Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Consumption of macroinvertebrates by invasive and native gammarids: a comparison

The Ponto-Caspian gammarids Dikerogammarus villosus SOVINSKIJ and Echinogammarus ischnus STEBBING have invaded Central-European streams in the early 1990s. Declines in macroinvertebrates have been observed since the arrival of invasive species. To elucidate the predatory impact of gammarids on the macroinvertebrate community, we conducted laboratory experiments with macroinvertebrate prey taxa and native and invasive gammarids as predators. Dikerogammarus villosus, which is known to be a strong predator, consumed more and a broader range of prey than E. ischnus or the native gammarids, Gammarus pulex L. and Gammarus roeseli GERVAIS. Echinogammarus ischnus consumed a somewhat higher amount of prey organisms than G. pulex and a higher number and a broader range than G. roeseli. Adult D. villosus consumed up to 25 mg macroinvertebrate biomass (wet weight) per day which corresponds to approximately 1/3 of their own biomass. Chironomid larvae were preferred by all gammarids tested. Taking into account that gammarids density may surpass 1000 ind m-2, our results suggest that the predatory behaviour of invasive gammarids, in particular of D. villosus, may have contributed to the decline of some macroinvertebrate taxa in some European streams.
The Effects of Self-Regulated Learning Training on Students’ Metacognition and Achievement in Chemistry

Self-regulated learning strategies are critical for students to be able to learn abstract subjects successfully and meaningful. This article reports on an empirical investigation of the effectiveness of self-regulatory training on secondary school students’ metacognition and achievement in chemistry. A total of 60 students aged 14-15 were randomly assigned into either the experimental group or the control group. Participants in the experimental group completed four self-regulated learning (SRL) exercises based on Zimmerman’s (2002) cyclical model. Data were collected using pre- and post-self-regulated learning questionnaire (SRLQ), and pre- and post reaction rates knowledge tests (RRKT) test. Additional qualitative data were collected through classroom observation and interviews. Quantitative data were analysed using SPSS while thematic analysis was used for the qualitative data. The results revealed that there were significant differences between the two groups in terms of SRL skills, i.e. students in the experimental group scored higher on post-SRLQ. Regarding students’ achievement in chemistry, a slightly greater improvement was found for the students with SRL training. The findings suggested that training in SRL improves students’ achievement in chemistry and therefore should be included in secondary science classrooms.
Log-normal intensity distribution of the quiet-Sun FUV continuum observed by SUMER

We analyse observations of the quiet-Sun far ultraviolet (FUV) continuum at various wavelengths near 1430 A obtained by the SUMER instrument on SOHO. According to semi-empirical atmospheric models this continuum originates from the layers in the chromosphere where the temperature rises from low values at near-radiative equilibrium to a plateau of about 6000 K. We study raster images and intensity distribution histograms and find that a single log-normal distribution matches these observations very well, and that the spatial structure observed corresponds to a mixture of features at supergranular and smaller scales that probably correspond to granular clusters. Also, a log-normal distribution was found in the literature to correspond to other chromospheric features and we compare here with histograms obtained from a Hi Ly-α quiet-Sun image. Because the continuum around 1430 A is mainly produced by Si I recombination it is expected to respond well to deep chromospheric heating and not be directly affected by velocities. The data suggest that chromospheric heating originates through dissipation of magnetic free-energy fields of small size and magnitude in underlying photospheric intergranular lanes. It has been suggested that such fields can be produced by photospheric dynamos at the intergranular scale and/or by complex fields emerging in a "magnetic carpet". Such fields are expected to have sufficient free-energy to power the chromospheric heating. Plasma instabilities, such as the Farley-Buneman instability, would allow this free-energy to be dissipated in the chromosphere.
Structure formation and evolution in semiconductor films for perovskite and organic photovoltaics

The research and development of novel photovoltaic technologies is going through a golden era, thanks to the demonstration of remarkable efficiencies across a broad range of semiconductor classes and device architectures. In parallel with these developments, the opportunities for characterizing the structure of a semiconductor film in situ of a processing step have also increased, to the extent that in situ and in operando experiments are becoming readily accessible to researchers. These combined advances represent the subject matter of this article, wherein studies that improve our understanding of structure formation and evolution in perovskite and organic semiconductor films for innovative solar cells are reviewed. Although focus is placed on the dynamics of semiconductor film formation, the review also highlights recent research on environmental testing, a key component in the development of materials with high intrinsic stability.
The endemic plants of Micronesia: a geographical checklist and commentary

