Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Understanding the influence basic service and value-added service usage has on customer churn in Pay-TV subscription services

Similarly to other North-American markets, new digital services and alternatives to the traditional pay-TV service are proliferating while the Canadian pay-TV industry is witnessing persistent subscriber losses. In an attempt to support changing viewing behaviors, generate more value and protect the subscriber base, pay-TV operators are extending their core TV service using value-added services (VAS). However, whether or not VAS successfully contributes to reducing subscriber attrition is unknown for academics and operators alike. Using survival analysis, the research examines VAS usage and churn behaviors for 11 647 pay-TV customers over a 12-month period. The results show that VAS users are not systematically less likely to churn and their churn behavior largely depends on usage frequency and usage patterns. Customers with constant or increasing usage frequency are less likely to churn than non VAS users and heaviest users appear to exhibit the greatest level of risk. Results also show that beneficial effects of VAS are generated by free services while payable VAS actually increases customers’ risk. These findings show that churn prediction models need to look beyond the core service and examine actual behavioral usage statistics for both the core service and value-added services. From a managerial perspective, the results confirm that service extensions do indeed generate value and operators can further reduce customer attrition by maximizing VAS adoption. However, the results also show operators need to maintain and stimulate usage to preserve the beneficial effect of VAS and better understand the drivers that increase service switching behaviors.
Changing Value Systems in the new European Union

This working paper examines changing value systems in the new European Union with a special focus on religiosity and tolerance. We found that few of the new E.U. members brought particularly intense religiosity into the Union. However, two that did, Poland and Romania, and the accession state Turkey, are all fairly large states. Post-materialist values and tolerance have both plateaued in early E.U. members, but newer members continue to align attitudes with E.U. policies promoting tolerance and diversity.
Post Marketing Surveillance on Propranolol and Atenolol Tablets Manufactured in Iran

Propranolol, a prototypical b-adrenergic receptor antagonist and atenolol, a cardio-selective b-antagonist are widely used in therapeutic regimens for treatment of hypertensive patients. In Iran, several pharmaceutical manufacturers formulate these two b-blockers. As the formulation of a dosage form is essential for the patient's safety and drug efficacy, in this study we aimed to evaluate the quality of the tablets which are formulated by the above manufacturers. Atenolol (100 mg) tablet manufactured by APOTEX in Canada also was evaluated. The commercially available preparations of the following dosage forms were studied: propranolol (10 mg, 40 mg) manufactured by TOLID DARU and ROSE DARU (a, b, c, d), atenolol (50 mg) manufactured by DARUPAKHSH (e), atenolol (100 mg) manufactured by DARUPAKHSH, TOLID DARU, SOBHAN, LORESTAN and APOTEX (f, g, h, i, j). The quality and safety of the dosage forms of these drugs were evaluated by PMS studies. For this purpose, the weight variation, hardness, thickness, content assay, content uniformity, disintegration time and dissolution rate of the dosage forms were compared to British Pharmacopeia (BP) and United States Pharmacopeia (USP) standards. The results verify that all dosage forms show evidence of the USP and BP quality assessment.
Metals recovery from printed circuit boards: the pursuit of environmental and economic sustainability

The possible optimization of metal recovery from Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) and Central Processing Units (CPUs) has been investigated. Usual practice is to primarily recover metals with the highest market price. In contrast, the present work shows how strategic considerations of the value share (%) of metals content and data regarding the environmental impact of their recovery can instruct about the best strategies to adopt, pointing at the metals to be recovered as a priority depending on the case. An accurate PCBs’ characterization carried out through microwave digestion with a mixture of HNO3, HF and HCl, is a first essential step of the procedure. Then metals are recovered through chemical leaching with different chemical substances, exploiting both chemical and physical steps. In particular, a proposal to improve environmental and economic sustainability of the PCBs’ treatment is presented, which contrary to expectations first considers the recovery of Cu, Pb and Sn by leaching with 6M HNO3, followed only later by the recovery of gold and other precious metals. Although unusual, the recovery procedure can be adapted accordingly, allowing more profits, easier management and higher metals recovery rates.
High-latitude version of the global numerical model of the Earth's upper atmosphere

