Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Short-period near-contact binary systems at the beginning of the overcontact phase

A detailed analysis of orbital period changes of seven near-contact binary stars (NCBs) (BL And, V473 Cas, XZ CMi, BV Eri, RU Eri, UU Lyn and GR Tau) with period less than 1 d has been performed and their respective O-C diagrams are formed and discussed. It is found that all systems analysed show secular period decreasing. For V473 Cas, the analysis of the period change was performed based on data collected by Moschner, Frank & Bastian. For XZ CMi, its period shows some complex changes, a possible cyclic oscillation is discovered to superpose on the secular decrease that can be explained either by the presence of a third body or by magnetic activity cycles of the components. Since the third-body assumption is consistent with the photometric solution of Rafert, XZ CMi may be a truly triple system. For BV Eri, the period decrease is only supported by weak evidence. All the seven systems are short-period NCBs with AF-type primary components where both components are filling or nearly filling the critical Roche lobe. As the period decreases, the separation between both components will be reducing and thus these systems will evolve into A-type overcontact binaries. The period decrease may be caused by mass transfer or/and by angular momentum loss via magnetic braking. Combined with the published data on the other systems of the same type, a possible statistical connection between orbital period P and its rate of decrease dP/dt is obtained: dP/dt = -5.3 x 10(-7) x P + 1.3 x 10(-7) d yr(-1). This correlation indicates that the smaller the orbital period P is, the smaller its rate of change dP/dt will be. The correlation found in this paper indicates that there may be a smooth transition from A- and F-type NCBs with period decreases to the A- and F-type overcontact binaries that have period increases, and in that sense one may postulate that the NCBs may be the progenitors of the A-type W UMa systems and will be oscillating around a marginal-contact state as predicted by thermal relaxation oscillation (TRO) theory.
Factorial structure and measurement invariance of the Bulimic Investigatory Test, Edinburgh across gender and age

The main purpose of this instrumental study was to examine the factorial structure and measurement invariance of the Bulimic Investigatory Test, Edinburgh (BITE) across gender and age in a community sample of nonclinical adolescents. The sample consisted of 1,794 adolescents (50.2 % males), with a mean age of 14.7 years (SD = 1.72). The results showed that the BITE is a measurement instrument which presents adequate psychometric properties. The level of internal consistency for the Symptom subscale was . 95 whereas for the Severity subscale it was . 70. The analysis of the dimensionality of the BITE using exploratory factor analysis revealed a one-factor solution. In addition, the confirmatory factor analysis showed adequate fit indices for the one-factor solution. This dimensional structure of the BITE proved to be invariant across gender and age. Statistically significant differences were found as a function of age and gender when the groups were compared in the latent means. Future studies should incorporate the new advances in psychological and educational assessment pertaining to Computerized Adaptive Testing as well as examine the measurement invariance of the tests which assess bulimic symptomatology across cultures.
What Does the Financial Crisis Tell Us About the Determinants of Municipal Bonds Yields

This paper performs a comprehensive analysis on the determinants of general obligation municipal bond yields and examines the impact of the recent nancial crisis on the underlying relations. Three classes of variables aect yields of municipal bonds: the economic status of the state where the bond is issued, the demographic characteristics of the state, and the nancial status of the state or the local government where the bond is issued. This paper employs several new econometric techniques, including nonparametric regressions and Gradient Boosting, to capture both nonlinearity and potential random interactions among key determinants. A systematic comparison of the relations before and after the 2008 nancial crisis shows that the economic and nancial health of local governments has become markedly more diverse since the crisis began. The relation between the municipal bond yields and the economic and nancial health of the local governments has also become stronger because of the larger dierentiation among the local governments and hence larger signal to noise ratio, as well as closer scrutiny by market participants on the economic fundamentals of municipal governments. The analysis also shows that accommodating nonlinearities and random interaction eects can signicantly enhance the predictive performance on the municipal bond yields.
Detection of Herpes Simplex Virus in Corneal Buttons with Clinical Diagnosis of Corneal Scarring

Purpose: The evaluation of the presence of Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) in corneal scars by realtime polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and comparison of the results with histopathologic findings and clinical diagnoses Methods: Eighty-seven corneal scar samples obtained after penetrating keratoplasty (PK), were selected after reviewing the records from 2006 to 2010. Nucleic acid was extracted from paraffin embedded corneal samples and PCR-amplified for HSV DNA. Results: Among 87 samples, four samples were excluded because internal controls were negative. HSV infection was established in 9.6% (8/83) of all patients. The prevalence of HSV infection in patients with no clinical suspicion of herpetic keratitis was 7.3%. Histopathologic evaluation revealed that among samples with positive PCR results, 100% had evidence of inflammation, 62.5% had giant cells, 37% had necrosis, 62.5% had vascularization, 62.5 % had ulcer and all of them had inclusion bodies. Conclusion: Because some of the patients with no clinical suspicion of herpes infection were found positive, we suggest that HSV keratitis to be considered as one of the underlying etiologies in any patient with corneal scar. Therefore, performing further diagnostic methods, including PCR and histopathology, are mandatory to rule out the infection.
Syddansk Universitet Neuronal Ablation of IKK 2 Decreases Lesion Size and Improves Functional Outcome after Spinal Cord Injury in Mice

Nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) is a key modulator of inflammation and secondary injury responses in neurodegenerative disease, including spinal cord injury (SCI). Inhibition of astroglial NF-κB reduces inflammation, enhances oligodendrogenesis and improves functional recovery after SCI, however the contribution of neuronal NF-κB to secondary inflammatory responses following SCI has yet to be investigated. We demonstrate that conditional ablation of IKK2 in Synapsin 1-expressing neurons in mice (Syn1creIKK2fl/fl) reduces activation of the classical NF-κB signaling pathway, resulting in impaired motor function and altered memory retention under naïve conditions. Following induction of a moderate SCI phosphorylated NF-κB levels decreased in the spinal cord of Syn1creIKK2fl/fl mice compared to controls, resulting in improvement in functional recovery. Histologically, Syn1creIKK2fl/fl mice exhibited reduced lesion volume but comparable microglial/leukocyte responses after SCI. In parallel, interleukin (IL)-1β expression was significantly decreased within the lesioned spinal cord, whereas IL-5, IL-6, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 1 were unchanged compared to control mice. We conclude that conditional ablation of IKK2 in neurons, resulting in reduced neuronal NF-B signaling, and lead to protective effects after SCI and propose the neuronal classical NF-κB pathway as a potential target for the development of new therapeutic, neuroprotective strategies for SCI.
Altman Model and Bankruptcy Profile of Islamic Banking Industry: A Comparative Analysis on Financial Performance

The purpose of this paper is to examine the bankruptcy profile of Islamic banking industry and perform a comparative analysis of their financial characteristics with regards to bankruptcy. This paper applied Altman model on top five Islamic banking countries by global Islamic-banking assets with the objective to examine their bankruptcy profile, while ANOVA Post Hoc Scheffe test is applied to perform a comparative analysis on their financial characteristics relating to bankruptcy. From the selected sample the Saudi Arabian Islamic banks are found less bankrupt and moreover, two Saudi Arabian Islamic banks reserved the top two spots in z-score bankruptcy ranking list. However, Malaysian Islamic banks are found more bankrupt as they entitled the bottom four positions on z-score bankruptcy profile list. On performance indicators like liquidity, profitability and insolvency with regards to bankruptcy the Islamic banks from top five Islamic banking countries has a significant relationship. However, the relationship on productivity with regards to bankruptcy among the top five Islamic banking countries is found insignificant. The analysis here is viable for drawing the attention of researchers and practitioners of Islamic banking industry towards the overall deterioration in compound annual growth rate and the identified bankruptcy rate along with comparative financial performance on bankruptcy.
Dynamic Quantile Panel Data Analysis of Stock Returns Predictability

This paper analyses the effect of financial ratios on stock returns using quantile regression for dynamic panel data with fixed effects. Eighty three firms of manufacturing industry, which were traded on the Borsa Istanbul for 2000-2014 period, are covered in the study. The most of financial variables have heterogeneous structure so they generally include extreme values. Thus, panel quantile regression technique, suggested by Koenker (2004), is used. Since the technique yields robust estimator in the case of extreme values the Gaussian estimators will be biased and not efficient. The sensitivity of relationship, on the other hand, can be studied for different parts of the stock returns’ conditional distribution by using quantile regression technique. However, because of that the lagged of dependent variable is used as an explanatory variable in dynamic panel models, fixed effect estimators will be biased. Thereby, in this study the instrumental variable approach suggested by Chernozhukov and Hansen (2006) is used to produce unbiased and consistent estimators.The results show that the stock returns respond to the changes on the financial leverage ratio, the dividend yield, the market-to-book value ratio, financial beta and the total active profitability variables differently for the different parts of the stock returns’ conditional distribution. They also indicate that, at high quantiles, return fluctuations in the current period will be more effective for investors’ transaction attitudes on stocks for the next period.
Tetraamminecopper(II) Nitrate and Its Effects on Ammonium Nitrate(V)

