Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of apoptotic inducing effect of zerumbone and zerumbone-loaded nanostructured lipid carrier on human mammary adenocarcinoma MDA-MB-231 cell line

This study investigated the anticancer effect of zerumbone (ZER) and zerumbone-loaded nanostructured lipid carrier (ZER-NLC) on the human mammary gland adenocarcinoma (MDA-MB-231) cell line. The effect of ZER and ZER-NLC on MDA-MB-231 cells was determined via electron and fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry using the Annexin V, cell cycle, and Tdt-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling assays. We demonstrated that ZER and ZER-NLC significantly suppressed the proliferation of MDA-MB- 231 cells with an IC50 of 5.96 ± 0.13 and 6.01 ± 0.11 µg/mL, respectively. ZER and ZER-NLC arrested MDA-MB-231 cell cycle at the G2/M phase. The induction of apoptosis by ZER and ZER-NLC was via the intrinsic pathway through the release of cytochrome c and activation of caspase-3 and caspase-9. The treatments also caused the downregulation of antiapoptotic Bcl-2, Bcl-xL proteins, and proliferating cell nuclear protein and upregulation of proapoptotic Bax protein. Therefore, loading of ZER into NLC did not compromise the anticancer effects of ZER on MDA-MB-231 cells. In conclusion, ZER-NLC, which increased the bioavailability of ZER, is an effective agent in the treatment of cancers.
Coffee growers local knowledge on shade tree species in Adola Rede District, Guji Zone, Southern Ethiopia

Farmers have a detailed local knowledge about different tree species which are either retained or planted on their farms. Thus, it is possible to learn from farmers’ observations to enhance understanding of local agro-ecological knowledge. This study aimed to investigate coffee growers’ local knowledge on shade tree species. The study was conducted at Adola Rede District, in Guji Zone, Southern Ethiopia. To address the objectives of this study, necessary data were collected through key informant interview and questionnaire survey. A total of 30 key informants and 90 households participated in the household interview. The study results revealed that coffee growers preferred shade grown coffee plants for better coffee yields, to protect coffee plants from unsuitable environmental stress, for soil fertility improvement and for longer life span of coffee plants. Coffee growers also encountered wilting and stunted growth of coffee plants, coffee yield reduction, poor soil fertility, less coffee stems and branches, besides coffee plants need more management when grown open. In the study district, eleven commonly used coffee shade tree species were identified. Based on their criteria of suitability identification, coffee growers preferred compatible shade tree species such as Ficus sur, Millettia ferruginea, Cordia africana, Albizia gummifera, Croton macrostachyus and Vernonia amygdalina, in this order. In the study area, the scale of shade tree species preferences for coffee growers varies. However, their main preferences of shade tree characteristics were mainly based on shade tree height, crown shape and evergreen or deciduous quality of the shade tree species. Coffee growers of the study area managed their owned shade tree species through pruning, thinning, pollarding and coppicing tending operations. They practiced various shade tree managements such as to cud dead or over grown branches, to collect wood used for various uses and to reduce of the shade for coffee plants. Therefore, based on the finding of this study, if the knowledge of local farmers is recorded and effectively used with scientific findings, it can provide valuable information that can give feedback synergistically to channel the direction of conventional science to meet the needs of local people. Key words: Adola Rede District, coffee growers, local knowledge, coffee shade tree species.
Preliminary baraminological analysis of Homo naledi and its place within the human baramin

Homo naledi is a sensational fossil find. To estimate its relationship to other human species from a creation perspective, two statistical baraminological analyses of craniodental characteristics were conducted using data from a published evolutionary study. In the first analysis, four Australopithecus and seven Homo species were included, resulted in weak separation into three clusters and two isolated species. In the second analysis, three Paranthropus species were added, but lack of matching data required removal of one species of Australpithecus and two of Homo ; results were less resolved than in the first analysis. Neither data set was sufficient to demonstrate discontinuity among clusters conclusively. However, in both analyses Homo naledi appears continuous with and fits well within the cluster of Homo species, despite some Australopithecus -like characteristics. Comparison of postcranial traits further supports the results, as 8 out of 15 characteristics show exclusive similarity to humans compared with only three characteristics shared exclusively with australopithecines. Placement of H. naledi in the human baramin is supported. Since this is one of the first morphological dataset available for H. naledi and it includes only craniodental characteristics, further baraminological analysis is warranted.
Job change and self-control of waste pickers: evidence from a field experiment in the Philippines

