Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Toxicity of arsenic (As) on seed germination of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)

The effect of different levels (2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 mg/L) of arsenic (as sodium arsenate and sodium arsenite) on germination percentage, mean germination time, days to 50% germination, plumule and radicle length and seedling vigour index of four sunflower cultivars (FH-331, FH-385, FH-405 and FH-415) was determined under laboratory conditions. Germination percentage was gradually decreased with the increase in arsenic concentration in case of all sunflower cultivars. Low concentrations (2 and 4 mg/L arsenic) increased while higher concentrations (6, 8 and 10 mg/L arsenic) posed stress and caused reduction in plumule and radicle length (mm) of seedlings as compared to control. Out of all the four sunflower cultivars, H1 (FH-331) proved the most sensitive one by giving least values for plumule length, radicle length and seedling vigour index as observed during the course of this experiment. Key words: Sodium arsenate, sodium arsenite, sunflower, seed germination, seedling growth.
Inconsistencies between Review Sites and Facebook Comments about Web Shop Experiences

The Internet provides multiple sources of opinions about online shops and services. Among these, review sites may be the most popular. However, social media and social networks like Facebook catch up and generate more and more reviews. Different sources often lead to contradicting information about the trustworthiness of an e- vendor and force the consumer to make trade-offs. The present thesis examines how consumers deal with information inconsistencies between Facebook and review sites. A comprehensive analysis on web shops in the UK revealed that comments on Facebook are more negative than reviews on the review site Trustpilot. In a survey among 95 students, the particular importance of these two sources of opinions was examined through a conjoint analysis. The findings of this survey indicate that Facebook comments have less impact on the purchase decision than Trustpilot content. However, there is a large group that relies more heavily on Facebook when inconsistencies occur. Knowing how review sources differ in their information and their effect on consumers’ decision, shop owners can react accordingly and increase sales figures. Furthermore, the findings could be beneficial in the development of multi-platform reputation systems. Knowing the impact of different platforms can enhance the calculation of cross-platform trust scores.
Drift patterns of Chironomidae (Insecta, Diptera) in an arctic stream (Svalbard Islands): an experimental approach

SUMMARY - Drift patterns of Chironomidae (Insecta, Diptera) in an arctic stream (Svalbard Islands): an experimental approach - The aim of this study was to analyze drift patterns of Chironomid species in a Svalbard stream during the arctic summer in relation to discharge, water temperature and experimentally modified photoperiod. Rather high drift rates were found and invertebrate fauna was dominated by Chironomidae with maximum peaks in the middle of the day. Day-night light cycles were induced (12 hour periods of darkness) by covering a stream stretch. Drifting rates of Chironomid larvae were highly increased by the dark covering periods, indicating the important role of light variation in determining invertebrate drift behavior. Responses of single Chironomid taxa were different. Diamesinae showed an evident peak during the light period and one during the night hours. This pattern reflected the drift trend of Diamesa bohemani, which was the most abundant species. Non-Diamesinae taxa (mainly Orthocladiinae) showed a temperature-related trend, indicating that a diel periodicity was present despite continuous daylight, with an evident peak around midday. With artificial day-night light periodicity, new maxima in drift patterns emerged, underlying that the active behavioral drift attitude of arctic Chironomids is strongly present. This suggests a genetically determined response to photoperiod, which may be induced by appropriate light variation. RIASSUNTO - Andamento del drift dei Chironomidi (Insecta, Diptera) in un torrente artico (Isole Svalbard): un approccio sperimentale - E stato analizzato l’andamento del drift delle specie di Chironomidi in un torrente delle Svalbard durante l’estate artica, in relazione alla portata, alla temperatura e al fotoperiodo alterato sperimentalmente. Sono stati riscontrati alti tassi di drift e la fauna invertebrata e risultata dominata dai Chironomidi, con picchi nelle ore centrali del giorno. Cicli giorno-notte (12 ore di buio) sono stati indotti coprendo un tratto di torrente. Il tasso di drift delle larve di Chironomidi e risultato aumentare durante le ore di buio, indicando l’importante ruolo che le variazioni di luce giocano nel determinare il drift degli invertebrati. Le risposte dei singoli taxa di Chironomidi sono state diverse. Le Diamesinae hanno mostrato un picco durante le ore di luce e uno durante le ore di buio. Questo andamento e coinciso con il drift di Diamesa bohemani, la specie piu abbondante. Le non-Diamesinae (prevalentemente Orthocladiinae) hanno mostrato un andamento correlato con la temperatura, con picco verso mezzogiorno, indicando nei Chironomidi artici la presenza di una periodicita giornaliera anche in condizioni naturali. Durante il fotoperiodo artificiale sono emersi nuovi picchi di drift, evidenziando un’attitudine comportamentale attiva dei Chironomidi artici. Cio suggerisce una risposta al fotoperiodo geneticamente determinata, che puo essere indotta da appropriate variazioni luminose.
Islamic Banking in the Middle-East and North-Africa (MENA) Region

