Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Validation of the Proactive Coping Scale in a Sample of Chinese Population

The purpose of this study was to validate the Proactive Coping Scale in a Chinese population sample. A total of 313 college students participated in Taiwan in the study. They completed the Chinese version of the Proactive Coping Scale (PCS), Self Esteem Scale (SES), Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R) and depression and anxiety subscale of Symptom Checklist 90-Revised (SCL90-R). The results demonstrated that items of the PCS had good internal reliability, factorial validity and construct validity except for the second item (i.e., I try to let things work out on their own). The second item implies the meaning of “let-it-happen in a natural way”, which might have a different interpretation in Western culture from the prevalent proactive coping style that was observed in Chinese culture. Therefore, the study suggested the second item of PCS should be deleted while measuring the Chinese proactive coping style.
Pivotal metabolic pathways related to water deficit tolerance and growth recovery of whole maize plant

Tolerance to water deficit as well as growth recovery from water deficit by re-watering are two important and inseparable processes for maize survival. However, details of metabolic mechanisms are unknown and still need to be filled. Leaf water potential and photosynthetic parameters of three-leaf-stage seedlings of maize inbred line Huangzao 4 under progressive water deficit and re-watering were measured, and metabolites of the seedlings under the corresponding treatments were identified and subjected to analyses of hierarchical cluster, principal component and self-organizing mapping. A total of 142 polar metabolites, 127 in leaves and 125 in roots, were identified, including 13 amino acids, 17 organic acids, 8 sugars, 2 sugar alcohols, and 4 others, of which 85 in leaves and 53 in roots showed a significant change in metabolic level under water deficit. Fifty-nine metabolites had a significant change in metabolic level under re-watering, the majority of which were organic acids and anmino acids. In conclusion, there is a significant crosstalk of metabolisms between water deficit tolerance and growth recovery under re-watering, with glycolysis, starch and protein degradation as pivotal pathways; metabolic level changes in the roots are to maximize water uptake whereas the changes in the leaves are to prevent water loss and to increase water-use efficiency; water deficit tolerance depends on metabolic level-controlled balance between the networks; and maize uses an emergency repair mechanism for growth recovery. The results give informative clues to address the mechanisms of maize water deficit tolerance and growth recovery at the metabolic level.
Evaluation of Ethnopharmacological and Antioxidant Potential of Zanthoxylum armatum DC.

Zanthoxylum armatum DC. (syn. Z. alatum Roxb.) is an important medicinal plant commonly called Timur or Indian prickly ash. The ethnopharmacological study of Z. armatum revealed the use of different plant parts for curing various ailments including cholera, chest infection, fever, indigestion, stomach disorders, gas problems, piles, toothache, gum problems, dyspepsia, as carminative, antipyretic, aromatic, tonic, and stomachic. Keeping in view the medicinal potential of the plant, the antioxidant activity was evaluated using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging, reducing power, and phosphomolybdate assay using different concentrations (7.81 μg/mL–250 μg/mL). Ascorbic acid was taken as standard. The results indicated that the free radical scavenging activity ranged from 40.12% to 78.39%, and the reductive potential ranged from 0.265 nm to 1.411 nm while the total antioxidant activity ranged from 0.124 nm to 0.183 nm. The antioxidant potential evaluated by three assays increased in a concentration dependent manner and ascorbic acid showed better antioxidant activity than leaf extract. Results obtained through different tests confirmed redox protective activities of Zanthoxylum armatum. Further in vitro and in vivo research should be performed, so this plant can be further utilized in drug development.
Sorting Logs and Lumber for Stiffness Using Director HM200

Acoustic tools such as the Director HM200 are able to sort logs and boards according to their intrinsic stiffness. Here, some uses of such tools are demonstrated. First, six logs are analyzed before sawing into cants and individual boards. Second, the same approach is reconsidered from basic principles, emphasizing the variety of investigative projects to match the species-specific responses to acoustics and the need to match local resources to local markets. In both instances, correlations between acoustic properties measured in logs are related to those from cants and boards. The offsetting effects of changes in stiffness and density in determining acoustic velocity are discussed. The intention is to emphasize future possibilities for commercial application.
Ages of young stars

