Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Alternative Arrangement for the Alum Sludge Management: Minimising Waste with Low-Cost Solar Techniques

Alum sludge produced from the drinking water treatment plants was used to investigate the improvement capabilities in its dewatering properties. The sludge was passed through a laboratory solar still towards reducing the sludge volume during the dewatering process. A number of parameters describing the distillate and the sludge were measured at the end of each experiment in order to determine the process behaviour under conditions of relatively high solar radiation which is reached to 1014 W/m2 and temperature levels which reaches inside the still to a maximum of 87°C. Conventional chemical conditioners in augmentation with the solar dewatering such as polyelectrolyte, and advanced conditioner like photo-Fenton’s reagent were used in the sludge conditioning studies. Experimental results indicated that 10 mg/L of anionic polyelectrolyte conditioner enhance the dewateraibility in the terms of SRF reduction to 97%. However, it reached to 78% when the Fenton’s reagent is added. It is realized that dewatering is accelerated when the polymer is added compared to that of Fenton’s reagent conditioning; Fenton’s reagent offers a more environmentally safe option. Moreover, the volume of distillate collected is nearly a double fold increase in the case of the conditioning with the Fenton’s reagent rather than that for the organic polymer. In addition, the turbidity of the supernatant are: 3.4, 2.7 and 247 NTU for polyelectrolyte, Fenton’s reagent treatment and for the raw sludge, respectively. Furthermore, the optimum influencing variables of Fenton’s reagent is evaluated by applying Box-Behnken experimental design based on the response surface methodology (RSM), i.e. Fe2+, H2O2 and pH are 50 mg/L, 600 mg/l and 8.5, respectively.
The structure of disks around intermediate-mass young stars from mid-infrared interferometry. Evidence for a population of group II disks with gaps

The disks around Herbig Ae/Be stars are commonly divided into group I and group II based on their far-infrared spectral energy distribution, and the common interpretation for that is flared and flat disks. Recent observations suggest that many flaring disks have gaps, whereas flat disks are thought to be gapless. The different groups of objects can be expected to have different structural signatures in high-angular-resolution data. Over the past 10 years, the MIDI instrument on the Very Large Telescope Interferometer has collected observations of several tens of protoplanetary disks. We model the large set of observations with simple geometric models. A population of radiative-transfer models is synthesized for interpreting the mid-infrared signatures. Objects with similar luminosities show very different disk sizes in the mid-infrared. Restricting to the young objects of intermediate mass, we confirm that most group I disks are in agreement with being transitional. We find that several group II objects have mid-infrared sizes and colors overlapping with sources classified as group I, transition disks. This suggests that these sources have gaps, which has been demonstrated for a subset of them. This may point to an intermediate population between gapless and transition disks. Flat disks with gaps are most likely descendants of flat disks without gaps. Gaps, potentially related to the formation of massive bodies, may therefore even develop in disks in a far stage of grain growth and settling. The evolutionary implications of this new population could be twofold. Either gapped flat disks form a separate population of evolved disks, or some of them may further evolve into flaring disks with large gaps. The latter transformation may be governed by the interaction with a massive planet, carving a large gap and dynamically exciting the grain population in the disk.
Mercury's magnetopause and bow shock from MESSENGER Magnetometer observations

We have established the average shape and location of Mercury's magnetopause and bow shock from orbital observations by the MESSENGER Magnetometer. We fit empirical models to midpoints of boundary crossings and probability density maps of the magnetopause and bow shock positions. The magnetopause was fit by a surface for which the position R from the planetary dipole varies as [1 + cos(θ)]−α, where θ is the angle between R and the dipole‐Sun line, the subsolar standoff distance Rss is 1.45 RM (where RM is Mercury's radius), and the flaring parameter α = 0.5. The average magnetopause shape and location were determined under a mean solar wind ram pressure PRam of 14.3 nPa. The best fit bow shock shape established under an average Alfvén Mach number (MA) of 6.6 is described by a hyperboloid having Rss = 1.96 RM and an eccentricity of 1.02. These boundaries move as PRam and MA vary, but their shapes remain unchanged. The magnetopause Rss varies from 1.55 to 1.35 RM for PRam in the range of 8.8–21.6 nPa. The bow shock Rss varies from 2.29 to 1.89 RM for MA in the range of 4.12–11.8. The boundaries are well approximated by figures of revolution. Additional quantifiable effects of the interplanetary magnetic field are masked by the large dynamic variability of these boundaries. The magnetotail surface is nearly cylindrical, with a radius of ~2.7 RM at a distance of 3 RM downstream of Mercury. By comparison, Earth's magnetotail flaring continues until a downstream distance of ~10 Rss.
Optimization of coupling weights in a 4-cell central pattern generator network for bipedal locomotion gait generation

