Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Capital Structure and Firm Value: Empirical Evidence from Ghana

This study seeks to provide evidence on the impact of capital structure on a firm’s value. The analysis was implemented on all the 34 companies quoted on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) for the year ended 31 st December 2010. The ordinary least squares method of regression was employed in carrying out this analysis. The result of the study reveals that in an emerging economy like Ghana, equity capital as a component of capital structure is relevant to the value of a firm, and Long-term-debt was also found to be the major determinant of a firm’s value. Following from the findings of this study, corporate financial decision makers are advised to employ more of long-term-debt than equity capital in financing their operations since it impacts more on a firm’s value.
Rainfall Types in the West African Sudanian Zone during the Summer Monsoon 2002

Enhanced surface and upper-air observations from the field campaign of the Integrated Approach to the Efficient Management of Scarce Water Resources in West Africa (IMPETUS) project are used to partition rainfall amounts over the West African Sudanian zone during the 2002 summer monsoon season into several characteristic types and subtypes of precipitating systems. The most prominent rainfall subtype was fast-moving, long-lived, and extensive cloud clusters that often developed far upstream over the central Nigerian highlands in the afternoon hours and arrived at the Upper Oueme Valley (UOV) after midnight. These organized convective systems (advective OCSs, subtype Ia) accounted for 50% of the total rain amount in the UOV catchment in Benin. Subtypes Ia and IIa (i.e., locally developing OCSs) were found to pass by or organize when a highly sheared environment with deep and dry midtropospheric layers was present over the UOV. These systems were most frequent outside the peak of the monsoon season. The second major type of organized convection, termed mesoscale convective systems (subtypes Ib, IIb, and IIIb) in the present study, contributed 26% to the annual UOV precipitation. They occurred in a lesssheared and moister tropospheric environment mainly around the height of the rainy season. A third distinct class of rainfall events occurred during an unusual synoptic situation in which a cyclonic vortex to the north of the UOV led to deep westerly flow. During these periods, the African easterly jet was lacking. The so-called vortex-type rainfalls (subtypes IIIa, IIIb, and IIIc) contributed about 9% to the annual rainfall totals.
In vitro Propagation of Cleome gynandra L . u sing Nodal Explants Sudan

Mass propagation in plants of Cleome gynandra L. were regenerated from nodal explants on MS medium containing various concentration of cytokinins (BAP and KIN) ranging from 5 μM to 25 μM. When compared to KIN, BAP was found to act in response well in shoot multiplication and number of shoots. Large number of shoots was produced from all concentration of BAP and KIN. Maximum number of shoots and highest frequency of 100% shoot induction was observed on MS medium containing 10 μM KIN and BAP. The elongated shoots were then transferred to MS half strength medium augmented with NAA and IAA in various concentrations for root induction. The roots were initiated and well developed in 2μM of both the auxins.
Comparing internal and alliance-based New Product Development processes: case studies in the food industry

This paper reports a comparative two-case design study of in-house NPD projects as well as alliance-based NPD projects in a food company. Two contradicting propositions of the efficiency of NPD in an alliance compared with NPD performed internally are stated, and the findings indicate that the alliance-based NPD solution creates a better context for NPD than the in-house solution. The observed pattern may be interpreted in terms of the framework developed by evolutionary economics, which states that what a firm can do is mainly determined by its organisationally embedded routines.
Biofilms of Candida glabrata Could Be the Shelter for Diplococci Against Antibacterial Agents

andida glabrata is emerging yeast in hospitals. This specie can contaminate catheters on which is able to form biofilms. These structures are, for other bacterial species, considered as places where they can be protected of antibiotic treatments. Microbial biofilms are formed of a single or mixed species which include a set of bacteria and/or fungi. Several studies have revealed the coexistence of bacterial species and Candida spp. within a biofilm. The aim of this study was to highlight the cohabitation, synergistic or antagonistic effects, between Candida glabrata which form the biofilm and Diplococcus spp. which does not have that ability. According to the results, Diplococcus spp. was sensitive to chloramphenicol, but within biofilm of C. glabrata where it lived in cohabitation, it curiously escaped the same antibiotic.
Microfungal Community in Sandy Beaches Located in Kedah, Pahang and Sabah, Malaysia