The global numerical model describing the thermosphere, ionosphere and protonosphere of the Earth as a single system has been modified for the polar upper atmosphere studies. The spatial and time resolution of the model has been significantly enhanced by the use of the variable latitudinal steps of numerical integration. The model is being developed to encompass modelling of the inner part of the magnetosphere confined by the closed geomagnetic field lines and the mesosphere. The results of the model calculations for the quiet magnetic conditions have been compared with the data of the empirical ionospheric and thermospheric models as well as with the EISCAT data and, in general, reasonable agreement between theoretical and empirical data has been found. The new high-latitude version of the model has been applied as well to the investigations of the disturbed behaviour of the Earth's upper atmosphere during geomagnetic substorms and storms and during disturbances in the cusp region. The physical mechanisms of the upper atmosphere responses to the solar wind and magnetospheric forcings have been understood by the use of the model in several case studies.
Natural filler-reinforced composites: Comparison of the reinforcing potential among technical fibers, stem fragments and industrial by-products

Fillers, originating from eleven different plants, and which can be divided into three classes: technical fibers (curaua, jute and flax), crop stem fragments (miscanthus, sorghum and maize) and industrial by-products (agave, oak chips, wet draff, wheat straws and vine shoots), were compared to glass fibers in low density polyethylene and polypropylene reinforced composites, applying similar compounding and processing conditions. On average, modulus and strength were reduced by factors of 1.5, 2 and 3, when glass fibers were replaced by technical fillers, plant stem fragments and by-product fillers respectively. There was not much difference as to the decrease in impact strength among the three classes. The fillers that exhibited a good reinforcing capacity in one matrix provided comparatively low performance in the other. The evolution of the tensile strength, elastic modulus and elongation at break of low density polyethylene composites reinforced with curaua, flax, jute and glass fibers is not correlated with that of polypropylene-based composites.
Multiscale stratigraphic analysis of a structurally confined submarine fan: Carboniferous Ross Sandstone, Ireland: Discussion

In promoting the Ross Formation (Carboniferous Shannon Basin)2 as an excellent outcrop analog for Gulf of Mexico, oil-rich, Pliocene–Pleistocene, salt-withdrawal minibasins, Pyles (2008) reaffirmed the popular deep-sea-turbidite model for the Ross Formation (Collinson et al., 1991; Chapin et al., 1994; Elliott, 2000; Martinsen et al., 2000; Lien et al., 2003) without mentioning a detailed published reinterpretation of the Ross Formation as lacustrine, river-fed turbidites (hyperpycnites) and wave-modified turbidites (Higgs, 2004). Oil field development in technologically challenging deep-water settings can have costly economic consequences if based on predictions emanating from inappropriate outcrop analogs. Such consequences include, in order of increasing costliness, (1) selection of nonoptimum perforation intervals, causing lower production flow rates and lower ultimate recovery; (2) nonoptimum placement, spacing, and number of development wells, with the same effects; and (3) inaccurate predictions of reserves volume and production rates, leading to unwarranted declaration of field economic viability (hence major expenditures such as platforms, development drilling programs, and pipelines) or nonviability (Higgs, 2004). For an outcrop to be considered analogous to any given subsurface example, the two facies associations should be essentially indistinguishable, insofar as this can be judged from the existing core control; in other words, the interpreted depositional processes should be the same, resulting in near-identical sand-body (reservoir) architecture. Given the passive margin context and present deep-water (below storm wavebase) slope setting of the Gulf of Mexico minibasins (e.g., Pyles, 2008), a similar deep-marine setting can be inferred for the Pliocene–Pleistocene. In contrast, the Ross Formation may be neither marine nor of deep-water origin. Sedimentological evidence summarized below suggests (1) lowered salinity, amenable to much greater frequency and duration of hyperpycnal flows than in …
Toy Adaptation in Undergraduate Education and Outreach: An Initial Ex- amination into Participant Experience and Perceptions (Work in Progress)