ARTICLE INFORMATION ABSTRACT Original Research Paper Received 06 October 2016 Accepted 24 October 2016 Available Online 03 December 2016 Locomotion regulation of a robot according to path conditions is one of the main interests in the robotics, because it enables the robot to move in unknown environments. This can be realized using inspiration from the human and animals' bio-mechanism in generating various motion patterns called central pattern generator (CPG). These motion patterns are called “gaits” and changing between the motion patterns is called “gait transition”. Many models have been proposed to model CPGs and are used for trajectory generating of various mobile robots. In this paper, a type of CPG network called 4cell CPG model is studied to generate the rhythmic signals of the ankle joints in a bipedal locomotion gaits. This model is composed of four coupled identical cells whose internal dynamics is described by the Morris-Lecar nonlinear differential equations and the couplings between the cells follow the diffusive type. The generation of various locomotion gaits depends on the adjustment of the phase differences between rhythmic signals produced by the cells. The phase differences, in turn, are obtained via properly adjusting the coupling weights between the cells. Here, we exploit a non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) to find the best set of coupling weights for maximally approaching the desired phase differences of the primary bipedal gaits of walk, run, two-legged jump, and two-legged hop. Also, some secondary bipedal gaits, especially one that is called “hesitation walk , are obtained by symmetry breaking bifurcations of the primary gaits. The “hesitation walk has already been predicted in [28], however the authers could not generate it.
Parental meta-emotion philosophy and the emotional life of families: Theoretical models and preliminary data.

This article introduces the concepts of parental meta-emotion, which refers to parents' emotions about their own and their children's emotions, and meta-emotion philosophy, which refers to an organized set of thoughts and metaphors, a philosophy, and an approach to one's own emotions and to one's children's emotions. In the context of a longitudinal study beginning when the children were 5 years old and ending when they were 8 years old, a theoretical model and path analytic models are presented that relate parental meta-emotion philosophy to parenting, to child regulatory physiology, to emotion regulation abilities in the child, and to child outcomes in middle childhood. The importance of parenting practices for children's long-term psychological adjustment has been a central tenet in developmental and family psychology. In this article, we introduce a new concept of parenting that we call parental meta-emotion philosophy, which refers to an organized set of feelings and thoughts about one's own emotions and one's children's emotions. We use the term meta-emotion broadly to encompass both feelings and thoughts about emotion, rather than in the more narrow sense of one's feelings about feelings (e.g., feeling guilty about being angry). The notion we have in mind parallels metacognition, which refers to the executive functions of cognition (Allen & Armour, 1993; Bvinelli, 1993; Flavell, 1979; Fodor, 1992; Olson & Astington, 1993). In an analogous manner, meta-emotion philosophy
Yield adaptability and stability of semi-prostrate cowpea genotypes in the Northeast region of Brazil by REML/BLUP