Microfungi are fundamental organisms help in balancing the ecosystem. The aims of this study are to identify microfungi isolated from sandy beaches based on internal transcribed spacers (ITS) sequence analysis and to determine the phylogenetic relationship among the locations of sampling areas. Fifty-seven isolates of microfungi were obtained from six beaches located in Kedah (Chenang Beach), Pahang (Balok Beach) and Sabah (Mamutik Island, Manukan Island, Sapi Island and Tanjung Aru Beach) to be used in this study. From the finding, the highest identified species were Aspergillusspecies (27 isolates) followed by Trichodermaspecies (12 isolates), Penicilliumspecies (10 isolates), Fusariumspecies (6 Bipolarisspecies and Chaetomiumspecies (1 isolate). ITS fragment of all isolates was amplified in within the size range of 533–658 bp. A phylogenetic tree was constructed using maximum likelihood (ML) method; the isolates were grouped into three clades according to their classes. In conclusion, diverse microfungi isolated from sandy beach soil depicting 19 species were discovered. Future studies are highly recommended to focus on intra-and interspecies diversity based on microsatellite markers analysis, consequently the originality and distribution of the fungal isolates. The outcome of this study includesa baseline data on the occurrence and species-diversity as well as important information on the status of microfungi in Malaysia beaches located in Kedah, Melaka and Sabah. It can be used as a checklist for future studies related to fungi distributionin the tropical beaches.
Forest disturbance by an ecosystem engineer: beaver in boreal forest landscapes

Natural disturbances are important for forest ecosystem dynamics and maintenance of biodiversity. In the boreal forest, large-scale disturbances such as wildfires and windstorms have been emphasized, while disturbance agents acting at smaller scales have received less attention. Especially in Europe beavers have long been neglected as forest disturbance agents because they were extirpated from most of their range centuries ago. However, now they are returning to many parts of their former distribution range. As a disturbance agent, beaver plays two roles: of an ecosystem engineer and of a herbivore. The engineering impact is realized through dam construction resulting in a transformation of an originally terrestrial ecosystem into an aquatic one. As herbivores, beavers affect stand structure and tree species composition by preferring deciduous trees over coniferous ones. After abandonment, a beaver pond gradually turns into a terrestrial habitat again. At well-drained sites, forest will return in due course, first dominated by deciduous trees. At poorly drained sites, moistness of beaver patches may result in fen development. We conclude that beaver has an important impact on ecosystem processes and biodiversity in boreal forest ecosystems because it creates and maintains a spatio-temporal mosaic of successional habitats and associated species communities that would otherwise not exist in the landscape.
Value received from Participating in Virtual Communities and The Impact on Virtual Community Participation

Wikipidia is a collaborative web site of knowledge sharing platforms. Based on a survey of 202 Wikipedians, this study develop a theoretical framework to examine the relationship between individual value (utilitarian/hedonic) received, group cohesiveness and virtual community participation. Result from structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis reveal that individual motivation has positive effect on virtual community participation. Hence, group cohesiveness moderates participants’ motivations on virtual community participation. Most of the past studies on virtual networks knowledge contribution focused only on the individual level, this study address the literature gap by exploring group level and the mutual relationships between participants in virtual communities.
The role of Schistosoma Haematobium in alteration of serum lipid profile among Sudanese schoolchildren

Background: Parasitic protozoa and helminthes are responsible for some of the most devastating and prevalent diseases of humans, threatening the lives of nearly one-third of the worldwide human population leading to more than 2 million deaths annually. Objective: determine serum total cholesterol [T.C], triglycerides [TG], high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C] and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C] in patients infected with Schistosoma haematobium . Materials: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Sudan between August, 2011 and January, 2013. The study included 250 infected subjects with Schistosoma haematobium [males and females] and 100 volunteers apparently healthy as control. All participants aged 7 - 12 years. Methods: The concentration of Total Cholesterol, Triglyceride LDL and HDL were measured using direct kit methods, and detection of urinary schistosoma haematobium eggs was carried by microscopy. Results: The mean concentration of triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C] and low density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C] were significantly lower among S. haematobium -infected subjects than in controls irrespective of the age and sex Triglyceride and Cholesterol was significantly low when the concentrations of ova in urine was high [>50], and only the cholesterol was significantly low in female patients compared to males. Conclusion: This study showed that schistosoma infection made significant alteration in plasma lipid levels with a corresponding increase in parasitemia levels in urine.
Translation and validation of the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI) into Bahasa Indonesia

The need for the very brief measure of the Big Five personality dimensions made the Ten-Item Personality Inventory (TIPI) increasingly popular among researchers around the world. The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the TIPI in Indonesia sample (501 participants, 68.1% of women) by testing the reliability (alpha reliability and test-retest stability) and the construct validity. The items were translated into Indonesian from the original English version. The results of the study showed that the Indonesian version of the TIPI has acceptable psychometric properties with satisfactory levels of test-retest reliability, satisfactory convergent and discriminant construct validity in the relationship with the Big Five Inventory (BFI). However, The TIPI Indonesia has a limitation related to internal structure and internal consistency which is consistent with the properties of the original scale. The TIPI Indonesia is promising scale recommended for research in such conditions: the cost and time are limited, the respondents are fatigue, personality is not the main focus of the research, or in the exploratory study.
Liquefaction behaviors of bamboo residues in a glycerol‐based solvent using microwave energy

