Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization of an Algerian natural pozzolan for its use in eco-efficient cement

The paper presents the characterisation of an Algerian natural pozzolan (NP) intended to for use in cement-based materials. The experimental programme was based on different tests on paste and mortar. The pozzolanic activity was assessed by the means of lime consumption over time of mixtures of lime-pozzolan (75% NP and 25% Ca(OH)(2), water-binder ratio of 0.45). The degree of reactivity was assessed by observing the crystallographic changes (XRD) and lime constumption (TG) up to 1 year of hydration. The effect of NP on cement-based mixtures was based on the measurement of the water demand and setting time of pastes, and on the compressive strength of mortars, up to one year. The replacement rates of cement by pozzolan were 5, 10 and 15%. A superplasticizer was used (0, 1, 2 and 3% of the binder mass). A calculation of the carbon footprint was investigated in order to assess if the natural pozzolan could be considered as eco-efficient when used in replacement of the clinker. The results showed that NP had a medium pozzolanic reactivity and with a medium-low silica content. The use of NP usually led to a small increase in the water/binder ratio (up to 10%) to maintain constant workability. The setting time was also increased by around 20%. Nevertheless, strength tests showed that the pozzolan had sufficient activity to counteract the water demand, since long-term compressive strength of the binary system (cement + pozzolan) were higher than those of cement alone. The use of NP in replacement of clinker involves a reduction in CO2 emissions for transport up to 1800 km, which is compatible with sustainable development. The results are most promising from both a performance-based and an environmental point of view.
Complex Dyanmics in a Simple Model of Economic Specialization

This paper studies the dynamics of economic growth based on specialization in a network structure belonging to the family of Cellular Automata. The basic mechanism for the diffusion of specialization is the one identified by Allyn Young (1928): the specialization of some agents represents an increase in the extent of the market for others and may facilitate their specialization. We show that the the diffusion of specialization generally increases: i) with an increase of the dimension of the neighborhood, ii) with a reduction of the extent of the market necessary for specialization and iii) with a reduction of the extent of the market necessary to remain specialized (or with a reduction of the intensity of competition). The same parameters affect the qualitative features of the dynamics: the network configuration may not settle to a steady state and display a complex network dynamics. We also discuss the role of initial conditions of the dynamical system and the activation rules, that we relate to the organization of the economic activity.
he direct and indirect effects of interannual meteorological variability on cosystem carbon dioxide exchange at a temperate ombrotrophic bog

The link between inter-annual variability (IAV) in ecosystem CO2 exchange and meteorological conditions was evaluated using a decade (June 1998 to October 2008) of eddy covariance (EC) and meteorological data recorded at the Mer Bleue peatland, a large ombrotrophic bog located in Ontario, Canada (45.40◦N lat., 75.50◦W long.). Year-to-year variability in meteorology was particularly marked by prolonged growing periods, warmer soil temperature and greater water table drawdown during the summer of 1998–1999 and 2001–2003 periods. Ecosystem response to shortand long-term environmental alterations may be direct, where the response can be predicted as a linear function of the changing variables (constant slope) and/or indirect, in which case, a change in the rate of a particularly ecosystem response can be expected (variable slope). In this study, the potential direct and indirect effects of a decadal meteorological variability on IAV of ecosystem CO2 exchange were evaluated using a constant and variable slope multiple regression models. Indirect effect of IAV that results from a functional change in ecosystem response was identified and quantified as significant year-to-year changes in the slopes of the regression (i.e. as a difference between a constant and variable slope model) between weekly means of daytime net ecosystem productivity (NEPday) or nighttime ecosystem respiration (Rnight) and the following meteorological variables: photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD), water table depth (WTD), air (TA) and soil temperature (TS), relative humidity (RH), vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and wind speed(WS). Results of the analysis illustrated that the direct effects of meteorological variation (seasonal and inter-annual) together explained ∼67% of the total variance in both NEPday and Rnight over the 10 year period, with seasonal (week-to-week) variations explaining most of the total variance in NEPday (48.2%) or Rnight (61.2%). Indirect effects (functional change) explained only 5.3% and 3.4% of the total variance in NEPday and Rnight over the 10 year monitoring period, respectively. The relationship between NEPday and TA, RH and that of Rnight and TS were identified as the sources of the slope changes. This level of indirect effect of meteorological variation at Mer Bleue bog is smaller than that found previously at some upland sites and may be a general characteristic of undisturbed peatland ecosystems. Hence, at present variations in CO2 exchange ed to at this bog are largely tun
monitoring of ON 231 during the great outburst in 1994-1997