Environmental policies may have a negative side effect on employment, often in a specific industry in the short run. Workers in regulated industries can be affected by losses in job-specific human capital. The informal sectors in developing countries are often associated with environmental pollution and thus targeted by such policies. Welfare loss due to this side effect can be problematic in developing countries, since they often lack safeguarding schemes, including unemployment insurance. Inducing workers in informal sectors to change their jobs can mitigate these negative side effects. This study examines efficient methods of inducing informal workers to change jobs. An alternative job is offered to informal workers at a dumpsite in the Philippines and whether changing the scheme of wage payment increases the acceptance of the offer is examined. The impacts of changing payment schemes are evaluated by using a randomized field experiment. The sampled 112 waste pickers each randomly receive one of four offers for an alternative job, and the number of those who accept the offer is observed to evaluate the impact of less frequent payment (i.e., once every three days instead of daily). Piece rates and fixed wages are also compared. Those offered less frequent payment are more likely to accept the job offer compared with those offered daily payment. This preferred payment scheme can mitigate the side effects of environmental policy and workers’ self-control problem related to savings, while minimizing moral hazard.
Potential climate change impacts on citrus water requirement across major producing areas in the world

Understanding how potential climate change will affect availability of water resources for citrus production globally is needed. The main goal of this study is to investigate impacts of potential future climate change on citrus irrigation requirements (IRR) in major global citrus producing regions, e.g., Africa, Asia, Australia, Mediterranean, Americas. The Irrigation Management System (IManSys) model was used to calculate optimum IRR for the baseline period (1986–2005) and two future periods (2055s and 2090s) subject to combination of five and seven temperature and precipitation levels, respectively. Predicted IRR show significant spatio-temporal variations across study regions. Future annual IRR are predicted to globally decrease; however, future monthly IRR showed mixed results. Future evapotranspiration and IRR are projected to decrease by up to 12 and 37%, respectively, in response to increases in CO 2 concentration. Future citrus canopy interception and drainage below citrus rootzones are expected to slightly increase. Annual rainfall changes are negatively correlated with changes in IRR. These projections should help citrus industry better understand potential climate change impacts on citrus IRR and and major components of the water budget. Further studies are needed to investigate how these potential changes in CO 2 concentration, temperature, evapotranspiration, rainfall, and IRR will affect citrus yield and its economic impact on the citrus industry.
The Dominance of cyanobacteria in Mediterranean hypereutrophic lagoons: a case study of Cabras Lagoon (Sardinia, Italy)

An intense proliferation of cyanobacteria in Cabras Lagoon was investigated over a period of two years (July 2007 to June 2009). The influence of environmental and meteorological parameters in the lagoon on temporal variations in cyanobacteria orders was assessed. For 17 months, Chroococcales was the only cyanobacterial order observed in the lagoon. Cyanobium -type cells (Reynolds functional group Z) were the most abundant phytoplankton taxon during this period. In the following months, drastic changes in the cyanobacteria assemblages occurred simultaneously with constant, intense rainfall that led to a sudden drop in the lagoon’s salinity. The succession of autumn–winter Oscillatoriales ( Planktothrix sp. and Pseudanabaena catenata ; Reynolds functional group S1) and late spring growth of Nostocales ( Aphanizomenon gracile, Aphanizomenon aphanizomenoides , and Anabaenopsis circularis ; Reynolds functional group H1) was monitored. Canonical Correspondence Analysis was carried out to quantify the influence of environmental variables, and indicated strong relationships between Chroococcales and salinity, Oscillatoriales and higher values of SRP and the DIN/SRP ratio, and Nostocales and lower nutrient concentrations, the DIN/SRP ratio and salinity.
Executive stock options as mixed gambles: Revisiting the behavioral agency model

Conceiving of stock options as providing CEOs with cues for the possibility of both greater prospective wealth and losses to current wealth, we revisit predictions of the behavioral effects of equity-based pay using the behavioral agency model (BAM). We refine the BAM's original formulation and provide an explanation for previous conflicting empirical results by theorizing that the anticipation of prospective wealth attenuates the negative effect of accumulated current equity wealth upon CEO strategic risk taking. In doing so, we offer an advancement of the dialectic between: (1) classical agency scholars, arguing that equity-based pay leads to more risk taking, and (2) behavioral scholars, arguing that equity wealth creates risk bearing, leading to less risk taking. We also suggest that the influences of prospective wealth and current wealth on strategic risk taking depend on the extent to which agents can manage the risk inherent in their compensation package and agent vulnerability to losses. Formal hypotheses to test these expectations are made by focusing on equity-based compensation. Our findings offer strong support for these theoretical expectations.
Stratonovich stochastic differential equations driven by general semimartingales

On considere des equations stochastiques differentielles ou le «bruit» est une semimartingale quelconque (avec des sauts). On propose une interpretation des integrales stochastiques du type «Stratonovich», mais du genre de celles introduites par S. Marcus, plutot que du genre de celles de P. A. Meyer. On etablit l'existence et l'unicite des solutions et on demontre que les flots sont des diffeomorphismes quand les coefficients sont convenables (ce qui n'est pas le cas pour l'interpretation de Meyer-Stratonovich). De plus on etablit les proprietes de Markov fortes, et on demontre un genre de convergence faible du type «Wong-Zakai» quand les approximants sont reguliers et continus, meme si les limites ne sont pas continues
Soil CO 2 CH 4 and N 2 O fluxes from an afforested lowland raised peatbog in Scotland: implications for drainage and restoration