Liquefaction of bamboo was performed in glycerol–methanol as co-solvent using microwave energy and was evaluated by characterizing the liquefied residues. High efficiency conversion of bamboo was achieved under mild reaction conditions. Liquefaction temperature and time interacted to affect the liquefaction reaction. Fourier transform infrared analyzes of the residues indicated that hemicellulose and lignin could easily undergo recondensation. Thermogravimetric analysis results showed that residues obtained at higher temperature/longer reaction time displayed a superior thermal stability as compared to those obtained from mild conditions. Moreover, significant differences were observed in the morphology and structures of residues from different liquefaction conditions according to scanning electron microscopy images. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 40207.
Measurements of stellar magnetic fields using synthetic spectrum fitting

A sample of Ap and Bp stars have been investigated with respect to their surface magnetic field using synthetic spectrum fitting. The advantage of this technique is the simplicity in determining the surface field strength and the possibility to apply it to objects whose spectrum does not display resolved Zeeman components. We show the usefulness of the method by demonstrations on stellar spectra with resolved Zeeman components, where the results have been compared with values based on measurements of the Zeeman splitting for the magnetically sensitive Feii6149 line. The objects HD 192678 and HD 165474 have been observed over their rotational period to investigate magnetic field variations. The analysis is then extended to objects where no resolved structure is observed. The rapidly rotating stars HD 22316 and HD 10783 are used as examples where this method is useful to achieve a value of the surface field. The relative intensification of the Feii6147, 6149 lines is investigated in an attempt to understand its relation to the surface magnetic field strength for the stars HD 22316 and HD 10783.
Income Inequality: The Consequences of Skill‐Upgrading When Firms Have Hierarchical Organizational Structures

During the last three decades, most developed countries have experienced increasing income inequality. Using Danish register data from 1992 to 2007 for all private‐sector employees, we confirm that income inequality has increased in Denmark. We also observe an increase in the relative employment of highly educated individuals, as well as differential income growth rates across employee subgroups where, in particular, managers experienced significant real income progression. We use an equilibrium search framework with on‐the‐job search to study the interplay between skill‐upgrading, management compensation, and income inequality. In this model we can determine the management and education premia. We can also show that when our model is exposed to skill‐upgrading, it is capable of producing income dynamics similar to those observed in the Danish income distribution.
Three Hypervelocity White Dwarfs in Gaia DR2: Evidence for Dynamically Driven Double-degenerate Double-detonation Type Ia Supernovae

Double detonations in double white dwarf (WD) binaries undergoing unstable mass transfer have emerged in recent years as one of the most promising Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) progenitor scenarios. One potential outcome of this “dynamically driven double-degenerate double-detonation” (D6) scenario is that the companion WD survives the explosion and is flung away with a velocity equal to its >1000 km s−1 pre-SN orbital velocity. We perform a search for these hypervelocity runaway WDs using Gaia's second data release. In this paper, we discuss seven candidates followed up with ground-based instruments. Three sources are likely to be some of the fastest known stars in the Milky Way, with total Galactocentric velocities between 1000 and 3000 km s−1, and are consistent with having previously been companion WDs in pre-SN Ia systems. However, although the radial velocity of one of the stars is >1000 km s−1, the radial velocities of the other two stars are puzzlingly consistent with 0. The combined five-parameter astrometric solutions from Gaia and radial velocities from follow-up spectra yield tentative 6D confirmation of the D6 scenario. The past position of one of these stars places it within a faint, old SN remnant, further strengthening the interpretation of these candidates as hypervelocity runaways from binary systems that underwent SNe Ia.
Beam Domain Massive MIMO for Optical Wireless Communications With Transmit Lens

This paper presents a novel massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission in beam domain for optical wireless communications. The optical base station equipped with massive optical transmitters communicates with a number of user terminals (UTs) through a transmit lens. Focusing on LED transmitters, we analyze light refraction of the lens and establish a channel model for optical massive MIMO transmissions. For a large number of LEDs, channel vectors of different UTs become asymptotically orthogonal. We investigate the maximum ratio transmission and regularized zero-forcing precoding in the optical massive MIMO system and propose a linear precoding design to maximize the sum rate. We further design the precoding when the number of transmitters grows asymptotically large and show that beam division multiple access (BDMA) transmission achieves the asymptotically optimal performance for sum rate maximization. Unlike optical MIMO without a transmit lens, BDMA can increase the sum rate proportionally to <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$2K$ </tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$K$ </tex-math></inline-formula> under the total and per transmitter power constraints, respectively, where <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$K$ </tex-math></inline-formula> is the number of UTs. In the non-asymptotic case, we prove the orthogonality conditions of the optimal power allocation in beam domain and propose efficient beam allocation algorithms. Numerical results confirm the significantly improved performance of our proposed beam-domain optical massive MIMO communication approaches.
Multichannel electroencephalographic analyses via dynamic regression models with time‐varying lag–lead structure