Cowpea is grown in the various soil and climatic conditions of the Northeast region of Brazil. Thus, selecting and developing cultivars with high yield, stability, and adaptability for this region is necessary due to the genotype × environment interaction. The objective of this work was to select cowpea lines of semi-erect plant simultaneously for high yield, adaptability, and genotypic stability in the Northeast region of Brazil by the REML/BLUP procedure. Twenty semi-erect genotypes—15 lines and five cultivars—were evaluated in 37 environments of the Northeast region from 2013-2015. The experiments were carried out under rainfed conditions in a randomized complete block design with four replications. The adaptability and genotypic stability were evaluated by the REML/BLUP procedure. The environmental variance was the largest factor in the phenotypic variance and the genotype × environment interaction was complex-type, with a grain yield ranging from 277 kg ha-1 (Serra Talhada PE, 2015) to 2,845 kg ha-1 (Sao Raimundo das Mangabeiras MA, 2013), and an overall mean of 1,342 kg ha-1. According to the Harmonic Mean of Relative Performance of Genetic Values (HMRPGV) estimates, the lines MNC04-795F-153 and MNC04-795F-159 were those that simultaneously had high yield, adaptability, and genotypic stability, and can be recommended and grown with greater probability of success in the evaluated environments in the Northeast region of Brazil.
C-heterochromatin variation and NOR distribution in the karyotype of water vole, Arvicola terrestris (Mammalia, Rodentia)

Abstract A chromosomal study of populations of Arvicola terrestris from Anatolia in Turkey and from Central Europe was performed. The diploid number of 36 chromosomes was found in all the specimens examined. The autosomal complement consisted of 12 meta- and submetacentric pairs, two large or medium-sized subtelocentric pairs, and three small acrocentric (Turkey) or subtelocentric (Central Europe) pairs (FNa = 62–68). The X chromosome was medium-sized submetacentric, the Y chromosome was small acrocentric or subtelocentric. All the chromosomes could be reliably identified by their unique G-banding patterns. The C-banding analysis revealed variation in the amount of constitutive heterochromatin in centromeric regions and in short arms of certain autosomes. A unique feature of the C-banded karyotype of individuals from Anatolia was the absence of dark positive regions in most chromosomes. Populations of water vole from Anatolia resemble in their C-band pattern those studied previously in Azerbaijan, and possibly also in the Balkan peninsula, and they are different in this respect from populations in Central Europe and the other parts of the species range. The X chromosome was stained uniformly and C-negatively in populations from Anatolia, whereas a faint dark centromeric C-band was observed in individuals from Central Europe. The Y chromosome was stained C-positively. The active nucleolar organizer regions (NORs) were localized in one pair of small metacentric and two acrocentric autosome pairs in the karyotype of individuals from Anatolia.
Water Quality and Environmental Impact Assessment of a Tropical Waterfall System

To provide information on the water quality and productivity of waterfalls, monthly samples were taken from three sites along the 6817.7m long Agbokum waterfalls for 24 months (January 2007-January 2009) during wet and dry seasons. Apart from pH, Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr) Ammonium (NH4+), Lead (Pb), alkalinity, Surface Temperature, Air temperature, water velocity and rainfall, all other environmental parameters showed significant variation between sampling sites. Most parameters including water discharge (1496.5±82.9), dissolved oxygen (9.6±0.2), conductivity (69.0 ± 18.5), calcium (16.9±1.2), magnesium (2.5±0.04), silicon (2.5±0.04), Iron( 0.08±0.02), Manganese (0.8±0.2), Total solids(178.6±8.8) and Total hardness (74.5±4.3) were highest in waterfalls region (midstream) of the river. Deleterious levels of Fe, Pb, Cd and Mn, above recommended levels, in the waterfalls region of the river and in the wet samples coupled with the acidic nature of the wet samples poses potential health hazards to the aquatic organisms and the inhabitants of the area that use this water resource directly for domestic purpose without treatment. The results indicate a deteriorating water quality of Agbokum waterfalls with the waterfalls region and wet season being most critical in the effective management of the water body.
A Midlatitude Precipitating Cloud Database Validated with Satellite Observations