We present the most continuous data base of optical multiband data ever published on the BL Lacertae object ON 231 (W Com). The data have been collected during an intensive and coordinated BVRcIc monitoring campaign carried out in the period from March 1994 to March 1997. During our campaign, the source brightness was at the highest level ever observed. The light curve shows a complex structure, characterized by the pres- ence of three major outbursts having the observed max- ima in March 1995, February 1996, and January 1997, when ON 231 reached its historical maximum (B' 14:2). Variability on time scales from a few hours up to a month have frequently been observed and the light curve seems to be the superposition of many flares with dierent ampli- tudes and time scales. The broad-band optical spectral en- ergy distribution is characterized by a spectral slope which correlates with the flux level. In particular, the higher is the flux the flatter is the spectrum.
Large Eddy Simulation of a Swirl-Stabilized Pilot Combustor from Conventional to Flameless Mode

This paper investigates flame and flow structure of a swirl-stabilized pilot combustor in conventional, high temperature, and flameless modes by means of a partially stirred reactor combustion model to provide a better insight into designing lean premixed combustion devices with preheating system. Finite rate chemistry combustion model with one step tuned mechanism and large eddy simulation is used to numerically simulate six cases in these modes. Results show that moving towards high temperature mode by increasing the preheating level, the combustor is prone to formation of thermal with higher risks of flashback. In addition, the flame becomes shorter and thinner with higher turbulent kinetic energies. On the other hand, towards the flameless mode, leaning the preheated mixture leads to almost thermal -free combustion with lower risk of flashback and thicker and longer flames. Simulations also show qualitative agreements with available experiments, indicating that the current combustion model with one step tuned mechanisms is capable of capturing main features of the turbulent flame in a wide range of mixture temperature and equivalence ratios.
Optimal control of heteroscedastic macroeconomic models

Summary This paper analyses the implications of heteroscedasticity for optimal macroeconomic policy and welfare. We find that changes in the variance structure driven by exogenous processes like generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (GARCH) affect welfare but not the optimal feedback rule. However, changes in the variance structure driven by state-dependent processes affect both. We also derive certainty-equivalent transformations of state-dependent volatility models that allow standard quadratic dynamic programming algorithms to be employed to study optimal policy. These results are illustrated numerically using a reduced-form model of the US economy in which changes in volatility are driven by a GARCH process and the rate of inflation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Counterparty risk in procurement transactions: Contractual, financial, operational, and strategic risk mitigation

The effective management of undependable partners (e.g. financially distressed suppliers) in procurement transactions is an antecedent of widespread lean practices such as outsourcing, just-in-time deliveries, or supply network downsizing. Although a high degree of efficiency can be achieved through lean practices, it comes at the cost of greater dependence on the supply base. This is particularly true of industries that manufacture and rely on customized preproducts. In the presence of switching barriers, dependent buyers can easily find themselves locked into a supplier relationship and vulnerable to opportunistic behavior by the supplier or its shareand stakeholders. This concern has resulted in a growing interest in supply chain risk management research, as buyers must compete on their procurement markets for dependable supply at the lowest possible costs. As competition among buyers tends to intensify when suppliers are in financial distress, this dissertation answers the following research question: How can a buying firm protect its supply chain, if a supplier is financially distressed? Based on the notion that a financially distressed supplier might not be able to meet its contractual obligations, this dissertation takes a comprehensive approach to the managerial problem of supplier financial distress. To advance supply chain literature on the topic of counterparty risk in terms of supplier financial distress, three related articles have been written. The first article investigates factors that influence the supplier’s decisions to design and enter a contractual relationship. An important contribution of this work is the development of a contract acceptance model, validated with data pertaining to long-term buyer-supplier relationships, to explore the scholarly and managerial implications of contract design and acceptance. The second article investigates a buyer’s response options to supplier financial distress and identifies a significant relationship between a buyer’s dependence on a distressed supplier, the support effort shown by the buyer and the supplier’s restructuring success. Factors that influence the buyer’s response strategy are identified. The effectiveness of each response strategy is tested by tracking the financial performance of distressed suppliers over a period of four years. The third article presents a novel framework to study and manage supplier financial distress by incorporating research insights from publications on supply chain risk management, complex adaptive systems, and stakeholder management. With action-based research, a twofold research gap is addressed. First, since most
In Vitro Models of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