Tetraamminecopper(II) nitrate(V) (TACN) is a complex copper salt which is easily formed when ammonium nitrate (AN) comes into contact with copper. It is considered to be an unwanted contaminant of AN because of its sensitivity to mechanical stimuli and significant explosive properties. The formation of TACN by the reaction of copper with molten ammonium nitrate(V) was demonstrated by powder diffraction. Friction and impact sensitivity testing was performed and field experiments were then conducted to reveal the detonation parameters of TACN and its initiation capability towards ammonium nitrate. The dependence of the detonation velocity on charge diameter was revealed and the ideal detonation velocity of 3500 m·s−1 at 0.87 g·cm−3 was measured. AN with the addition of 16 wt. % of TACN was found to detonate when initiated with a small booster charge. Moreover, TACN was able to initiate detonation in fertilizer grade ammonium nitrate(V) under massive steel confinement. TACN should be therefore considered as a possible contributory initiation source in some large scale accidents. In this article, some properties of TACN are revealed which could be useful for the investigation of accidents.
The ‘Sterno-Etrussia’ Geomagnetic Excursion Around 2700 BP and Changes of Solar Activity, Cosmic Ray Intensity, and Climate

The analysis of both paleo- and archeomagnetic data and magnetic properties of continental and marine sediments has shown that around 2700 BP, the geomagnetic Sterno-Etrussia excursion took place in 15 regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The study of magnetic properties of sediments of the Barents, Baltic, and White Seas demonstrates that the duration of this excursion was not more than 200–300 yr. Paleoclimatic data provide extensive evidence for a sharp global cooling around 2700 B P. The causes of natural climate variation are discussed. Changes of the galactic cosmic ray intensity may play a key role as the causal mechanism of climate change. Since the cosmic ray intensity (reflected by the cosmogenic isotope level in the earth's atmosphere) is modulated by the solar wind and by the terrestrial magnetic field, this may be an important mechanism for long-term solar climate variability. The Sterno-Etrussia excursion may have amplified the climate shift, which, in the first place, was the effect of a decline of solar activity. During excursions and inversions, the magnetic moment decreases, which leads to an increased intensity of cosmic rays penetrating the upper atmosphere. Global changes in the electromagnetic field of the earth result in sharp changes in the climate-determining factors in the atmosphere, such as temperatures, total pressure field, moisture circulation, intensity of air flows, and thunderstorm activity. In addition, significant changes in the ocean circulation patterns and temperature regimes of oceans will have taken place.
Contextual factors that affect secondary school teachers' agency in noncore subjects

Adapting to and implementing curriculum change has become the norm for teachers across Australia. Yet there has been limited research regarding the contextual factors that affect teacher agency during curriculum change for teachers working in non-core subject areas. This research addressed that gap by conducting a qualitative case study over three years exploring teacher perceptions of their agency. Results show that teachers’ perceptions of their classroom agency to develop and introduce new curriculum was high. Fewer teachers however, described having agency at a department level and school curriculum level. Teacher influence in school level curriculum further decreased over the course of the study as a result of the introduction of the Australian Curriculum (AC), the impact of NAPLAN as well as changes to school curriculum and focus by state directives. The contextual factors that influenced agency included career stage of the teacher and the initial support they were provided in schools; individual teachers’ perceptions of their power and position in schools; as well as teacher motivation and their belief in the importance of their subject for student learning. A supportive school culture and good collegial relationships both within the school and the professional teaching community were also considered significant for effective teacher agency. Negative influences identified included job intensification, inadequate professional development opportunities and the changing focus of subject priorities and assessment requirements in schools. Added pressures affecting teacher agency included the changed organisational structures within subject departments in many schools. It became apparent over the course of the study that school Administrations had increased their control in all aspects of school curriculum. Overall, Home Economics teachers believed they had reduced teacher agency at a national, state and school level. They did however retain a strong sense of agency at a department and classroom level if they were provided with a supportive and collegial environment.
Effect of Ethephon and Ethylene Gas on Ripening and Quality of Tomato(Solanum Lycopersicum L.) during Cold Storage

The investigation was carried out to obtain information about effect of ethephon and ethylene gas on ripening and quality of winter tomato (cv. Hybrid-1001). The mature green tomatoes were treated with different concentrations of aqueous solution of ethephon (500, 1000 and 1500 ppm) for 5 minutes, thereafter packed in plastic crates and kept in storage room at 20 ± 1°C and 90-95% RH. In another experiment, mature green tomatoes were exposed to ethylene gas (100 ppm) inside the ripening chamber for 24 hours (20 ± 1°C and 90-95% RH) and thereafter kept in the ripening chamber maintained at 20 ± 1°C and 90-95% RH. The physico-chemical parameters of fruits from mature green to senescent stage of maturation were analyzed. The ethylene gas (100 ppm) treatment registered the highest ripening percentage. The ripening and rotting percentage increased with increase in the concentration of ethephon (500-1500 ppm) and with the duration of days for which the fruits were kept for ripening. The titratable acidity of fruits experienced a linear decline but ascorbic acid and lycopene content registered an increase with the advancement of ripening period irrespective of any treatment. The fruits harvested at green mature stage get successfully ripened in 9 days with application of ethephon but the rotting was more than 14% till 9th day which makes fruits unmarketable. Therefore, the application of ethephon for ripening is not a good option. Treatment with ethylene gas (100 ppm) resulted in adequate ripening of fruits after 9 days with uniform red colour, desirable firmness, minimum rotting and acceptable quality and therefore this treatment is better over ethephon. In control fruits similar results of ripening, firmness, rotting and quality were observed as in case of ethylene gas (100 ppm) treatment but the fruits get longer time (11 days) to uniformly ripen.
How Do Laypeople Evaluate the Degree of Certainty in a Weather Report? A Case Study of the Use of the Web Service yr.no