Heather Feldner received her BS in Human Biology and Master’s degree in Physical Therapy from Marquette University. She has been a practicing pediatric physical therapist for 16 years, and began teaching in the University of Illinois at Chicago’s DPT program in 2010. She became a board certified pediatric clinical specialist in 2012, completed her Assistive Technology Certificate from UIC in 2015, and earned her PhD in Disability Studies from UIC in 2016. She joined the University of Washington’s Department of Mechanical Engineering as a postdoctoral researcher in September of 2016. Heather has a special interest in user-centered design and participatory research, and has been a lab member of the GoBabyGo program, which creates custom safety and accessibility modifications to commercially available battery powered toy ride-on cars for children with disabilities, since 2012. Heather’s research focuses on investigating the impact of traditional and alternative mobility technologies on the experiences of people with disabilities and their families, and the direct and indirect influences of physical and social environments, technology design, industry, and disability orientation on those experiences.
Effect of plasma surface pre-treatment on plastic substrate for ZnO TFT

Controlling the surface morphologies of ZnO nanostructures is a critical issue for the fabrication of electronic and photonic devices. This study reports the electrical properties of the ZnO nanostructure grown on the plasma surface pre-treated plastic substrates. The ZnO films were grown by using solution method with zinc nitrate hexahydrate Zn(NO3)2•6H2O and hexamethylenetetramine C12H6N4.as the main solution under various deposition conditions. The films with plasma surface pre-treatment has stronger (100) peak intensity than that without plasma surface pre-treatment. Also, very uniform grain size of the ZnO nanostructures can be seen. The fabricated enhancement mode ZnO thin film transistors (TFTs) exhibiting good transistor behavior with the drain saturation current of 38.1 µA at VGS = 35 V can be achieved. Keywords: ZnO nanostructure, plastic substrate, solution method, plasma, surface pre-treatment, TFT.
Social licence for the utilization of wild berries in the context of local traditional rights and the interests of the berry industry

Everyman’s right, as applied in Finland and other Nordic countries, allows the picking of natural products (wild berries, mushrooms, etc.) regardless of land ownership. Harvesting and selling natural products has been an important source of income in rural areas of northern Finland. As household berry picking has more or less replaced small-scale commercial berry picking, foreign seasonal pickers are now supplying raw material for the berry industry. This has aroused vivid discussions about the limits of everyman’s right and inhabitants’ rights to local natural resources. Critics claim that commercially organized berry picking makes it difficult for inhabitants to fully use natural resources. In this article, we present the results of a survey aimed at natureoriented, mainly northern residents of Finland and a telephone and e-mail service to which residents of northern Finland sent feedback regarding foreign berry pickers. The results of the survey and the feedback show that, in general, organized berry picking by foreign labourers is accepted if some basic guidelines or rules are respected. These 25 SOCIAL LICENCE FOR THE UTILIZATION OF WILD BERRIES IN THE CONTEXT OF LOCAL TRADITIONAL RIGHTS AND THE INTERESTS OF THE BERRY INDUSTRY RAINER PELTOLA, VILLE HALLIKAINEN, SEIJA TUULENTIE, ARTO NASKALI, OUTI MANNINEN AND JUKKA SIMILA | Pages 24-49 guidelines may stem from local customary laws or traditions which have regulated berry picking. Another factor which would improve local acceptance and promote social licence for organized berry picking by foreign and non–local labourers is the distribution of benefits. At present, the advantages of organized berry picking are seen as benefiting stakeholders outside the local community, whereas local communities have to bear the costs: for example, increased berry picking activity in areas which they have utilized for a prolonged time, sometimes through generations.
Global communication practices of physiotherapists on Twitter

