Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison between Assembly Structures of sHSP20.8 and sHSP19.9 Small Heat Shock Proteins

Small heat shock protein (sHSP) is the assembly of a number of identical subunits. sHSP19.9 and sHSP20.8 occur in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, and each of their subunits has a single cysteine residue: cysteine-123 in sHSP19.9 and cysteine-43 in sHSP20.8. The assembly structures of these sHSPs were examined by SDSpolyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, gel filtration chromatography, analytical ultracentrifugation, and chemical modification of cysteine residue. In both sHSPs, some sulfhydryl (SH) groups remained free, others formed inter-subunit disulfide bonds. The size distribution of assembly was invariant independently of protein concentration. SH groups were easily modified with a fluorescent alkyl halide: N-(iodoacet-aminoethyl)-1 naphthylamine-5’-sulfonic acid. This modification of a SH group never induced drastic changes in size distribution of subunit assembly besides suppressive activity of thermal aggregation of a protein. It was suggested that, between sHSP19.9 and sHSP20.8, there is difference in contents of SH groups, but only a little difference in assembly structures.
A Conceptual Model for Machinery & Equipment Investment Decisions

Manufacturing has always been closely linked to technology, which, in recent years, is growing rapidly anddirectly affects the internal and external environment of all businesses, regardless of their size, economic resultsand the industry sector they belong to. Firms, in order to remain competitive, attempt to improve theirinfrastructure investing in new technology and acquiring new machinery and equipment.This study proposes a new conceptual framework for examining the reasons that manufacturing firms decide toinvest on the acquisition of new machinery and equipment in order to improve their infrastructure. Itincorporates various factors related to the internal business environment (strategy, investment decisions etc.), theexternal business environment (customer relationship management, capital subsidies etc.) and the product (newproduct development, innovation, manufacturing flexibility etc.). The main goal is to understand how all thesefactors affect the investment decision making process.
An Investigation of Preservice Teachers’ Beliefs about the Certainty of Teaching Knowledge

Beliefs about the certainty of teaching knowledge may influence how preservice teachers engage with and learn from knowledge sources in teacher education, and their subsequent practice. In light of inconsistencies in prior findings that mainly employ epistemic questionnaires, we extended research focusing on a contextual analysis. Sixty-six elementary and lower-secondary preservice teachers in Norway responded to the Beliefs about the Certainty of Teaching Knowledge (BECK) scale in the first and second year of study, respectively. Participants believed knowledge about teaching and learning was more tentative and evolving at T2 than at T1 (t (65) = 2.0, p = . 049, Cohen’s d =. 23). We uncovered beliefs about the ways knowledge and practice will change, reasons for change, and the rate of change in teaching knowledge. The results suggest preservice teachers hold specific beliefs about the certainty of teaching knowledge that should be addressed by teacher educators.
Influence of Co-substrates for the Methane Production Rate Kinetics in Anaerobic Fermentation of Pig Slurry

The influence of co-substrates on kinetics of methane production in anaerobic fermentation of pig slurry was studied by performing a series of laboratory experiments using food waste and biowaste as co-substrates. Experiments were performed in the laboratory reactors of «Hohenheim» biogas testing system in batch mode at the temperature of 37oC. Given 40 g of fresh pig slurry was fed to each digester and mixed with co-substrates in the ration of 55:45% by organic dry matter content. Methane production rate was used to evaluate co-digestion of pig slurry. Research results showed that co-substrates gave significant effect to methane production kinetics. The kinetic parameters of methane production i.e. potential yield of methane (P), maximum methane yield rate (Rm) and duration of lag-phase (λ) were analyzed using modified Gompertz equation. Technical time to produce 95% of potential methane yield was investigated and efficient period of anaerobic digestion was calculated. The potential production of methane was reached in lag-phase duration (λ) of 10-13 days. Maximal methane production rate was reduced 2-3 times in co-digestion than in mono-digestion of pig slurry. The potential yield of methane (P) was 0.420 Nm 3 (kg оDM) -1 , 0.246 Nm 3 (kg оDM) -1 and 0.198 Nm 3 (kg оDM) -1 in mono-digestion and co-digestion of pig slurry with food waste and biowaste, respectively.
Decentralized Design at the Edge of Rationality

The design of complex engineering systems requires interaction among different disciplinary subsystems that affect the entire system. However, this kind of distribution or decentralization of the design decisions leads to designers having to make decisions under various sources of uncertainty and risk. Because of these uncertainties, errors could potentially creep into rational decisions made by designers. In this paper, we investigate the rationality of decisions made by engineers in a distributed design framework. For inherently convergent distributed problems, designers, when behaving rationally, converge to Nash Equilibrium solutions that lie at the intersection of their individual Rational Reaction Sets (RRS). However, these solutions are usually not Pareto optimal and due to the dynamics of the designers’ interaction in distributed design, it is rarely possible for them to converge to a solution on the Pareto set. However, when error is introduced into individual designer behavior, it is seen that the converged solutions can be an improvement to the Nash solution. Further, inherently divergent distributed problems can even possibly converge when decision error is introduced. This paper studies the effects of the propagation of this error within a distributed design framework and demonstrates that errors made within “rational” decisions could possibly result in favorable solutions.
Krill diel vertical migration fine dynamics , nocturnal overturns , and their roles for aggregation in stratified flows