1.1 The lung The lungs are situated at the air-blood interface and are a crucial boundary between the organism and the environment, protecting the host from a battery of potential insults such as inhaled particles, pollutants, carcinogens and infectious agents that deposit on airway surfaces during normal tidal breathing. The upper or conducting airways (tracheo-bronchial region) are covered with a columnar epithelium composed of ciliated cells and mucus producing goblet cells (Figure 1A). The apical surface of the epithelium is covered by a surface liquid which is comprised of two distinct layers. The outer mucus layer provides a physical barrier that traps inhaled particles. The underlying periciliary fluid is a low viscosity liquid which allows cilia to beat and continually move the mucus layer towards the pharynx. Thus inhaled particles trapped in the mucus are cleared from the airways. Under normal conditions mucus protects the lung airway epithelium; however abnormalities in mucus hypersecretion or clearance can lead to respiratory disease (Rogers 2007). In the lower bronchioles, the epithelium is simple columnar, containing secretary Clara cells and has progressively fewer ciliated cells. The alveolar epithelium is composed primarily (95%) of flattened alveolar type I (AT-I) cells that form a thin barrier for gas exchange. These cells are interspersed with rounded alveolar type II (AT-II) cells that secrete pulmonary surfactant to decrease the surface tension within the alveoli and prevent alveolar collapse during expiration (Figure 1B).
Job Design and Innovative Work Behavior: One Size Does Not Fit All Types of Employees

As innovative employees become imperative for an organizations’ success, research identified job design as a crucial variable in promoting innovative work behavior (IWB) (Hammond et al., 2011). Using the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model of Bakker & Demerouti (2007), this article contributes to the literature as it uses recent insights on the distinction between job challenges and job hindrances (Van den Broeck et al., 2010) and distinguishes between blue- and white-collar employees. Using survey data of 893 employees of various organizations the findings generally confirm the JD-R model, although important differences were found between blue-collar and white-collar employees regarding the relation of organizing and routine tasks with IWB. Job content insecurity further was found to be very detrimental for blue-collar IWB. These findings have important HR and political implications as they show that there is no ‘one size fits all’ HR solution for innovation.
Determinants of Planned and Impulse Buying: The Case of the Philippines

The paper investigates factors influencing planned and impulse purchases in six personal care product categories. This study utilizes a behavioral measure, rather than an attitudinal measure of planned/impulse purchase. Data consist of 982 product purchases of 502 consumers in urban Philippines. Results show that product category, purchase frequency, brand comparison, and age are significant factors influencing planned and impulse purchases. There is no relationship found between planned/impulse purchases and attitudinal shopping values, surrogates for retail search strategies. Implications for retail management are identified.
The Informational Conception and Basic Physics

In our previous arXiv papers (“The Information and the Matter”, v1, v5; more systematically the informational conception is presented in the paper “The Information as Absolute”, 2014) it was rigorously shown that Matter in our Universe – and Universe as a whole - are some informational systems (structures), which exist as uninterruptedly transforming [practically] infinitesimal sub-sets of the absolutely infinite and fundamental “Information” Set. Such a conception allows not only to clear essentially a number of metaphysical and epistemological problems in philosophy but, besides, allows to suggest a reasonable physical model. Since Matter in Universe is an informational system where every interaction between Matter’s sub-structures, i.e. – particles and systems of the particles – happens always as an exchange by exclusively true information between these structures, the model is based on the conjecture that Matter is some analogue of computer. This conjecture, in turn, allows to introduce in the model the basic logical elements that constitute the material structures and support the informational exchange - i.e. the forces - between the structures. The model is experimentally testable and yet now makes be more clear a number of basic problems in special relativity, quantum mechanics, and, rather probably, in [now – in Newtonian] gravity. This paper is a next upgrade of earlier version http://arxiv.org/abs/0707.4657, 2012 This text contains two version of the paper: English version (pages 1-40) and Russian version (pages 1-86)
Evaluation of columellar scar by three types of incision in open rhinoplasty and patient satisfaction