The Micronesia-Polynesia bioregion is recognized as a global biodiversity hotspot. However, until now estimates regarding the number of endemic plant species for the region were not supported by any comprehensive published work for the region. The results of this study indicate that Micronesia has the world's highest percentage of plant endemism per square kilometer out of all globally recognized insular biodiversity hotspots. A checklist of all endemic plant species for Micronesia is presented here with their corresponding geographical limits within the region. A summary of previous work and estimates is also provided noting the degree of taxonomic progress in the past several decades. A total of 364 vascular plant species are considered endemic to Micronesia, most of them being restricted to the Caroline Islands with a large percentage restricted to Palau. The checklist includes seven new combinations, one new name, and two unverified names that require additional study to verify endemic status. Overviews of each respective botanical family represented in the list are given including additional information on the Micronesian taxa. Recommendations for future work and potential projects are alluded to throughout the text highlighting major data gaps and very poorly known taxa. The following new combinations and names are made: Cyclosorus carolinensis (Hosokawa) Lorence, comb. nov. , Cyclosorusgretheri (W. H. Wagner) Lorence, comb. nov., Cyclosorusguamensis (Holttum) Lorence, comb. nov., Cyclosorus palauensis (Hosokawa) Lorence, comb. nov. , Cyclosorus rupiinsularis (Fosberg) Lorence, comb. nov., Dalbergia hosokawae (Hosokawa) Costion nom. nov., Syzygium trukensis (Hosokawa) Costion & E. Lucas comb. nov.
Defending Science -- Within Reason : Between Scientism and Cynicism

Sweeping in scope, penetrating in analysis, and generously illustrated with examples from the history of science, this new and original approach to familiar questions about scientific evidence and method tackles vital questions about science and its place in society. Writing with verve and wry humour, in a witty, direct, and accessible style, Haack takes readers beyond the "Science Wars" to a balanced understanding of the value, and the limitations, of the scientific enterprise.
Motherhood, Balance, and Health Behaviours of Academic Women

Confronted with long work hours and “publish-or-perish” pressures, academic mothers need to balance their multiple roles and practice health-promoting behaviors in order to be “good mothers. ” This study examined the relationship among motherhood ideology, role balance, and health-promoting behaviors of 69 teaching faculty in New England with children under age fourteen. The struggle to balance multiple roles and a woman’s maternal role were considered immediate competing demands, as they deal with time-sensitive activities that may inhibit women’s participation in health-promoting behaviors. Significant relationships were found among the independent variables and health-promoting behaviors, particularly physical activity, stress management and sleep. The more intensive a woman’s motherhood ideology, the more role imbalance she reported. Further, women experiencing more balanced roles reported greater participation in health-promoting behaviors. The results support the need for institutions of higher education to facilitate the integration of work and family through policies, practices, and programs, especially those that consider the experiences and needs of working mothers.
Efficacy of Bier’s Block in the Surgical Management of Distal Radius Fractures

Introduction: Fracture of distal radius is a very common injury, presenting to the emergency department. Most of the fractures are treated by closed manipulation and internal fixation. This requires absolute pain relief for a slightly prolonged duration. Various modalities have been advocated including hematoma block, Bier’s block, brachial block, general anaesthesia. We studied the efficacy of Bier’s block in the surgical management of distal radius fractures. Materials and Methods: We prospectively studied 30 patients with distal radius fractures treated with closed manipulation and K-wire fixation under Bier’s block. IVRA was performed by using Inj. lignocaine and the dose was calculated as 3 mg/kg body weight. The hemodynamic changes following the block were monitored. The pain relief was assessed using VAS scaore and the quality of surgical anaesthesia. Results: The average pre-block VAS score was 7.6 and the average post-block VAS score was 2.2. This difference in VAS score was statistically significant (P>0.005). Regarding quality of surgical anaesthesia, 74% of the patients were in Category-1, 25% patients were in Category-2, only 1 patient was in Category3 and there were no patients in Catogery-4. Discussion: IVRA has been regularly used for treatment of distal radius fractures. The primary advantages are its simplicity, reliability, cost-effectiveness. The present study has shown that the quality of intra-operative anaesthesia and analgesia was good with IVRA for distal radius fractures except for a mild tourniquet discomfort in few. But requires intense intra-operative and immediate post-operative monitoring. We had tachycardia in 6 patients and hypertension in 4 patients during the same period. Conclusion: Bier’s block provides adequate pain relief but requires intense monitoring. It appears to be an attractive option to be practiced safely in field situation when it may be difficult to perform GA or equipment guided plexus blocks.
Pro-poor growth and social programmes in Brazil