Determining the sequence of events in the formation of stars and planetary systems and their timescales is essential for understanding those processes, yet establishing ages is fundamentally difficult because we lack direct indicators. In this review we discuss the age challenge for young stars, specifically those less than ~ 100 m.y. old. Most age determination methods that we discuss are primarily applicable to groups of stars but can be used to estimate the age of individual objects. A reliable age scale is established above 20 m.y. from measurement of the lithium depletion boundary (LDB) in young clusters, and consistency is shown between these ages and those from the upper-main-sequence (UMS) and main-sequence (MS) tum-off - if modest core convection and rotation is included in the models of higher-mass stars. Other available methods for age estimation include the kinematics of young groups, placing stars in Hertzsprung-Russell diagrams (HRDs), pulsations and seismology, surface gravity measurement, rotation and activity, and Li abundance. We review each of these methods and present known strengths and weaknesses. Below ~20 m.y. , both model-dependent and observational uncertainties grow, the situation is confused by the possibility of age spreads, and no reliable absolute ages yet exist. The lack of absolute age calibration below 20 m.y. should be born in mind when considering the lifetimes of protostellar phases and circumstellar material.
Evaluation of the effect of soil acidity amelioration on maize yield and nutrient interrelationships using stepwise regression and nutrient vector analysis

The interrelationships between elemental content of selected soil and leaf nutrients and maize grain yield were evaluated in a liming experiment conducted on a Hutton and Oakleaf soil in a resource-poor farming area in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa. Improved uptake of Mo by maize with increased soil P status was found on the Hutton soil, while N and P uptake improved, due to lime and fertiliser application, on both soils. Boron uptake by maize was depressed with lime application on the Oakleaf soil. Maize yield on the Hutton soil was adversely affected by Al toxicity, while plant Ca deficiency was the dominant factor that limited maize grain yield, followed by Al level and a depressed B uptake on the Oakleaf soil. Nutrient vector analyses showed a toxic build-up of Fe, followed by Al and to a lesser extent Mn. These toxic elements depressed the uptake of Ca, Mg and B by maize on the Hutton soil. On the Oakleaf soil, Al toxicity, followed by high concentrations of Mn and Fe, markedly reduced the uptake of Ca, Mg and K by maize.
Desarrollo de líneas transgénicas de una variedad androestéril de papa, potencialmente resistentes a Tecia solanivora Povolny

RESUMEN Male sterility is a very important characteristic for environmental safety in genetically modified (GM) plants, particularly in the release of transgenic plants in the centers of origin or high biodiversity areas. In order to contribute to the development of environmentally safe agricultural technologies that allow the proper use of transgenic potato crops in Colombia, this project developed transgenic potato cry1Ac of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), lines that are potentially resistant to T. solanivora, from the male-sterile variety Pastusa Suprema (PS) (Solanum tuberosum ssp. andigena). Modifications were made to the Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated-transformation protocol which allowed the genetic transformation of leaves of in vitro plants, with transformation efficiencies of 22 and 37%. Cry1Ac protein levels in transgenic leaves ranged from 88 to 639 ng mg of fresh leaf tissue, suggesting a better potential plant resistance. This is the first report on transgenic lines with potential resistance to T. solanivora from a male-sterile variety of S. tuberosum ssp. andigena. La androesterilidad es una característica de importancia en la bioseguridad ambiental de las plantas modificadas genéticamente para la liberación de éstas en los centros de origen o en áreas de alta biodiversidad de los cultivos. Como una contribución al desarrollo de tecnologías agrícolas medioambientalmente seguras, que permitan el uso adecuado de cultivos transgénicos de papa en Colombia, en este trabajo se desarrollaron líneas transgénicas de papa con el gen cry1Ac de Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), potencialmente resistentes a T. solanivora, a partir de la variedad androestéril, Pastusa Suprema (PS) (Solanum tuberosum ssp. andigena). Modificaciones realizadas con Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediante el protocolo que permitieron la transformación genética de hojas de plántulas in vitro, con eficiencias de transformación de 22 y 37%. En las plántulas transgénicas se obtuvieron niveles de expresión de la proteína Cry1Ac, con valores entre 88 a 639 ng mg de tejido foliar fresco, lo cual sugiere un buen potencial de resistencia de las plantas. Este es el primer reporte de líneas transgénicas, con resistencia potencial a T. solanivora, a partir de una variedad androestéril de S. tuberosum ssp. andigena.
Title Real-Time PCR Detection of Host-Mediated Cyanophage Gene Transcripts during Infection of a Natural Microcystis aeruginosa Population