Introduction : Open rhinoplasty is very common now a days and the number of candidate for this type of surgery are increasing. This research was conducted regarding to the prevalence of rhinoplasty surgery , the importance of the residual scar analyze including columellar scar after surgery, different results caused by the effect of incision type in this surgery and lack of enough data and experimental report on it. Materials and Methods : The research was conducted by COHORST STUDY plan. 120patients with indications of open rhinoplasty was selected by sampling method and located in three groups with three incision types including V, Invert V and Step incision. The surgery was done in same condition from surgical aspect and followed for 6 months. The analyze of columellar scar was investigated in three indexes of scar outbreak, notching and depression or bump in three groups by K2 test and satisfaction level of the patients was measured with VAS criteria, and was analyzed with MANN-U-WHITNEY test. Results : The research was conducted on 120 samples including V type of incision with 74 samples, Invert V with 33 samples and STEP incision with 13 samples. Scar formation in 25/7 %, 27/2 % and 23/8 % respectively was found (p<0.8) and notching and depression or bump outbreak was the same in three groups (p<0.9). The satisfaction in 3 groups was as follow 7.8 1±. 7, 7.7 ±3.2, 7.6±1.8 ( p<0.8). Conclusion : It seems all three incision types lead to the same result in open rhinoplasty. Key words: Columellar scar, incision type, open rhinoplasty, patient satisfaction.
VLBI and VLA observations of intraday polarization variability in 0917+624 and 0954+658

ABSTRA C T Total intensity and polarization la 6 cm Very Large Array (VLA) and global very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) images of the quasar 09171624 and the BL Lacertae object 09541658 (both at epoch 1991.43) are analysed. Integrated measurements using the VLA during the VLBI observations indicated that, although there were no substantial total intensity variations, there were significant polarization variations for both sources during the 24-h VLBI experiment. The VLBI data were divided into 2‐3 h segments in order to try to identify corresponding rapid variability in the VLBI structure. This analysis revealed intraday variability (IDV) in the VLBI core of 09171624: both the polarized flux and the polarization position angle varied substantially on time-scales of ,5‐10 h. There is evidence that the VLA polarization variations for 09541658 occurred in an inner VLBI jet component, where the polarized flux varied by ,30‐40 per cent on time-scales of , 2h . 09171624 and 09541658 were observed together with 07161714, an object that also displayed IDV in the polarized flux density measured during our experiment (analysed in a separate paper). These three sources were targeted for the VLBI observations since they had been previously identified as intraday variables, but we had no way of knowing whether they would vary during our observations. The fact that all three exhibited IDV in polarization (but not in total intensity) during our experiment suggests that polarization IDV occurs frequently in at least some IDV sources.
Assessment of soil phosphorus and potassium following real time kinematic-guided broadcast and deep-band placement in strip-Till and no-Till

Fertilizer placement may cause non-uniform nutrient distribution in the soil, making it diffi cult to determine whole-fi eld fertility by traditional sampling strategies. Our objectives were to determine P and K distribution after repeated applications in no-till and strip-till soils and to develop improved sampling procedures to estimate soil P and K levels on a corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ] rotation with crops planted at 76-cm row spacing. Three trials near Pesotum, IL, received blends of 0–0, 22–42, 33–62, 44–83, 55–104, 66–125, and 77–145 kg P–K ha –1 in fall 2007 and 2009 before corn planting. Applications were broadcast-applied in no-till (NTBC) and strip-till (STBC) and deep-banded in strip-till (STDB) 15 cm below the surface in the crop row (IR) using real-time kinematic (RTK) satellite navigation. Every year soil P and K was measured at 10-cm increments to a 30-cm depth at 0, 19, 38, and 57 cm from the IR. Subsurface banding reduced P and K levels in the surface and increased them at the point of application, or deeper with the highest rate, while broadcast applications increased surface levels. Soil-surface K levels were greater at IR likely because of K leaching from senescing standing crops. Soil-test results indicated no need to adjust fertilizer rate based on tillage or fertilizer placement. A sampling ratio of 1:3 IR to between the crop rows (BR) seemed adequate to estimate soil fertility across a wide range of P- and K-fertilizer rates and soil test levels where the location of the fertilizer band or planting row is maintained constant.
Profitability of the informal cross-border trade: a case study of four selected borders of Botswana

In this study, the views of 520 informal cross border traders, obtained using systematic sampling and snow ball techniques from four selected border posts in Botswana, were used to show how profitable ICBT is. The results of the analysis show that the monthly profit generated by ICB traders is over ten times the minimum wage of workers in Botswana and gross profit margin from this trade is 54.99%. Whereas about two million United States dollars is generated as profits from the exported goods in the ICBT annually, the corresponding profits from imported goods is over five million United States dollars. A multiple regression analysis shows that the two most significant (p < 0.01) positively correlated variables and predictors of profit generated from ICBT are the initial startup capital (r = 0.807, n= 520) and the number of years in ICBT business (r = 0.221, n = 520). The study recommends that the Government of Botswana should recognize ICBT as one of the arms for poverty alleviation and policies should be put in place to regulate this trade, enhance access to funding for ICB traders to start up their business, as it has potentials to help in economic diversification. Key words: Profitability, informal, cross-border, trade, gross profit margin.