Islamic finance has now become an important element in the development agenda of the Middle East and North African (MENA) countries. It is also gaining significance in the financial landscape of the region as well as of the individual countries. As a growing business it caters to the financial needs of the people without conflicting with their social and religious values. Despite this reality, little systematic and consistent analysis exists in the literature on the asset and liability structure of Islamic banks in the region and across individual countries. Even lesser is known on what drives Islamic banking growth. This paper addresses this gap and explores how the structure of the Islamic banking sector has been evolving in the MENA region in recent years, and how it is growing in terms of assets, liabilities, financing and funding structures within the region and across different countries. It also provides an exploratory analysis of relative importance of the various factors responsible for the growth of Islamic banking in the region. The financial crisis provided us with a natural experiment to evaluate the contribution of Islamic banking towards resilience and inclusiveness of financial sector by analyzing the performance of these banks during this period.
Dividends, Share Repurchases, and Substitution Hypothesis among UK Companies

This paper uses the UK companies as initial sample to investigate the payout policy and the substitution hypothesis between dividends and share repurchases in the UK. We find the payout choice of a firm is determined by its characteristics. A Lintner's model is used to prove the absence of substitution relationship between dividends and share repurchases in the UK.
Diving behaviour of African penguins: do they differ from other Spheniscus penguins?

African penguins Spheniscus demersus closely resemble Magellanic S. magellanicus and Humboldt S. humboldti penguins and have similar breeding and feeding ecologies. Adults feed on pelagic schooling fish in continental shelf waters, but African penguins have been reported to have shallower dive angles and remain submerged longer for dives to a given depth than their congeners. The few data for African penguins were gathered using relatively large time-depth recorders. We measured diving behaviour of 36 African penguins provisioning small chicks at three colonies near Cape Town, South Africa. Maximum and mean dive depths were 69m and 14m respectively. Diving took place mainly during the day. Although dive depths differed between colonies, there were no significant differences in dive duration or maximum, median or mean depth. Total dive duration, descent time, bottom time, ascent time and dive angle all were strongly correlated with the maximum depth attained. The diving behaviour of African penguins is similar to that of its congeners. Diving performance probably was compromised by the data-logger used in the previous study. Comparative data from Humboldt penguins also indicate potential biases in an earlier study of this species. Care is needed when comparing the diving performance of penguins measured using different loggers.
Modeling of intracellular transport in realistic cell geometries

Aho, Vesa Modeling of intracellular transport in realistic cell geometries Jyväskylä: University of Jyväskylä, 2018, 61 p. (Department of physics, University of Jyväskylä, Research Report No. 4/2018 ISSN 0075-465X) ISBN 978-951-39-7384-1 (paper copy) ISBN 978-951-39-7385-8 (pdf) The transport of molecules inside cells is a complex process, the characterization of which is important to gain full understanding of cellular processes. Understanding of intracellular transport is also important for medical applications, for example when analyzing transport of medicine inside cells. The intracellular environment is very complex, and at least the most crucial parts of this complexity must be accounted for to solve transport problems in cells. In this thesis the results of studies in modeling intracellular transport are presented. The aim of the work was to model intracellular transport of proteins and viral capsids in realistic cell environments. To this end, microscopic methods were used to image cellular structures, which were then digitally reconstructed and used as an environment for modeling particle transport in numerical simulations.
Impact of introducing new technologies on bedouin sheep production in the Negev in Israel.

Bedouin farmers in the southern region of Israel raise the local Awassi, a hardy but low prolific breed, under semi-extensive conditions. Economic analysis shows that traditional Bedouin sheep production is nearly unprofitable. In order to turn Bedouins' sheep production into a sustainable source of income, introduction of new prolific genotypes like the Afec Awassi and applying modern reproductive management practices is investigated. The consequences of those activities on flock productivity and the socioeconomic situation of households are the main objectives of our study.
In vitro induction of multiple buds from cotyledonary nodes of Balsam pear (Momordica charantia L.)