Multiple time series of scalp electrical potential activity are generated routinely in electroencephalographic (EEG) studies. Such recordings provide important non‐invasive data about brain function in human neuropsychiatric disorders. Analyses of EEG traces aim to isolate characteristics of their spatiotemporal dynamics that may be useful in diagnosis, or may improve the understanding of the underlying neurophysiology or may improve treatment through identifying predictors and indicators of clinical outcomes. We discuss the development and application of non‐stationary time series models for multiple EEG series generated from individual subjects in a clinical neuropsychiatric setting. The subjects are depressed patients experiencing generalized tonic–clonic seizures elicited by electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) as antidepressant treatment. Two varieties of models—dynamic latent factor models and dynamic regression models—are introduced and studied. We discuss model motivation and form, and aspects of statistical analysis including parameter identifiability, posterior inference and implementation of these models via Markov chain Monte Carlo techniques. In an application to the analysis of a typical set of 19 EEG series recorded during an ECT seizure at different locations over a patient's scalp, these models reveal time‐varying features across the series that are strongly related to the placement of the electrodes. We illustrate various model outputs, the exploration of such time‐varying spatial structure and its relevance in the ECT study, and in basic EEG research in general.
Antibiotic resistance in bacteria Staphylococcus spp. isolated from samples of raw sheep's milk

From samples of raw sheep's milk were determined results of bacteriological examination from two herds in region of Eastern Slovakia in three years lasting study. The occurrence of Staphylococcus spp. 41.6% (124) was determined from 298 samples. The seven species of staphylococci were on a regular basis isolated: S. epidermidis (34), S. chromogenes (26), S. aureus (16). Alternately have been recorded S. warneri (16), S. schleiferi (15), S. haemolyticus (9) and S. xylosus (8). All isolated pathogens were tested by in vitro test on Mueller-Hinton agar by disc methods on resistance to 10 types of antibiotics. Highest value of resistance was determined to Penicilin 21.0%, Neomycin 10.5% and Novobiocin 9.7%. Lower resistance was in to Oxacilin 7.2% and Amoxicilin 6.5%. Minimal resistance was founded to Cefoxitin 0.8%, Linkomycin 2.4%, Erytromycin, and Streptomycin 3.2%. Was founded total resistance (21.0%) to all antibiotics in S. epidermidis (34) during the three years, S. chromogenes (26) showed resistance to 8 types of antibiotics (12.9%), S. aureus (16) to 6 antibiotics (10.5%) and S. warneri (16) to 4 antibiotics (5.6%). It was confirmed that sheep's milk remains a major source of staphylococci. Bacteria in comparison with isolates from cows' raw milk, showed lower values of resistance, but were resistant to more than two antibiotics. Recorded occurrence of resistance in staphylococci may be connected with a minimum use of antibiotics in the treatment of mastitis and other diseases in sheep herds. Reported resistance to the tested antibiotics became the basis for the recommendation to use preparations to treat mastitis in sheep principally by the detection of resistance to antibiotics contained.
Fatalism and Health Behaviors: Exploring the Context for Clinician-Patient Interactions

As nurse scientists and clinicians working in healthcare, we are often seeking methods and models to encourage positive changes in lifestyle behaviors to help our patients become empowered to improve their health status. We are beginning to recognize that a phenomenon known as “fatalism” can influence perceptions of, and thus adherence or non-adherence to, healthy lifestyle behaviors. Experts have defined fatalism as a sense of lack of control and powerlessness over health and illness. Since fatalistic tendencies have been associated with perceived barriers to improved health status, the psychological management of fatalism is important for clinicians to address with patients. This work presents a practical, evidence-based set of principles and relevant examples for clinician-patient communication when fatalism is expressed by patients in healthcare settings. The set of principles is based on the basic tenets of Health Belief Model (HBM) and the reported functions indicating the different ways persons manage fatalistic tendencies from a psychological perspective: a) Stress relief; b) Uncertainty management; c) Sense-making; and, less strongly d) Face-saving. The set of principles is intended to support clinicians in context of active listening and open communication with patients. Supporting patients in moving from feeling powerless to powerful regarding their own health behaviors promotes the potentially positive influence of fatalism when discussion of risk reduction occurs. Fatalism is ultimately viewed by some experts as a potential “motivator” of positive behavioral change when assessed in context in relation to the patient’s intellectual and emotional responses to the diagnosis and treatment plan.