Abstract Background: Social media have offered professional communities the opportunity to be digitally connected. The hashtag #GlobalPT was conceived and promoted from 2015 and has acted as a slogan for the globally connected physiotherapy community. This study explores the global reach and dominant communication themes that emerged during a set time frame that represented the single largest period of #GlobalPT activity. Method: Using purposive sampling, 988 publically available tweets including the hashtag #GlobalPT were studied. Descriptive statistical analysis was conducted to quantify tweet data and qualitative, inductive phenomenological thematic content analysis to describe latent themes within the tweets. Results: #GlobalPT activity was noted across 24 countries (UK top represented) and four languages (929/988, 94.03% in English). Europe was the most active area (738/988, 74.70%), followed by Oceania (120/988, 12.15%). Thematic content analysis identified eight themes within the communication practices of the physiotherapy community on Twitter. The three major themes were: sharing information (108/377, 28.65%), promotional activity (93/377, 24.67%) and positive feedback (69/377, 18.30%). Conclusion: The professional communication practices of physiotherapists on Twitter show a global spread of communication. The themes provide preliminary evidence for social media’s unique potential to assist the World Confederation for Physical Therapy strategic vision.
Gender, Scaffolding Mechanism and Output Complexity in Task-based Language Learning

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of gender in Iranian EFL learners’ output complexity and scaffolding mechanism as they were performing the tasks. The participants were 18 intermediate learners from both genders who were selected based on a proficiency test and an interview. They were placed into three groups based on their gender. They were also assigned into nine different collaborative pairs and were required to perform four tasks while being tape-recorded for 36 sessions. The audio-recorded dialogues were then transcribed and divided into AS-units. Ohta’s (2001) seven types of scaffolding methods were used as a framework to analyze the data. The findings indicated that the interlocutors in female-female pairs scaffolded their struggling partners more than the other pairs and produced a more complex output; however, the interlocutors in male-male pairs underperformed the other groups. It can be concluded that gender plays an important role in EFL learners’ output complexity and scaffolding mechanisms they employ.
SPIKE–TIME METRICS ANALYSIS OF ANTERIOR CINGULATE CORTEX

Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) single units firing rate modulations correlate with the behavioral policy of monkeys engaged in an exploration/exploitation task. The possible importance of spike timing is a central issue that remains to be investigated. A well– designed tool allowing to address it is Victor and Purpura spike train metrics, which quantifies how dissimilar two spike trains are, as a function of the importance of spike timing. When analyzed with this method, the data show that adequate spike timing sensitivity increases the discrimination between the strategy switch moment and exploitation moments by single units, single trial activity. Further, temporal sensitivity also improved the correlation between single cell, single trial activity at the moment of the behavioral switch, and response times after the switch. Finally, we used the multi–units extension of the Victor and Pupura metrics on pairs of cells and found that the response of the cell whose activity appears more related to the switch is not denatured by the firing of the least switch related cell. Thus, these results suggest that a ‘downstream’ neural network which would decode ACC single units activity to produce an adapted motor output may be sensitive to spike times.
Robustness of the nonlinear lter

In the nonlinear ltering model with signal and observation noise independent, we show that the lter depends continuously on the law of the signal. We do not assume that the signal process is Markov and prove the result under minimal integrability conditions. The analysis is based on expressing the nonlinear lter as a Wiener functional via the Kallianpur–Striebel Bayes formula. c © 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. MSC classi cation: primary 60G35; 62M20 secondary 60G44; 60H15; 60J35
Assessment of the Volta Delta Shoreline Change