In this study, cotyledonary nodes of Changbai, Dabai and Youlv Balsam pear (Momordica charantia L.) were used for tissue culture to establish regeneration system, and the effects of different genotypes of Balsam pear, hormone combinations, seedling ages, dark period and AgNO3 concentrations on the bud regeneration were compared. The results show that eight-day old seedling was the best for multiple buds regeneration. The combination of 6-benzylaminopurine (6-BA) and indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) had the best effect on the induction of multiple buds. The optimum medium for the induction of multiple buds in Balsam pear was Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 2.5 mgL -1 of 6-BA and 0.1 mgL -1 of IBA. Inducing frequency varied with the genotypes, of which Changbai showed highest percentage of induction. One week dark treatment could increase the rate of shoot regeneration from 76.91 to 80.91%. The addition of AgNO3 which varied from 1 to 6 mg L -1 in the medium could not help to
24 - THE SOCIALECONOMIC AND CULTURAL CONDICTIONS AND THE WORK OF GARBAGE COLLECTOR AND GARBAGE SWEEPER

Introduction Garbage collectors and garbage sweeper, they are professional that conserve the cleaning and of the public areas, through the collection, sweeping and washes, caring for the safety and the people's patrimony. That work tends becoming growing as it increases the population (6). Those professionals belong it a group of situation of social exclusion, exposed to risks and damages the health. Not only produced them by the effects of the garbage (solid residues), as well occupational ones, being them: breathing compromisings (9;10;11), muscle-skeletal disease (10; 12), pathologies of the column (13; 14), cardiovascular disease (15), tabagism and alcoholism (14; 12; 16); hepatitis B (17), grip, dermatosis and neuroses (18) and urinary disease (16). Given the form of insert of the country, in the global process, we can say that the studies done previously don't correspond more to the demand of those professionals' work, becoming necessary a new investigation, more detailed on the conditions of health and occupational diseases in a general way, about the conditions of health of the " garbage colector", mainly of those that live out of the municipal district of São Paulo. Like this being, the present study has as general objective to analyze the influence of the socioeconomic-cultural conditions and of work in the process health-disease. For so much, the specific objectives were drawn: to verify the socioeconomic conditions of the collectors and sweeping of solid residues; to study the conditions of health of the collectors and sweeping; to establish the offences to the health due to their activities works; to study the occurrence of work accidents, number of removals and day of the week in that happen; to verify the use of equipments of individual protection, and to find subsidies so that those professionals' epidemic profile is drawn.
Photoinduced phase transition and relaxation in bare SrTiO3 single crystals

The photoinduced insulator-metal phase transition and relaxation characteristics have been investigated in bare SrTiO3 single crystals. The photoinduced relaxation time constant after the irradiation shows an increase with increasing temperatures. The SrTiO3 single crystal has a cutoff wavelength and an absorption edge of spectrum at about 385 nm, which agrees well with the band gap. The photocurrent responsivity is 1.36 × 10−5 A/W at 300 nm wavelength. The relative change in resistance is more than above six orders at room temperature, possessing potential applications in ultraviolet sensitive and detecting devices.
Environmental Innovations , Complementarity and Local / Global Cooperation 1

This paper exploits a rich, new innovation based dataset of 555 industrial firms, located in the Emilia Romagna region in 2006-2008, to analyse complementarity in factors related to eco-innovation (EI) and to test the role of firm cooperation and internationally oriented strategies. EI is providing additional competitive advantage and is relevant to all EU industries. Results show that the degree of complementarity between various correlated EI factors is quite high, with networking and corporate social responsibility (CSR) playing dominant roles. It would seem that EIs do not undermine economic performance, either in the short run or in the context of the global financial crisis. Econometric analyses highlight that international characteristics, especially foreign ownership, and networking with other firms and institutions are important for EI adoption, while general research and development is less so. Over and above the structural features of firms, strategic relationships within regions and at the international level are relevant and differentiate innovative performance. Spots of a green dawn seem appearing from the historical ‘brown’ and polluting industrial setting of the region. Its brilliant economic performances could decouple if this improvement continues. This study provides and in depth regional investigation which could complement the information gathered in the last wave of the Community Innovation Survey which included questions on EI.
Inclusive Structural Change: Case Studies on Innovations in Breeding Practices in Kenya and Anti-Retroviral Therapy Service Provision in Mozambique