AbstractMany people depend on and use weather forecasts to plan their schedules. In so doing, ordinary people with no expertise in meteorology are frequently called upon to interpret uncertainty with respect to weather forecasts. With this in mind, this study addresses two main questions: 1) How do laypeople interpret online weather reports with respect to their degree of certainty and how is previous knowledge drawn upon in this interpretation? and 2) How do laypeople integrate information in weather reports to determine their degree of certainty? This qualitative study is based on semistructured interviews with 21 Norwegians. The results show the following: (a) only a portion of uncertainty information was used, (b) symbols were sometimes ascribed different meanings than intended, and (c) interpretations were affected by local experiences with wind direction and forecast quality. The informants’ prior knowledge was found to prevail in the event of a conflict with forecast information, and an expected ra.
Treatment of sewage sludge with the use of solarization and sanitizing products for agricultural purposes

Recycling of sewage sludge for agricultural purposes is recommended as one of the most adequate forms of final disposal of this waste. This study evaluated the effectiveness of solarization combined with chemical treatments by acid and alkali during different periods of cleaning. The experiment was conducted at the Experimental Farm of the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU) in Uberlândia-MG. The experimental design used randomized blocks in a 5x3+1 factorial arrangement with four replications. The factor plots consisted of sanitizing products (260 mg L-1 peracetic acid, 2400 mg L-1 quaternary ammonium compounds, hydrated lime equivalent to 30% of the dry mass of the sewage sludge, 2500 mg L-1 sodium hypochlorite, and pure sludge) for different times: T1 = 7 days, T2 = 14 days, and T3 = 21 days. Data were also collected from the pure mud at time zero. The concentration of fecal coliforms, pH, N (Nitrogen), Na (Sodium), Al (Aluminium), Ca (Calcium), Mg (Magnesium), K (Potassium), OM (Organic Matter), C (Carbon), Cr (Chromium), Ni (Nickel), Cd (Cadmium), Pb (Lead), Cu (Copper) and Zn (Zinc) were all evaluated. Lime increased the concentration of Ca and Mg in the biosolids, reduced the level of fecal coliforms below the limits specified by environmental standards from seven days and decreased the levels of available N, Al, OM, C, Na, Cr, Ni , Cd, Cu and Zn in the biosolids. Key words: Environment, heavy metal, mineral nutrient, micro-organism.
Psychosocial Training: A Case of Self-Efficacy Improvement in an Italian School

Abstract The changes that the regulatory institutions have imposed on the Italian school system over the last decades may actually result in contradictory effects at the individual and organizational levels: resistance or indifference on the one hand and training or coping strategies on the other. The paper focuses on the impact of such changes on teachers, as professional workers within public schools and individual participants of change. The paper refers to psychosocial training as a coping strategy, analysing how school teachers deal with work-related stress, and what impact a training intervention might have on some individual dimensions. Subsequently, in the longitudinal study presented, we analysed whether the training intervention conducted was effective in terms of learning and change. The case under consideration is a primary school located in the South of Italy, and the participants in the training and research were 92 female teachers. In order to investigate the effectiveness of the designed and applied training programme, we measured how some important psychological dimensions have changed over time: self-efficacy, job satisfaction and interpersonal strain. According to a sociological learning approach, the results suggest the effectiveness of training programmes as enablers of change and solutions to some change paradoxes; when they respond to the identified needs, they are based on practical activities that require a collective participation, they focus on social relationships and processes and the knowledge is created through the transformation of experience. In the school context, the psychosocial training might represent a solution, if not a prevention strategy, for change management.
Warlord Led Civil Conflicts for Natural Resources: Policy Options for Conflict Resolution

We develop a two-period model linking natural resources to civil conflicts led by warlords. Contrary to the existing literature, we assume that both resource extraction and wage rate are endogenous. We examine some policy options for the international community as well as for the conflict-affected country. We find that current sanction on resource exports is always counter-productive. However, a threat of future sanction unambiguously reduces conflict. An improvement in agricultural productivity may also limit the conflict. Our results also suggest that the most effective policy for conflict resolution is a bilateral piece-meal reduction in war efforts.