A set of high-resolution observations on short-term dynamics of krill diel vertical migrations (DVM) in the St. Lawrence Estuary are presented here, including vertical mass transfer measurements from multifrequency echosounding coupled with stratified net sampling and tracers of individual vertical movements from stomach pigments over a 72 h period. The data set is supplemented by vertical migration speeds and biomass diel patterns from ADCP (acoustic Doppler current profiler) time series lasting up to 3 months. All krill always rapidly migrated to the surface in synchrony at sunset. Soon after the ascent, fed krill started to swim downward. A scattering layer was then formed at their daytime depth with sometimes a significant backscatter at intermediate depths, especially around midnight. A reorganisation in the upper water column then occurs, likely for a predawn feeding bout. At dawn, the krill mass still feeding in upper water column synchronously swam downward to their daytime depth. This nocturnal asynchronous vertical behaviour, conforming to the DVM hunger-satiation hypothesis, repeated between August and October in two different years, the DVM timing being determined by day length. Résumé : Un ensemble d’observations à haute résolution de la dynamique à court terme des migrations verticales nycthémérales (MVN) du krill dans l’estuaire du Saint-Laurent est présenté. Il incorpore des mesures de transfert de masse sur la verticale à partir d’échosondages multifréquences couplés à l’échantillonnage des strates au filet à nappe et le suivi des mouvements verticaux individuels par des mesures de pigments stomacaux sur une période de 72 h. Des séries temporelles des patrons circadiens des vitesses verticales de migrations déterminées à l’aide d’un ADCP (« acoustic Doppler current profiler »; profileur de courant acoustique à effet Doppler) complètent les mésures sur une période allant jusqu’à 3 mois. L’ensemble du krill migre toujours rapidement et en synchronie jusqu’en surface lors du coucher du soleil. Peu de temps après l’ascension, du krill nourri commence à nager vers le bas, ce qui se poursuit avec une intensité notable jusqu’au milieu de la nuit. Il forme alors une couche acoustique de rétrodiffusion à sa profondeur diurne, ce qui engendre une distribution verticale nocturne bimodale, souvent accompagnée de densités acoustiques notables aux profondeurs intermédiaires, particulièrement au milieu de la nuit. Une réorganisation dans la partie supérieure de la colonne d’eau survient ensuite, vraisemblablement pour une dernière période d’alimentation avant l’aube. A l’aube, la masse de krill s’alimentant toujours dans la partie supérieure de la colonne d’eau nage en synchronie vers sa profondeur diurne. Ce comportement vertical nocturne asynchrone, conforme à l’hypothèse de faim-satiété de la MVN, s’est répété entre les mois d’août et d’octobre à deux années différentes, la synchronisation de la MVN dépendant de
Semi-annual carbon and nitrogen isotope variations in the water column of Lake Bled, NW Slovenia

Abstract. The variability in the stable isotope signature of carbon and nitrogen in particulate organic matter and dissolved species in the water column of the mesotrophic subalpine Lake Bled in NW Slovenia has been determined. After the algae bloom from August to December in 2008, samples were taken from the deepest part of the lake which develops an anoxic hypolimnion for most of the year. C/N molar ratios and δ13CPOC and δ15NPN values suggest an autochthonous source for particulate organic matter (POM). According to the isotope model, autochthonous carbon accounted for a major part of the particulate organic carbon (POC), ranging from 86% to 96% in September and October, while in December the proportion of allochthonous carbon was more pronounced, ranging from 57% to 59%. Low δ13CPOC and δ15NPN values (from −36 to −33‰ and from 0.8 to 1.8‰), observed below 24 m in August and September, indicate the bacterial origin of POM, mainly from methanotrophic bacteria. δ15NNO3 and δ15NPN values decreased with depth. The relations between δ15NPN and NO3- and NH4+ concentrations suggest that NH4+ is the main assimilation species for nitrogen in POM. Nitrification was active between 12 and 18 m deep in September and October, indicated by increased NO3- concentrations and decreased δ15NNO3 values. The correlation between nitrate concentrations and δ15NNO3 values suggests active water column denitrification in October 2008. The decrease in δ15NNO3 values observed in December could be explained by degradation of organic matter, followed by nitrification of the degradation products. During our sampling period, there was no evident influence of sewage, agriculture, or atmospheric deposition on the nitrogen balance in the lake.
Integrating intercultural communicative competence into the curriculum of a department of foreign languages: an exploratory case study

