metastasis. Yet, it is not yet clear how to specifically target the PI3K/AKT2 without causing wide spread side effects. In this proposal, we aim to test the hypothesis that WDR26 functions as a novel regulator of the PI3K/AKT2 pathway, and a previously unidentified marker/therapeutic target in advanced breast cancer, in particular, triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). Our results thus far demonstrated that WDR26 selectively interacts with G, PI3K, and AKT2 and serves as a scaffold that fosters their interaction to promote PI3K/AKT activation; and in highly malignant and invasive breast tumors, upregulated WDR26 over activates the PI3K/AKT2 pathway, promoting breast tumor growth and metastasis. These findings thus pinpoint WDR26 as a potential therapeutic target for disrupting PI3K/AKT over activation and breast cancer progression.
Effect of changes in δ18O content of the surface ocean on estimated sea surface temperatures in past warm climate

[1] Using a coupled climate model of intermediate complexity including oxygen 18, CLIMBER-2, we investigate the evolution of the distribution of surface water 18O composition under warm climate conditions. We then determine the impact of changes of the surface water 18O distribution on ocean surface temperatures inferred from calcite oxygen 18. Our results show that published temperature reconstructions based on oxygen 18 from calcite are systematically biased by 2° to 4°C in the absence of major oceanic circulation changes and up to 7°C in the presence of major oceanic circulation changes. As the bias introduced is shown to vary with latitude, our work has major implications on past latitudinal temperature gradient reconstructions based on oxygen 18 measurements.
Comparative study of drought and salt stress effects on germination and seedling growth of pea

Seed germination is first critical and the most sensitive stage in the life cycle of plants compromise the seedlings establishment. Salt and drought tolerance testing in initial stages of plant development is of vital importance, because the seed with more rapid germination under salt or water deficit conditions may be expected to achieve a rapid seedling establishment, resulting in higher yields. The aim of this study was to determine whether the pea seed germination and seedling growth were inhibited by the salt toxicity and osmotic effect during the seedling development, and also identification of the sensitive seedling growth parameters in response to those stresses. Based on the obtained results, pea has been presented to be more tolerant to salt than water stress during germination and early embryo growth. Investigated cultivars showed greater susceptibility to both abiotic stresses when it comes growth parameters compared to seed germination. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR-31024 i br. TR-31022]