Real-Time PCR Detection of Host-Mediated Cyanophage Gene Transcripts during Infection of a Natural Microcystis aeruginosa Population Author(s) Yoshida, Mitsuhiro; Yoshida, Takashi; Yoshida-Takashima, Yukari; Kashima, Aki; Hiroishi, Shingo Citation Microbes and Environments (2010), 25(3): 211-215 Issue Date 2010 URL http://hdl.handle. net/2433/130694 Right © 2010 the Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology Type Journal Article Textversion publisher
Sharing Values as a Foundation for Collective Hope

A widespread “tale of terror” amongst those seeking social change is that people in modern Western societies are caught in a neo-liberal paradigm and have come to care most about materialism, individual success and status. Our research attempted to challenge this tale. Study 1 involved New Zealand participants (N = 1085) from largely, but not exclusively, left-leaning groups. We used an open-ended process to identify their “infinite” values (that which they consider of value for its own sake); and found these concerned connection to people and other life forms, expression, nature, personal strengths, vitality, and spirituality. Systems and regulations, success and status, money, ownership and domination were named as of “finite” value (of value because of what they signify or enable). These findings suggest that our participants readily distinguished between what is inherently valuable and what is of instrumental value or signifies social status. Study 2 (N = 121) investigated participants’ responses to a word cloud that displayed the infinite values identified in Study 1. These were predominantly a sense of belonging to a human community, reassurance, and feeling uplifted and hopeful. We suggest that the word cloud offered a “tale of joy” showing that, contrary to standard neo-liberal rhetoric, people do care deeply about the common good. We also suggest that such a tale is critical to social movements that depend on a sense of collective hope.
Differences in agency? How adolescents from 18 countries perceive and cope with their futures

This study investigated how N = 5,126 adolescents (mean age of 15 years) from 18 countries perceive and cope with future- and school-related stress. The adolescents completed the Problem Questionnaire (PQ), which assesses stress, and the Coping Across Situations Questionnaire (CASQ), which assesses three coping styles (reflection/support-seeking, emotional outlet, and withdrawal/denial). Across countries, adolescents reported considerably higher levels of future-related stress than school-related stress. The adolescents actively coped with stressors in both domains and seldom relied on emotional outlet or withdrawal/denial. A clustering of the countries according to socioeconomic criteria and geographical proximity demonstrated that adolescents from the continental group of countries showed low stress and high coping. Adolescents in the east/Asia group showed medium stress and low coping and those in the south group showed high stress and low coping. Developmental context was more strongly associated with stress perception and coping, style than age or gender, a finding relevant for prevention approaches aiming to endorse positive orientation to the future and improve coping competence.
A New Tool for Rectangular Dualization

OcORD is a software tool for rectangular dualization. Rectangular dualization is a dual representation of a plane graph introduced in the early seventies. It proved to be effective in applications such as architectural space planning and VLSI floorplanning. However, not all plane graphs admit a rectangular dual, which imposes severe limitations on its use in other applications. OcORD aims at freeing rectangular dualization from such restrictions and proving its effectiveness in graph visualization. This is achieved in two ways. Firstly, OcORD features a new linear-time algorithm creating a rectangular dual of any plane graph. Secondly, it shows how nice drawings of a graph can be easily obtained from its rectangular dual. Finally, the automatic generation of a Virtual World through rectangular dualization is described. [ DOI : 10.1685/CSC09301] About DOI
Homogeneity in luxury fashion consumption: an exploration of Arab Women

