Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CRAYFISH FEEDING PREFERENCES FOR FRESHWATER MACROPHYTES: THE INFLUENCE OF PLANT STRUCTURE AND CHEMISTRY

Abstract The omnivorous crayfish Procambarus clarkii fed selectively on several species of macrophytes, preferring delicate fresh plants that had filamentous or finely-branched architectures. When the macrophytes were dried, powdered, and reconstituted into an alginate gel (thus eliminating among-species differences in physical characteristics), crayfish preferences were altered; previously tough plants that were high in nitrogen and protein were preferred over previously delicate plants that were low in nitrogen and protein. Even though plant structure influences feeding decision of crayfish, the structurally identical macrophyte gels were fed upon differently, demonstrating that nonstructural traits are important feeding determinants. However, plant tissue constituents such as nitrogen, protein, phenolics, lignin, cellulose, or ash were not significantly correlated with feeding preferences. Two high-nitrogen plants that were avoided by crayfish as fresh and as reconstituted tissue (Nuphar luteum macrophyllum and Alternanthera philoxeroides) possessed extracts that reduced crayfish feeding in laboratory assays, demonstrating that macrophyte metabolites can deter some herbivores. As is often observed with large generalist herbivores and omnivores in terrestrial and marine systems, the freshwater crayfish made feeding decisions based upon multiple plant cues (structure, nutrition, chemical defenses).
Economy Wide Impact of the Trade Integration between Japan and India: A GTAP Analysis

Japan and India signed the much-awaited Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement on 16 February 2011. The EPA will eliminate tariff on goods that account for 94% of their two way trade over ten years. This is a strategic move between two countries which will boost bilateral trade and investment. Indian exports which were subject to rigid standards will find it easier to enter Japanese markets. On the other hand, reduction of tariffs would help Japanese exports to exploit the growing Indian market. Overall, India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) is a major step for harmonious economic rise of Asia. In this background, the study evaluates the economy wide impact of the proposed CEPA between India and Japan at 2020. The study has used a widely recognized global CGE model. Result shows a marginal increase in output growth for India and Japan in 2020 after tariff reduction compared to BAU. A marginal export growth is expected for both the countries compared to BAU 2020. A fair amount of trade creation within these two countries is expected to occur. India would likely to increase its export to Japan by I8.25%, while for Japan it will be only 4.65% by 2020. The proposed FTA will also improve the welfare of both the countries at 2020. An important finding of the study is that in spite of tariff liberalization in agriculture sector which is protected through stringent tariff and non-tariff barriers, Japan will witness considerable welfare gain. On the whole, it reflects that compared to Japan, India is expected to gain more during the 2010-2020 from the successful implementation of CEPA. The recent triple disasters (earthquake, Tsunami and radiation leaks) in Japan in March 2011 will have shortterm negative impacts on the economy but is unlikely to affect the expected gains from CEPA between India and Japan. According to ADB’s Asian Development Outlook 2011, short negative impact may be significant but in the long-run Japanese economy will expand through reconstruction efforts and return to productive activities. On the other hand, this can also lead towards enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries.
The Regulatory Emotional Self-Efficacy Scale: Issues of Reliability and Validity Within a Turkish Sample Group

The purpose of this study was to psychometrically evaluate the Turkish version of the Regulatory Emotional Self-efficacy Scale (RESE). The RESE, the Emotional Self-efficacy Scale, the Self-liking/Self-competence Scale, and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire were applied to 303 university students in total, 180 were women (59.4%) and 123 were men (40.6%). According to results of confirmatory factor analysis applied in the study are founded enough conformity between the priori hypothesis model and the data. In addition, the metric invariance model shows that there were no gender differences on this confirmatory model. Internal consistency coefficients were all above the acceptable for the RESE’s sub-scale and total. Moreover, positive correlations were found between regulatory emotional self-efficacy dimensions and emotional self-efficacy, self-esteem, and happiness. According to these research findings, the RESE is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring regulatory self-efficacy in Turkish.
Edible insects acceptance by belgian consumers: promising attitude for entomophagy development