Deutsch) Der vorliegende Artikel beschreibt die Initiative, interkulturelle Kommunikationskompetenz als festen Bestandteil in das Curriculum eines Institutes für Fremdsprachen zu integrieren. Zudem werden die neun relevanten Schritte, die während dieses Prozesses unternommen wurden, erläutert. Den auftretenden Herausforderungen, Niederlagen und Erfolgen wurde besondere Aufmerksamkeit gewidmet. Darüber hinaus präzisieren die Autoren die Erkenntnisse, die sie aus dem Projekt gewonnen haben, so dass sich andere Einrichtungen, wie z. B. Fremdsprachenabteilungen oder andere interessierte Institutionen, die hier gesammelten Erfahrungen zunutze machen können. Die Autoren schließen ihren Beitrag mit einer Ausführung über die Schwierigkeit des Projektes ab, beleuchten den derzeitigen Status und geben einen Ausblick auf zukünftige Pläne der Initiative. Schlagwörter: Reform des Curriculum, Fremdsprachen, Interkulturelle Kommunikationskompetenz Integrating Intercultural Communicative Competence into the curriculum of a department of Foreign Languages: An Exploratory Case Study Die Integration von interkultureller Kommunikationskompetenz in das Curriculum eines Institutes für Fremdsprachen: Eine explorative Fallstudie
Physiological (heart rate and cortisol concentration in saliva) and behavioural responses in horses to four reactivity tests compared to the trainer's opinion about the horses’ temperament

When performing studies that test the reactions of horses in different situations, important information may be available about the horse’s reactivity level. With information from these tests, accidents and dangerous situations may be prevented. When the behaviours from tests are compared with race performance it may be possible to evaluate if some behaviours are more desirable at the race track than others. The aim of this study was to see if behavioural responses correlated with physiological parameters (heart rate, cortisol), the trainer’s opinions and actual race performance. Furthermore, it was investigated whether there were any significant differences in physiological and behavioural responses of horses between the first and the second day of testing. The reactions of 16, two-year old Swedish Standardbred trotters were tested in four different behaviour tests. The tests included: 1) novel objects (blue rubber ball and bridge), 2) novel smell, 3) sudden sound and 4) isolation from other horses. The horses experienced all four tests during one day before and once after a 3-day confinement in boxes using the same experimental procedures. Behavioural reactions to the different stimuli and to social isolation were recorded (e.g. move feet, touch object or defecate) and heart rate was measured throughout testing. Three samples of saliva were taken each day (control sample before the tests, after the reactivity test and after isolation) to measure the concentration of cortisol. Furthermore, the horses’ trainer filled in a form where he graded different temperamental traits of the horses. The results indicated that the behaviours were not affected by the 3-day stall confinement or repetition of tests since there were no significant differences between days. The heart rate was lower day two compared with day one, which may be due to that the horses were habituated to the tests on day two. The cortisol level was higher on day two, indicating that the horses were more stressed compared to day one. Some behaviours from the tests had a strong correlation with the trainer’s opinion of the horses’ temperament. This included the behaviour ‘alert’ recorded during the tests that had a strong correlation with the trainer’s opinion of the horse being ‘afraid’ and ‘spooky’. The latter behaviours also correlated with higher winning percentage or place percentage, indicating that these behaviours could be more favorable on the race track than during daily handling and training.
Determinants of Performance of Insurance Companies in Tunisia: The Case of Life Insurance

Business performance has attracted researchers' attention in the literature of corporate finance over the past decades. However, in the context of the insurance sector, they have given some attention. There are many factors to consider when looking at insurance companies. More than anything, consumers and investors should be concerned about the financial strength of the insurer and its ability to meet its ongoing obligations to holders of insurance policies. The insurance sector is one of the fundamental elements in the financing of the Tunisian economy and contributes to the effort of the State to support the development of the countries. According to experts of the insurance sector in 2011 was difficult for insurance companies. In this study, we examine the impact of firm-specific characteristics (size, leverage, tangibility, risk, growth, liquidity and age) on the performance of eight insurance companies in Tunisia a period of 8 years (2005-2012). The analysis of the results from a regression on panel data indicates that the variables height, age and premium growth are the most important determinants of the performance of insurance companies measured by ROA ratio (Return on Asset). Then, the performance of insurance companies is not statistically significant with leverage, tangibility, liquidity and risk.
(WP 2011-04) Inflation and Inflation-Uncertainty in India: The Policy Implications of the Relationship