Consumer perceptions and consumer motivations are complex and whilst it is acknowledged within literature that heterogeneity exists, homogenous models dominate consumer behaviour research. The primary purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which Arab women are a homogeneous group of consumers in regard to perceptions and motivations to consume luxury fashion goods. In particular, the paper seeks to present a critical review of luxury consumption frameworks. As part of the research design, Vigneron and Johnson’s (1999) prestige seeking behaviour framework was selected as a means for empirical investigation. The study’s findings suggest that distinct value perceptions of luxury fashion among Arab females are evident, that is, this group of consumers are homogeneous in terms of prestige seeking behaviour. Homogeneity can be explained by the existence of interpersonal motives for luxury consumption. The findings of the study highlight that Arab women, many of whom wear the abaya ‘cloak’ when in public, seek to pursue mutual socially conforming consumption behaviours through luxury fashion. The study has both academic and practitioner implications. Firstly, the study contributes to fulfilling a gap in consumer behaviour literature, that being, an understanding of female consumption behaviour regarding luxury goods in the Arab world. Secondly, in terms of practitioner implications, the findings support retail marketing decisions in regard to profiling distinct consumer groups of Arab females, which luxury marketers can target with discrete marketing communications.
Abattoir characteristics and seroprevalence of bovine brucellosis in cattle slaughtered at Bodija Municipal Abattoir , Ibadan , Nigeria

Production Animal Studies Department, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort 0110, South Africa. Department of Paraclinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort 0110, South Africa. National Veterinary Research Institute, Vom 930001, Nigeria. Department of Veterinary Public Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
The Impact of Facebookers’ Posts on Other Users’ Attitudes According to Their Age and Gender: Evidence from Al Ain University of Science and Technology

This study aims at exploring the reasons that drive many Facebookers to share negative posts on Facebook, with a special focus on their gender and age. It also aims at identifying the negative attitudes and feelings that negative Facebook posts might evoke in Facebookers. Thus, a mixed-methods approach was adopted employing both a five-point agreement Likert scale questionnaire and semi-structured interviews which were conducted with 40 participants. Based on the participants’ responses, the results show that many Facebookers write posts to satisfy different needs including receiving compliments and attention, sharing daily updates, showing off, and deliberately teasing others, all of which have been found to trigger feelings of jealousy, hatred, annoyance, demotivation, inferiority, and sadness. The study concludes with recommendations for further research.
REAL EXCHANGE RATE EQUILIBRIUM AND MISALIGNMENT IN KENYA

This paper examines Real Exchange Rates (RER) misalignment in Kenya by using Johansen Cointegration and error correction technique based on single equation and Vector Autoregressive (VAR) specification. It was found that actual RER was more often above its equilibrium value for the study period of June 1993 – December 2009 and the country’s international competitiveness deteriorated over the study period.
A deep staring campaign in the σ Orionis cluster. Variability in substellar members