The simulations of five midlatitude precipitating events by the nonhydrostatic mesoscale model Meso-NH are analyzed. These cases cover contrasted precipitation situations from 30° to 60°N, which are typical of midlatitudes. They include a frontal case with light precipitation over the Rhine River area (10 February 2000), a long-lasting precipitation event at Hoek van Holland, Netherlands (19 September 2001), a moderate rain case over the Elbe (12 August 2002), an intense rain case over Algiers (10 November 2001), and the “millennium storm” in the United Kingdom (30 October 2000). The physically consistent hydrometeor and thermodynamic outputs are used to generate a database for cloud and precipitation retrievals. The hydrometeor vertical profiles that were generated vary mostly with the 0°C isotherm, located between 1 and 3 km in height depending on the case. The characteristics of this midlatitude database are complementary to the GPROF database, which mostly concentrates on tropical situations. The realism of the simulations is evaluated against satellite observations by comparing synthetic brightness temperatures (BTs) with Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU), Special Sensor Microwave Imager (SSM/I), and Meteosat observations. The good reproduction of the BT distributions by the model is exploited by calculating categorical scores for verification purposes. The comparison with 3-hourly Meteosat observations demonstrates the ability of the model to forecast the time evolution of the cloud cover, the latter being better predicted for the stratiform cases than for others. The comparison with AMSU-B measurements shows the skill of the model to predict rainfall at the correct location.
Entrepreneurial Orientation: Evidence of its Manifestation in Four Project Management Offices

This study aims to analyze how entrepreneurial orientation dimensions manifest in different types of project management offices in companies that develop software, from the perspective of their project management systems. The research method used was a multiple case study in four software development companies. Data collection strategy included semi-structured interviews, document analysis and filed records. Data were triangulated and analyzed inter- and intra-case. The results obtained indicated that dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation can manifest at different levels in the same type of project management office. Factors related to the organizational structure and the management system adopted tend to affect the way in which entrepreneurial orientation manifests in a determined context. The main limitations are methodological and refer to the holding of one interview per company and to the way the analysis was conducted, since another researcher could adopt another form of analyzing data and presenting results. This study allows for understanding of the entrepreneurial orientation phenomenon in a project management context in addition to proposing future studies on this theme based on the gaps identified.
Targeting the Vulnerable and the Choice of Vulnerability Measures: Review and Application to Pakistan

*In this paper, the concept of vulnerability of the poor’s welfare and its practical measures are scrutinised in order to derive implications for targeting poverty reduction policies toward vulnerable households. As illustration, various measures of vulnerability proposed in the literature are applied to a panel data-set collected from rural Pakistan. The empirical results show that different vulnerability rankings can be obtained depending on the choice of the measure. By utilising these measures, we can identify who and which region is more vulnerable to a particular type of risk. This kind of information is useful in targeting poverty reduction policies. Since the nature of vulnerability is diverse, it is advisable to use the whole vector of various vulnerability measures.
Social Intelligence and Communication Competence: Predictors of Students’ Intercultural Sensitivity

This study investigated the level of intercultural sensitivity of foreign international undergraduates and its possible predictors. Sample participants included 269 foreign international undergraduates of both government and private universities in Thailand. The research instrument was the three-page survey constructed questionnaire based on the combination of three self-evaluation scales: Chen and Starosta’s (2000) Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS), McCroskey and McCroskey’s (1988) Self-Perceived Communication Competence Scale (SPCC), and Silvera et al’s (2001) Tromso Social Intelligence Scale (TSIS). From the pilot test, the instrument’s internal consistency was . 789. Data collected were analyzed by using Descriptive Statistics (SPSS for Windows), Pearson product-moment Correlations, Independent-sample t-test, F-test (ANOVA), and Multiple Regression Analysis. The findings showed that the average level of intercultural sensitivity of the participants was at a high level (X = 4.3) with nationality and intercultural experience as significant factors. It was also found that both self-perceived communication competence and social intelligence were statistically significant predictors of intercultural sensitivity.
Sex Differences in the Regulation of Plasma Lipids by Apo E Phenotypes in a Group of Young Adolescents