From a methodological point of view, this paper makes two contributions to the literature. One contribution is the proposal of a new measure of pro-poor growth. This new measure provides the linkage between growth rates in mean income and in income inequality. In this context, growth is defined as propoor (or anti-poor) if there is a gain (or loss) in the growth rate due to a decrease (or increase) in inequality. The other contribution is a decomposition methodology that explores linkages between growth patterns and social policies. Through the decomposition analysis, we assess the contribution of different income sources to growth patterns. The proposed methodologies are then applied to the Brazilian National Household Survey (PNAD) covering the period 1995-2004. The paper analyzes the evolution of Brazilian social indicators based on per capita income exploring links with adverse labour market performance and social policy change, with particular emphasis on the expansion of targeted cash transfers and devising more pro-poor social security benefits.
A Motivation Based on Normative Citing Conformity

Research on citation behaviors shows that authors tend to cite the articles of the journals to which they have sent their own articles to be published (Target Journal). Experts in this field have clarified this phenomenon in different ways. The present study follows different explanatory presentations with regard to Citing Conformity Factor. The research has been done in two parts: 1. Survey Method, and 2. Citation analysis method. The results of regression analysis suggest that some part of this phenomenon’s variance is justified based on Normative Citing Conformity. In line with conformity with group norms and through having the motivation for receiving rewards, the authors cite the articles in target journal. The relationship between Citing Conformity Factors (Normative, Informational, and Identification) and the motivation to cite target journal has been analyzed in this research for the first time.
Affirmative action in South Africa: Are we creating new casualties?

Affi rmative action policies in South Africa and other countries have been designed to address inequity and discrimination, and to manage a wide range of diversity in all spheres of life, particularly after the end of apartheid in 1994. Years after implementing affi rmative action in South Africa, perceptions of its impact or even benefi t seem to vary from person to person. This article presents the fi ndings from a study utilizing different data sources including document review, interviews, and a consensus workshop on the perceptions of the impact of affi rmative action in South Africa. It is part of a larger European Commission–funded comparative study of positive action measures across countries in North America, the European Union, and South Africa. Participants were drawn from different public and private organizational sectors, racial groups, genders, age groups, and people with disabilities. The analyzed data provided insight into how society might be perceiving and reacting to the operation of affi rmative action in South Africa.
Modular smoothed analysis

Spielman’s smoothed complexity - a hybrid between worst and average case complexity measures - relies on perturbations of input instances to determine where average-case behavior turns to worst-case. The paper proposes a method supporting modular smoothed analysis. The method, involving a novel permutation model, is developed for the discrete case, focusing on randomness preserving algorithms. This approach simplifies the smoothed analysis and achieves greater precession in the expression of the smoothed complexity, where a recurrence equation is obtained as opposed to bounds. Moreover, the approach addresses, in this context, the formation of input instances–an open problem in smoothed complexity. To illustrate the method, we determine the modular smoothed complexity of Quicksort.
Investigating Preschool Teacher Candidates' STEM Teaching Intention and the views about STEM Education

The objective of the present study was to determine the views of pre-service preschool teachers on Integrated Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education and their tendencies about integrated STEM instruction. The study group included 35 pre-service preschool teachers. The present study, conducted as a single group research model with pre-test-post-test experimental method, was completed in 8 weeks. Semi-structured interview form developed by the authors and the "Integrated STEM Instructional Tendencies Scale" developed by Lin and Williams (2016) adapted to Turkish by Haciomeroglu and Bulut (2016) were used as data collection instruments. The qualitative data obtained are described with the content analysis methodology. The quantitative data were analyzed with paired sample t-test. After the implementation of the STEM education program, it was determined that pre-service preschool teachers had positive views on STEM education approach in general. Furthermore, it was determined that STEM education would encourage student to think, transform theoretical knowledge into practice, and to acquire the skills to obtain concrete products using the theoretical knowledge that they acquired in the class. The majority of the participating pre-service teachers indicated that undergraduate programs should include science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses, teachers from different fields should collaborate, and the teachers should receive STEM training.
Influence of wood species , treatment method and biocides concentration on leaching of copper – ethanolamine preservatives

Cu–ethanolamine-based preservatives are currently the most important alternatives for classical chromated-copper formulation. However, emissions of Cu from wood impregnated with copper–ethanolamine-based preservatives are still higher compared to emissions from wood preserved with copper–chromium based preservatives. In order to elucidate leaching of copper from specimens treated (brushed, soaked or vacuum-impregnated) with different copper–ethanolamine containing biocides of two different concentrations the following research on specimens made of Norway spruce (Picea abies), Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris) and Beech (Fagus sylvatica) were performed. The results showed that leaching is significantly affected by the wood species used. The lowest leaching rates were determined in specimens made of spruce, while the highest ones were determined in beech wood. Concentration of active ingredient influences the Cu fixation as well. Unfortunately, ethanolamine at higher concentration causes depolymerisation of lignin macromolecules, which results in increased copper leaching. r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
The cellular universe: A new cosmological model based on the holographic principle