Deep optical imaging is used to study time-domain properties of young brown dwarfs in sigma Orionis over typical rotational time-scales and to search for new substellar and planetary-mass cluster members. We used VIMOS at the VLT to monitor a 24 arcmin x 16 arcmin field in the I-band. Using the individual images from this run we investigated the photometric time series of nine substellar cluster members with masses from 10 to 60 Mj. The deep stacked image shows cluster members down to $\approx$ 5 Mj. We search for new planetary mass objects by combining our deep I-band photometry with public J-band magnitudes and by examining the nearby environment of known very low mass members for possible companions. We find two brown dwarfs, with significantly variable, aperiodic light curves, both with masses around 50 Mj, one of which was previously unknown to be variable. The physical mechanism responsible for the observed variability is likely different for the two objects. The variability of the first object, a single-lined spectroscopic binary, is most likely linked to its accretion disc, the second may be caused by variable extinction by large grains. We find five new candidate members from the colour-magnitude diagram and three from a search for companions within 2000 au. We rule all eight sources out as potential members based on non-stellar shape and/or infrared colours. The I-band photometry is made available as a public dataset. We present two variable brown dwarfs. One is consistent with ongoing accretion, the other, exhibiting apparent transient variability without presence of an accretion disc. Our analysis confirms the existing census of substellar cluster members down to $\approx$ 7 Mj. The zero result from our companion search agrees with the low occurrence rate of wide companions to brown dwarfs found in other works.
Media Competencies for the Citizenship Training of Teachers from Andean America: Colombia and Ecuador

Em um mundo cada vez mais saturado e infoxicado, a literacia mediatica emerge como uma necessidade de filtragem eficiente da vasta quantidade de informacao que consumimos. A presente pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar qualitativamente o grau de competencia midiatica dos docentes colombianos (cidade de Medellin) e equatorianos (cidades de Loja e Zamora) atraves da aplicacao de uma taxonomia adaptada do modelo de competencias mediaticas, que e constituido por seis dimensoes e 12 indicadores. A mostra analisada foi composta por 654 docentes de 81 instituicoes publicas e privadas. Foi aplicado um instrumento de levantamento de dados com a finalidade de determinar o nivel de competencia midiatica dos docentes por cada dimensao. Os resultados obtidos expressam um grau baixo e mediano de competencia mediatica, o que evidencia a necessidade de intervencoes prioritarias a partir de trabalhos locais, regionais e internacionais que mobilizem cooperacao cientifica, academica e politica para melhorar o desempeno de um grupo que deveria liderar a formacao geral da cidadania.
Evaluation of Viability and Proliferation Profiles on Macrophages Treated with Silica Nanoparticles In Vitro via Plate-Based, Flow Cytometry, and Coulter Counter Assays

Nanoparticles (NPs) are known to interfere with many high-throughput cell viability and cell proliferation assays, which complicates the assessment of their potential toxic effects. The aim of this study was to compare viability and proliferation results for colloidal silica (SiO2 NP; 7 nm) in the RAW 264.7 mouse macrophage cell line using three different techniques: plate-based assays, flow cytometry analysis, and Coulter counter assays. Our data indicate that CellTiter-Blue, XTT, and CyQuant plate-based assays show increased values over control at low SiO2 NPs concentrations (0.001–0.01 g/L). SiO2 NPs show little-to-no interference with flow cytometry and Coulter counter assays, which not only were more reliable in determining cell viability and proliferation at low concentrations in vitro, but also identified changes in cell granularity and size that were not captured by the plate-based assays. At high SiO2 NP concentrations (1 g/L) all techniques indicated cytotoxicity. In conclusion, flow cytometry and Coulter counter identified new cellular features, and flow cytometry offered more flexibility in analyzing the viability and proliferation profile of SiO2 NP-treated RAW 264.7 cells.
Corporate Social Responsibility in Business-to-Business Markets: How Organizational Customers Account for Supplier Corporate Social Responsibility Engagement

Despite the high relevance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in current business practice and the considerable research on CSR outcomes in consumer markets, investigations of its influence on organizational business relationships are scarce. Relying on instrumental stakeholder theory, the authors develop and empirically test a framework of the influence of a supplier's CSR engagement on organizational customer outcomes. Findings from an examination of 200 cross-industry supplier–customer dyads reveal positive effects of two facets of a supplier's CSR efforts on customer loyalty through distinct mechanisms. Business practice CSR fosters customers' trust, whereas philanthropic CSR strengthens customer–company identification. The authors distinguish a supplier's actual CSR engagement and customers' perception of these CSR activities. In addition, they consider central contingency factors reflecting uncertainty and dependence in business-to-business relationships that determine the effectiveness of CSR.