Innovation, accompanied by structural change, is at the heart of economic growth and development. Yet there is limited evidence to understand interactions between innovation, structural change and inclusion in the context of low-income and emerging countries, or how these processes best support sustainable and inclusive societies. Through case studies of innovation pathways in breeding practices in the Kenyan dairy sector and anti-retroviral therapy service provision in Mozambique, we study how innovations in specific contexts lead to adoption, diffusion and upgrading, and further to structural change and inclusion or exclusion of marginalised groups. The case studies unpack the conditions for these outcomes by identifying key variables, actors and interactions that shape the innovation pathways. We find that capabilities is a key variable. In particular, we find that inclusiveness and structural changes impact successive phases of innovations through ‘reinforcing’ or ‘balancing mechanisms’, operationalised by the impact of innovation on capabilities. Other factors include the presence of interrelated innovations, power relations between actors, and the role of institutions (formal and informal). The Kenyan case suggests parallel noncompeting innovation pathways, while for Mozambique, we observe competing pathways that remain to be examined further. Findings from the cases provide the basis of future primary research on inclusive structural change.
Evaluating ISO 9001:2000 Certified and Non-Certified Organizations in Brazilian Leather-Footwear Chain

This study analyzes the Management Practices and Results constructs from several ISO 9001:2000 certified and non-certified organizations in the Brazilian leather-footwear chain in order to identify possible differences in performance between those and to determine the Motivation construct that led these organizations to attain the certification. To achieve these objectives, a research survey was made by sending out an invitation by e-mail to complete a suitable questionnaire on the Internet. We received 130 replies, 45 from certified organizations and 85 from non-certified organizations. A validation process of the questionnaire was carried out. The factors extracted of the constructs presented positive and significant correlations in the certified organizations. These organizations also performed better in Management Practices and obtained superior Results than those of the non-certified organizations. It is suggested that the non-certified companies in the Brazilian leather-footwear chain should develop a specific motivation to obtain the ISO 9001:2000 certification in order to improve their businesses. The outcome of the research favors the implementation of such joint policies for quality along the value chain to improve industry competitiveness.
Is there an association between survey characteristics and representativeness? A meta-analysis

How to achieve survey representativeness is a controversially debated issue in the field of survey methodology. Common questions include whether probability-based samples produce more representative data than nonprobability samples, whether the response rate determines the overall degree of survey representativeness, and which survey modes are effective in generating highly representative data. This meta-analysis contributes to this debate by synthesizing and analyzing the literature on two common measures of survey representativeness (R-Indicators and descriptive benchmark comparisons). Our findings indicate that probability-based samples (compared to nonprobability samples), mixed-mode surveys (compared to single-mode surveys), and other-than-Web modes (compared to Web surveys) are more representative, respectively. In addition, we find that there is a positive association between representativeness and the response rate as well as the number of auxiliary variables used in representativeness assessments. Furthermore, we identify significant gaps in the research literature that we hope might encourage further research in this area.
Heuristics and Biases in Travel Mode Choice

This study applies experimental methods to analyze travel mode choice. Two different scenarios are considered. In the first scenario, subjects have to decide whether to commute by car or by metro. Metro costs are fixed, while car costs are uncertain and determined by the joint effect of casual events and traffic congestion. In the second scenario, subjects have to decide whether to travel by car or by bus, both modes in which costs are determined by the combination of chance and congestion. Subjects receive feedback information on the actual travel times of both modes. We find that individuals exhibit a marked preference for cars, are inclined to confirm their first choice and demonstrate travel mode stickiness. We conclude that travel mode choice is subject to heuristics and biases that lead to robust deviations from rational choice.
Cauchy problem for the linearized KdV equation on general metric star graphs

The Korteweg-de Vries (KdV) equation has attracted much attention in the literature, both in the context of physics and mathematics. This equation was found to permit soliton solutions and allow the modeling of solitary wave propagation on a water surface, a phenomena first discovered by Scott Russell in 1834. The KdV equation is also used, e.g., to model the unidirectional propagation of small amplitude long waves in nonlinear dispersive systems such as ion-acoustic waves in a collisionless plasma, and magnetosonic waves in a magnetized plasma etc [11]. The linearized KdV provides an asymptotic description of linear, undirectional, weakly dispersive long waves, for example, shallow water waves. Earlier, it was proven that via normal form transforms, the solution of the KdV equation can be reduced to the solution for the linear KdVequation [12]. Belashov and Vladimirov [12] numerically investigated the evolution of a single disturbance u(0, x) = u0 exp(−x/l) and showed that in the limit l → 0, u0l 2 = const, the solution of the KdV equation is qualitatively similar to the solution of the linearized KdV equation. Boundary value problems on half lines were considered in [2, 5, 7]. Here, summarizing and extending the results in [13], we investigate the linearized KdV equation on star graphs Γ with m + k semi-infinite bonds connected at one point, called the vertex. The bonds are denoted by Bj , j = 1, 2, . , k + m, the coordinate xj on Bj is defined from −∞ to 0 for j = 1, 2, . , k, and from 0 to +∞ for j = k + 1, . , k +m such that on each bond, the vertex corresponds to 0. On each bond we consider the linear equation: ( ∂