Inflation and its related uncertainty can impose costs on real economic output in any economy. This paper analyzes the relationship between inflation and inflation uncertainty in India. Initial estimates show the inflation rate to be a stationary process. The maximum likelihood estimates from the GARCH model reveal strong support for the presence of a positive relationship between the level of inflation and its uncertainty. The Granger causality results indicate a feedback between inflation and uncertainty. With Granger causality running both ways, the Friedman-Ball and Cukierman-Meltzer hypotheses hold simultaneously in India. It provides strong support to the notion of an opportunistic central bank in India.
Technology Switch Option and the Market Value of the Firm: A Model and an Empirical Test

A correct assessment of the innovation activities is critical to firm performance. To this purpose, some authors have analyzed the relationship between innovation and firm's market value within a framework based on the real options theory. However, in these papers there is not an explicit modeling of the 'real options'. Our model of market value formally includes a technology switch option, which allows the firm to exchange one technology with another when it achieves a major innovation. The model also accounts for the stochastic nature of the innovation. We test the model on a panel of publicly traded British firms operating in different manufacturing industries. The results provide support to the claim that the stock market recognizes and evaluates a technology switch option.
Popular music as cultural heritage: scoping out the field of practice

This paper sets out to deepen our understanding of the relationship between popular music and cultural heritage and to delineate the practices of popular music as cultural heritage. The paper illustrates how the term has been mobilised by a variety of actors, from the public to the private sector, to highlight the value of particular popular music manifestations and justify or encourage their preservation and diffusion for posterity. We focus on Austria, England, France and the Netherlands – countries with diverse popular music histories and with varying national and international reach. Popular music heritage is present in national and local public sector heritage institutions and practices in a number of ways. These range from the preservation and exhibition of the material culture of heritage in museums and archives, to a variety of ‘bottom-up’ initiatives, delineating a rich landscape of emblematic places, valued for their attachment to particular musicians or music scenes. The paper points to an underlying tension between the adoption and replication of conventional heritage practices to the preservation and remembrance of the popular music and its celebration as an expression of the dynamism of contemporary popular culture.
Fluxes of dissolved organic and inorganic nitrogen in relation to stand characteristics and latitude in Scots pine and Norway spruce stands in Finland

Feral American mink (Mustela vison) are emerging as one of the biggest threats to biodiversity in northern Europe. Here we summarize responses of migratory seabirds, island small mammals and amphibians to 15 years of large-scale, experimental mink removal in the outer Finnish archipelago. Mink control led to increases in breeding populations of 14 of 22 species of seabirds, which were generally of smaller body size and later breeders as compared with those species which showed no responses. Mink also suppressed the natural summer increases of bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus) and field vole (Microtus agrestis) populations but only during years of good rainfall. Impacts on common frogs (Rana temporaria) took seven breeding seasons to appear probably because of delayed maturation of frogs; the less palatable common toads (Bufo bufo) seemed unaffected. It appears then that the disruptive effects of mink impacts may cover the entire island vertebrate community with cascading consequences to the whole archipelago ecosystem. Ongoing research is focused on the effects of the native apex predator, the white-tailed sea eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), whose return may suppress the detrimental effects of mink.
Planning to Poke : Sampling-based Planning with Self-Explored Neural Forward Models

This work presents a self-supervised robotic pusher setup that can acquire forward models for pushing tabletop objects by training neural networks. The resulting models are used for multi-step path planning. An explicit world representation allows generating collision-free and feasible object trajectories that avoid local minima. Through closed-loop replanning, the system can generate sequences of pokes that move objects to specified goal poses.
"Through the Kaleidoscope": Intersections between Theoretical Perspectives and Classroom Implications in Critical Global Citizenship Education

This paper presents a multi-voiced examination of educating for global citizenship from critical, interdisciplinary perspectives. The paper explores how insights from theoretical work on multiculturalism, race, religion, gender, language and literacy, and eco-justice can contribute to a critical global citizenship education practice. It reports the learning of a group of six Canadian PhD Candidates, who engaged in a year-long collaborative process to explore critical approaches to global citizenship education by focusing on key intersecting concerns, particularly critically understanding globalization. Drawing on theoretical considerations and discussions, the authors consider pedagogical implications for classroom teaching and learning.
Toward an Uncertainty Budget for a Coastal Ocean Model

Abstract Estimates of three components of an uncertainty budget for a coastal ocean model in a wind-forced regime are made based on numerical simulations. The budget components behave differently in the shelf regime, inshore of the 200-m isobath, and the slope-interior regime, between the 200-m isobath and a fixed longitude (126°W) that is roughly 150 km offshore. The first of the three budget components is an estimate of the uncertainty in the ocean state given only a known history of wind stress forcing, with errors in the wind forcing estimated from differences between operational analyses. It is found that, over the continental shelf, the response to wind forcing is sufficiently strong and deterministic that significant skill in estimating shelf circulation can be achieved with knowledge only of the wind forcing, and no ocean data, for wind fields with these estimated errors. The second involves initial condition error and its influence on uncertainty, including both error growth with time from well-k.