Human knowledge of the universe is largely incomplete. Rapid progress in the understanding of cosmology is anticipated with the development of new strategies of examination. Among these strategies, holographic modeling may be the next great revolution that awaits cosmology. This comparative review, which is the first of its kind, describes the universe from the perspective of cell biology, focusing on theoretical and observational conceptualizations of cosmic history. This holographic strategy presents us with a natural, understandable, and reasonably expanding universe; in fact, nearly all that exists in the macrouniverse is mirrored in a biological cell as a microuniverse. Simply put, the universe can be pictured as a cell. Such holographic simulation may be helpful for designing better hypotheses for cosmological research projects, especially for those that require significant commitment of time and finances. It may also impart holistic insights to any researcher interested in the inner working of the cosmos. Key words:
Women in the boardroom and their impact on climate change related disclosure

This paper aims to investigate the relationship between gender diversity and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) score/index. Specifically, the study describes extant research on theoretical perspectives, and the impact of women on corporate boards (WOBs) on carbon emission issues in the global perspective. ,This study uses the carbon disclosure scores of the CDP from 2011 to 2013 (inclusive). A total observation for the three-year periods is 1,175 companies. However, based on data availability for the model, the sample size totals 331 companies in 33 countries with firms in 12 geographical locations. The authors used a model which is estimated using the fixed-effects estimator. ,The outcomes of the study reveal that there is a positive relationship between gender diversity (WOB) and carbon disclosure information. In addition to establishing a relationship between CDP score and other control variables, this study also found a relationship with Board size, asset size, energy consumption and Tobin’s Q, which is common in the existing literature. ,The limitations of the study mostly revolve around samples and the time period. To further test the generalizability and cross-sectional validity of the outcomes, it is suggested that the proposed framework be tested in more socially responsible firms. ,There are increasing pressures for WOBs from diverse stakeholders, such as the European Commission, national governments, politicians, employer lobby groups, shareholders, Fortune and Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) rankings and best places for women to work lists. The study offers insights to policy makers implementing gender quota legislation. ,The study has important implications for putting into practice good corporate governance and, in particular, gender diversity. The outcomes of the analyses advocate that companies that included women directors and had a smaller board size may expect to achieve a higher level of carbon emission performance and to voluntarily disclose the level of carbon information assessment requested by the CDP.
Effect of Dividend Policy on the Value of Firms (Emperical Study of Quoted Firms in Nigeria Stock Exchange)

The study empirically investigated the effect of dividend policy on the value of firms as reflected on share holder’s wealth maximization. The data employed in the study was computed as weighted average of five year summary extracted from the audited financial reports of firms selected at random from Nigeria stock exchange; in performing the analysis, rigorous econometric tools such as unit root stationary test, multiple OLS regression, granger causality test, impulse response innovation and variance decomposition test were all employed with the aid of econometric statistical packages version 8. The result of the study revealed that dividend per share is significant and inversely related to share value of the firm while earning per share is both positive and significant to share value of firms; this result is similar to that of Baker, H.K. 1989. Based on this, the study concluded that earning per share is the predominant variable to influence the share value of firms. It is therefore recommended that finance managers should play an important role in the debt-equity mix in the balance sheet in order to magnify the earning per share as will be reflected in the wealth of shareholders. Keywords: earnings per share, dividend per share, internal rate of return, market value per share, impulse response, variance decomposition.
Growth of perturbations in an expanding universe with Bose-Einstein condensate dark matter

We study the growth of perturbations in an expanding Newtonian universe with Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) dark matter. We first ignore special relativistic effects and derive a differential equation that governs the evolution of the density contrast in the linear regime. This equation, which takes quantum pressure and self-interaction into account, can be solved analytically in several cases. We argue that an attractive self-interaction can enhance the Jeans instability and fasten the formation of structures. Then, we take pressure effects (coming from special relativity) into account in the evolution of the cosmic fluid and add the contribution of radiation, baryons, and dark energy (cosmological constant). For BEC dark matter with repulsive self-interaction (positive pressure) the scale factor increases more rapidly than in the standard ΛCDM model where dark matter is pressureless, while it increases less rapidly for BEC dark matter with attractive self-interaction (negative pressure). We study the linear development of the perturbations in these two cases and show that the perturbations grow faster in BEC dark matter than in pressureless dark matter. Finally, we consider a “dark fluid” with a generalized equation of state p = (αρ + kρ 2 )c 2 having a component p = kρ 2 c 2 similar to BEC dark matter and a component p = αρc 2 mimicking the effect of the cosmological constant (dark energy). We find optimal parameters that give good