The effect of tree (lodgepole pine) planting with and without intensive drainage on soil greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes was assessed after 45 yr at a raised peatbog in West Flanders Moss, central Scotland. Fluxes of CO 2 CH 4 and N 2 O from the soil were monitored over a 2-yr period every 2 to 4 weeks using the static opaque chamber method in a randomised experimental block trial with the following treatments: drained and planted (DP), undrained and planted (uDP), undrained and unplanted (uDuP) and for reference also from an adjoining near-pristine area of bog at East Flanders Moss (n-pris). There was a strong seasonal pattern in both CO 2 and CH 4 effluxes which were significantly higher in late spring and summer months because of warmer temperatures. Effluxes of N 2 O were low and no significant differences were observed between the treatments. Annual CH 4 emissions increased with the proximity of the water table to the soil surface across treatments in the order: DP 4 m −2 yr −1 , respectively. For CO 2 , effluxes increased in the order uDP 2 m −2 yr −1 , respectively. CO 2 effluxes dominated the total net GHG emission, calculated using the global warming potential (GWP) of the three GHGs for each treatment (76–98%), and only in the n-pris site was CH 4 a substantial contribution (23%). Based on soil effluxes only, the near pristine (n-pris) peatbog had 43% higher total net GHG emission compared with the DP treatment because of high CH 4 effluxes and the DP treatment had 33% higher total net emission compared with the uDP because drainage increased CO 2 effluxes. Restoration is likely to increase CH 4 emissions, but reduce CO 2 effluxes. Our study suggests that if estimates of CO 2 uptake by vegetation from similar peatbog sites were included, the total net GHG emission of restored peatbog would still be higher than that of the peatbog with trees.
The Impact of Additive Manufacturing Technologies on Industrial Spare Parts Strategies

The paper aims to investigate potential benefits and the applicability of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies for spare parts management in the automotive industry. Research results contribute to a gap in literature on strategic impact of AM technologies on the automotive after sales business. Firstly, the paper investigates the general validity of AM in the spare parts industry by utilising a working hypothesis which assumes that AM technologies will have a strategic impact on the automotive aftermarket. Secondly, interacting market participants and their relation to potential applications of AM are explored. The research is exploratory in nature and employs a multi-case research approach. The analysis identified potential benefits in the automotive aftermarket to transform this business by providing individualised spare parts on demand and on location without a necessity for expensive tooling. However, the research also revealed that neither concepts are technically feasible from today’s point of view. Nevertheless, additive technologies entail advantages as outlined in this paper that will affect the automotive aftermarket in the future. The paper summarises five findings that can support research in the area.
Fast and slow coherent cascades in anti-de Sitter spacetime

We study the phase and amplitude dynamics of small perturbations in 3 + 1 dimensional anti-de Sitter spacetime using the truncated resonant approximation, also known as the two time framework. We analyse the phase spectrum for different classes of initial data and find that higher frequency modes turn on with coherently aligned phases. Combining numerical and analytical results, we conjecture that there is a class of initial conditions that collapse in infinite slow time and to which the well-studied case of the two-mode, equal energy initial data belongs. We additionally study perturbations that collapse in finite time, and find that the energy spectrum approaches a power law, with the energy per mode scaling approximately as the inverse first power of the frequency.
Deep minima in stellar dynamos

We study a Cartesian analogy for a solar dynamo model to investigate systematically a dynamo model limited by the back reaction of the Lorentz force on the dierential rotation. In particular, we investigate intermittent behaviour found at low turbulent magnetic Prandtl numbers, and determine empirical scaling laws with. We find this class of models to be incapable of producing extended periods of "normal" behaviour separated by occasional "grand minima" - rather the behaviour is a mirror image, with occasional "grand maxima". Further we find the existence of solar-like torsional oscillations to be incompatible with low magnetic Prandtl number intermittent regimes.
Effect of Two Sheet Piles In Double Soil Layers on Seepage Properties Under Hydraulic Structure Using SEEP/W Program

This paper is intended to study the effect of using upstream and downstream sheet pile in double soil layer on the seepage, uplift pressure exit gradient at toe of hydraulic structure using computer program SEEP/W software. Depended on the software program tests were carried out with three different value of each following parameter: upstream sheet pile depth, downstream sheet pile depth, permeability for first and second soil layer, depth of first and second soil layer, with using constant upstream head and distance between the two sheet pile. For each test the quantity of seepage, exit gradient and uplift pressure at toe of hydraulics structure were determined. Based on the results of these runs an empirical equations developed to determine the quantity of seepage, uplift pressure and exit gradient at toe of hydraulic structure by using SPSS software. Also, Verify the SEEP/W results and the suggested equations with artificial neural network (ANN). The verification show difference less than 5% , 2% and 6% for exit gradient, discharge and uplift pressure respectively at toe of hydraulic structure.
EFFECT OF SOURCE AND LEVEL OF POTASH ON YIELD AND QUALITY OF POTATO TUBERS