Association between the lipid levels and restriction length polymorphism at the Apolipoprotein E (apo E) gene locus was studied in a sample of unrelated male (91) and female (65) adolescents whose mean age was 17. There was no significant variation in the distribution of the g4, g3 and g2 alleles between the males (g4=0.148, g3=0.725, g2=0.126) and the females (g4 = 0.161, g3 = 0.722, g2 = 0.115). However the contribution of apo E polymorphism on the lipid level was different in both sexes. When the mean lipoprotein levels were compared between the males and females, the females had a significantly higher level of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (p = 0.008 ) than the males. In the total number of adolescents used in this study, the E3/E2 phenotypes had a significantly (p<0.05) lower level of total and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol than the E3/E3 and E3/E4 phenotypes. The E3/E4 phenotypes did not increase the level of total and LDL cholesterol. When the number of adolescents were divided into males and females, there were differences in the effect of apo E on the lipoproteins. In both males and females the E3/E2 group had a significantly lower level of total and LDL cholesterol (p<0.05) than the E3/E3 and E3/E4 group. But the effect of the phenotypes on HDL cholesterol was different between the males and females. In the males the HDL-C in the E3/E2 group was significantly higher than the E3/E4 and the E3/E3 group (p<0.05 ) . In the females the HDL-C in the E3/E3 group was significantly higher than the E3/E4 and the E3/E2 groups, (p<0.05). Our data show that the apo E phenotypes modulate the HDL-C differently in the males and females.
Immunological Characterization in Malaria Patients with and without the Sickle-Cell Trait

Background: Malaria is one of the main causes of mortality in tropical zone. Specific immune responses are induced by parasite, including the release of cytokines from peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Sickle cell trait confers a high degree of resistance to severe and complicated malaria. The present study aims to assess immunological response of P. falciparum infection by measuring of total IgG level and IL-6, IL-12 & IL-18 levels for P. falciparum among Saudi Arabian patients with and without sickle-cell trait. Patients and Methods: Thirty patients who had clinical suspicion of malaria and sickle-cell trait attending Jazan general hospital in KSA were included in the study. Malaria patients with sickle-cell trait will be matched with a control (thirty patients diagnosed to have malaria but without sickle-cell trait). Diagnosis of malaria was done by Immunochromatography strip and blood film. Diagnosis of Sickle-cell trait was done by hemoglobin electrophoresis assessment of total IgG titre and Interleukin 6, 12, 18 levels using ELIZA. Results: Cytokines and IgG in uncomplicated clinical malaria (n = 22) and severe malaria (n = 7) were IL6 (83.1 pg/mL) versus (75.2 pg/mL), IL12 (19.4 pg/mL) versus (16.3 pg/mL), IL18 (22.45 pg/mL) versus (24.2 pg/mL) and IgG (13.3 SD) versus (4.5 SD). Differences in the IL6, IL12 and IgG were statistically significant (p value >0.02, >0.004 & >0.002 respectively). Among malaria patients with sickle cell trait, Cytokines and IgG in asymptomatic (n = 19) and uncomplicated clinical malaria (n = 11) were IL6 (88.9 pg/mL) versus (79.2 pg/mL), IL12 (24 pg/mL) versus (22.9 pg/mL), IL18 (24.2 pg/mL) versus (31.2 pg/mL) and IgG (27 SD) versus (7.35 SD). Differences in IgG were statistically significant (p value ≥ 0.003). Serum IL6 levels were higher in patients with uncomplicated clinical malaria without sickle cell trait (median 83.1 ± 5.1 pg/mL) than in patients with uncomplicated clinical malaria with sickle cell trait (medians 79.2 ± 4.5 pg/mL). This difference was statistically significant (p value = 0.003). Serum IgG levels were higher in patients with uncomplicated clinical malaria without sickle cell trait (median 13.3 ± 10.84) than in patients with uncomplicated clinical malaria with sickle cell trait (medians 7.35 ± 2.95) while in asymptomatic malaria and severe malaria, medians (27 ± 11.13 versus 4.5 ± 2.75). This difference was statistically highly significant (p value = 0.0009). Conclusion: Malaria protection by HbAS involves the enhancement of not only innate but also of acquired immunity to the parasite. Cytokins (IL6, IL12) and IgG play an important role in protection against severe malaria. The presence of HbAS is associated with increased acquired immunity to malaria. Further work will be done to work out how this change in immunity occurs but treatment of anyone with malaria, whatever their sickle cell status, is essential.