Shorelines fronting deltas evolve in their quest to achieve equilibrium state. Such activities have encountered the increasing human development in deltaic regions and resulted in the destruction of the environment and resources. This paper discusses the shoreline evolution trends of the Volta Delta in Ghana. The shoreline was divided into four sections based on the orientation and human interventions. Data sources for the study included satellite imageries of 1986, 1991, 2001, 2004 and 2013. Trends were statistically analysed using the AMBUR software. It emerged that the 27 years period under study, the shoreline is accreting at an average rate of about 0.53 m/yr. Section one is accreting at a rate of about 0.136 m/yr; section two is accreting a rate of about 1.703 m/yr; section three is accreting at a rate of about 2.126 m/yr; while section four is eroding at a rate of about 3.703 m/yr. This observation is significant because the area has been reported by previous studies to be eroding at a rate of about 8 m/yr. Accretion of the three sections can be explained by the presence of the Keta sea defense project (KSDP) and the shoreline orientation which influences the breaking pattern of swell waves that approach the shore. The observed development of sediment build-up will influence the sediment regime along the eastern Ghana and Togo coastal areas. There is the need to develop a systematic sub-regional coastal monitoring activity to effectively manage the coastal systems in the two countries.
PREVALENCE OF DIFFERENT VIRAL MARKERS IN PATIENTS OF ACUTE VIRAL HEPATITIS IN AND AROUND VISAKHAPATNAM : HOSPITAL BASED STUDY

Acute viral hepatitis (AVH) is a major public health problem and is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in the developing countries. AIM: The aim of the present study is to study the serological profile of acute viral hepatitis in children and adults admitted in King George Hospital, Visakhapatnam and also age and sex distribution of patients suffering from acute viral hepatitis and also comparing the etiological profile by studying serological markers of common viral agents. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Samples were collected from 80 individuals with jaundice and other clinical and biochemical evidences of acute viral hepatitis. They were tested for hepatitis surface antigen, HBcIgM, HAVIgM, HEVIgM, Antibodies to HCV by the enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay. RESULTS: Out of the 80 viral hepatitis cases (47 adults+33 children). In adults 20(42.5%) patients presented HBV (26.96%) was identified as the most common cause of acute hepatitis followed by HEV14 (29.8%), HEV+HAV4 (8.5%) and HAV 6(12.76%). Co-infections with more than one virus were present in 5cases; HAV-HEV co-infection being the most common. In children 16(48.5%) presented with HAV, HAV+HEV11 (33.3%), HEV4 (12.12%), HBV1 (3.03%) CONCLUSIONS: Vaccination of adults against hepatitis B is indicated, along with sexual education to decrease the incidence of hepatitis which is found as common etiological agent in adults. The incidence of HAV and HEV in children shows that there is need for improvement in sanitation and food habits.
SEDIMENTARY PALEOENVIRONMENT AND FOSSIL PLANTS OF THE EL FRENO FORMATION (EARLY JURASSIC) IN LAS LEÑAS VALLEY, NEUQUÉN BASIN

Non-marine Early Jurassic successions in Las Lenas valley and their paleofloristic fossil content have been known since late nineteenth century, though they are scarce in the bibliography. It led us to study the sedimentology and paleobotanical content of El Freno Formation outcrops in the surroundings of the Portezuelo and Peuquenes creeks, report the first finding of fossil plants there and interpret their taphonomic features and enclosing sedimentary environment. The studied section is a lensoidal, fining- and thinning-upwards, conglomerate and sandy succession, with carbonaceous plant impressions and silicified trunks. It records the evolution of a gravel braided fluvial system (with longitudinal and transverse bars, abandoned channels and strong topographic irregularities) into a sand braided fluvial system (with transverse bars, overbank deposits and no evi dence of lateral migration). Both flowed mainly towards the NNW and show a continuously increasing accommodation proba bly driven by a relative base level rise and regional sag or erosional lowering of the topography. Collected fossil plants include Dictyophylum (Dictyophylum) sp. , Goeppertella sp. and undetermined Equisetopsida. Goeppertella sp. is recorded for the first time in this unit. Equisetopsida would have thrived in semi-permanent water bodies on abandoned channels and Dipteridaceae, in well-drained zones of the channel belt above the permanent channel level. Conversely, the trees would have lived in higher and well-drained areas with well-developed soils, probably outside the channel belt. Based largely on lithostratigraphical considerations, the age of the studied deposits was limited to the Hettangian? -Middle Sinemurian without identifying hiatus inside the fluvial succession or between it and the overlain marine beds.