Field experiments were conducted for two consecutive seasons at NARC potato research area Islamabad, Pakistan, to study comparative effect of source, levels and methods of K fertilization on yield and quality of potato produce. Nitrogen and phosphorus were applied at 250 and 125 kg ha -1 , respectively whereas three K2O levels, 0, 150 and 225 kg ha -1 from two sources of potash (SOP and MOP) were tested. Potassium was also applied as foliar spray at 1% K2O solution at 30, 45 and 60 days after germination (DAG) and soil was also amended by 150 kg K2O ha -1 . A significant increase in tuber yield with K application at 150 kg ha -1 as K2O from both the K sources over NP treatment was recorded. Increase in tuber yield with K2O @ 225 kg ha -1 was statistically nonsignificant compared to 150 kg K2O ha -1 . A positive interaction between soil applied P and K with N in plant system was observed. Potassium treatments not only increased K concentration but also affected N and P contents in potato tubers. The quality parameters like dry matter, specific gravity, starch contents, vitamin-C and ash contents were also affected with P and K fertilization.
A Theoretical Framework for Country-of-Origin-Research in the Food sector

The main advancement of the developed theoretical framework for Country-of-Origin (CO) research in this paper is the holistic consideration of CO in consumer choice that is missing in older works as for example made by ITTERSUM (2003) or JAFFE AND NEBENZAHL (2001). These and other researchers describe a lot of aspects of the CO effect separately and inde-pendent from each other without paying a lot attention to the interdependencies. Furthermore the offered model integrates new but important impact factors on the CO effect. The devel-oped theoretical framework has to be tested empirical and therefore call for future CO re-search in the food sector.
USE OF FINE RECYCLED AGGREGATES FORM CONSTRUCTION A ND DEMOLITION WASTE

This research aims to study the feasibility of incorporating fine fraction of recycled aggregates coming from construction and demolition waste in masonry mortars productions, implying a new way for CDW recycling. For this reason, three samples of fine recycled aggregates have been used: one of them was obtained from concrete recycling, one from ceramic recycling and one from mixed recycling line. The volumetric cement-to-aggregate ratio used to perform the tests were 1:3 and 1:4, and the replacement percentages for three types of recycled aggregates were 50%, 75% and 100%. Physical characterization of recycled aggregates shows a continuous size distribution curve, lower density and higher absorption, that makes the use of additive necessary to obtain workable mortars. The main crystalline phases determined are calcite, quartz and gypsum. Compression and flexural strength, bonding strength and shrinkage tests revealed poorer performance of recycled mortars compared to the mortars fabricated with natural sand. However, obtained values are within the limits established by the standards and manufactures. Therefore, this study shows the real possibility to substitute 100% of natural sand with studied recycled aggregates in mortar production.
Improving Spot Weld Models in Structural Dynamics

This paper gives an overview of the finite element modelling of spot welds for the analysis of the dynamic response of structures. In particular models for dynamic analysis that use coarse meshes and equivalent parameters are considered. A major requirement for these models is their accuracy in predicting the dynamic behaviour of spot welded structures despite the low number of degrees of freedom. Three different models of spot welds are investigated [1–3] and for each model physical parameters have to be assigned based on engineering insight. The aim of the present paper is to improve the accuracy of these three models by searching for the optimum values of the parameters characterising the spot weld models using experimental data. For this purpose a benchmark structure has been analysed, consisting of a thin walled hat section beam made of two plates welded together by twenty spot welds. The predicted natural frequencies and modes of the benchmark structure have been compared to the experimental modes. Updating of the finite element models has been performed and the accuracy of the three models has been significantly improved. © 2003 ASME
Firm characteristics, industry and time effects, and the cross-section of expected stock returns

We construct a panel data model to explain the cross-section of individual stock returns, using monthly data for 1,144 large US flrms for 1985{2002. Model specifl- cation is geared towards multiple explanatory variables, poolability across industries, al- ternative forecast horizons, and the efiects of unobserved heterogeneity among flrms. We flnd that combining multiple flrm characteristics increases the predictive power. High ex- pected returns are mostly related to size, cash∞ow-to-price and liquidity, and somewhat to earnings revisions and momentum. Diversifled portfolios sorted on expected returns have moderate risk exposures and generate signiflcant risk-adjusted returns over all horizons. Longer forecasting horizons drastically reduce portfolio turnover.