Entomophagy is not well accepted in Western European populations but it is common in the world. In the future, populations from developed countries should adapt to other sources of animal proteins because traditional breeding of beef, poultry or pork will become unsustainable. This study was performed to assess the perception of entomophagy in the Belgian population. A slight neophobia was detected but people agreed to evaluate insect preparations. Various insect formulations (mealworms and house crickets) were prepared, and insects associated with known flavors and crispy textures were preferred. After a hedonic test, people seemed to be willing to eat and cook insects in the near future. The opportunity to introduce entomophagy in food habits of Western European populations was positively concluded. Integration of edible insects in human food is a potential solution to replace other animal protein sources in a much more sustainable development and will deserve more attention in the future. Practical Applications This study shows the edible insects' potential to become a usual food ingredient in Western European populations. Our results show that consumers are ready to buy and cook insects at home if they are able to associate them with familiar flavors.
POPOVICIU TYPE CHARACTERIZATION OF POSITIVITY OF SUMS AND INTEGRALS FOR CONVEX FUNCTIONS OF HIGHER ORDER

Some very general identities of Abel and Popoviciu type for sums $\sum p_i f(x_i)$, $\sum \sum p_{; ; ; ; ; ij}; ; ; ; ; f(x_i, y_j)$ and integral $\int \int P(x, y) f(x, y) dx \, dy$ are deduced. Using obtained identities, positivity of these expressions are characterized for convex functions of higher order. An application in terms of exponential convexity is given.
Creating a Culture of Risk in Greece Amidst the Economic Crisis: A Brief Retrospect on "Ice Age"

The recent financial crises in America and Europe have shown emphatically that the findings of the relevant risk management literature concluding that lurking risks can be converted into opportunities have unfortunately not informed policy. The assumption of the risk as a burden, often leads economies to crises that undermine the development and prosperity of states and citizens. In this context, this article aims at highlighting risk characteristics and presentation of basic management principles which should govern the operation of public service organizations. Based on literature review of the economic facts of the 2008-2015 period in Greece, the fact that emerges is that effective risk management is a necessary condition for the survival of public organizations in today's global environment. present times, we stress the need to instill risk culture in organizations and analyze the role contemporary managers must have in risk-management. The third section, through an extensive review of the literature focuses on the case of Greece and its failed attempt to manage financial risk. In the fifth section, finally, we summarize the conclusions of the paper.
Use of Robust z in Detecting Unstable Items in Item Response Theory Models.

The first part of this paper describes the use of the robust zR statistic to link test forms using the Rasch (or one-parameter logistic) model. The procedure is then extended to the two-parameter and three-parameter logistic and two-parameter partial credit (2PPC) models. A real set of data was used to illustrate the extension. The linking results illustrate the efficacy of the robust zR vis-a-vis some of the most commonly used processes such as the Stocking and Lord (1983) linking process.
Flying In The Face Of Efficiency: Migratory Swallows (Hirundinidae) Have Less Pointed Wings Than Residents

The correlation between migration and more pointed wings is a well-established pattern in avian ecomorphology, and has been supported by a large number of studies over many decades. However, most studies have focused on taxa with relatively low aspect ratio wings, and taxa with high aspect ratio wings have scarcely been investigated except as part of large pooled datasets. While some authors have questioned whether the pattern is detectable in all taxa, the basic assumption that migrants have more pointed or similar wings compared to residents—depending on the strength of selection—has not been questioned. This study examines the correlation between migration and more pointed wings in swallows (Hirundinidae), a family with relatively high aspect ratio wings. Using phylogenetically controlled statistical methods and a well-established index of wing pointedness, I investigated the wing shape of species pairs from eight swallow genera. The present study establishes that among swallows, migratory species have less pointed wings than sedentary species, and that wing pointedness declines linearly with increasing migration distance. This study represents the first published result demonstrating a reversal of the correlation between migration and more pointed wings found in other avian taxa. Hypotheses to account for this unprecedented finding and implications for future research are discussed.
Capital Structure, Cost of Capital, and Voluntary Disclosures

ABSTRACT: This paper develops a model of financing that jointly determines a firm’s capital structure, its voluntary disclosure policy, and its cost of capital. Investors who receive securities in return for supplying capital sometimes incur losses when they trade their securities with an informed trader. The firm’s disclosure policy and the structure of its securities determine the information advantage of the informed trader and, hence, the size of investors’ trading losses and the firm’s cost of capital. We establish a hierarchy of optimal securities and disclosure policies that varies with the volatility of the firm’s cash flows. Debt securities are often optimal, with the form of debt—risk-free, investment grade, or “junk”—varying with the firm’s cash flow volatility. Though the model predicts a negative association between firms’ cost of capital and the extent of information firms disclose, more expansive voluntary disclosure does not cause firms’ cost of capital to decline. Mandatory disclosures al.
Is it advantageous to reuse fruit waste biomass from processing of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L).or briquette production

Wine making industry represents a significant part of the agriculture sector; a growing area, where grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) was cultivated, was equal to 7,534 mil. ha in 2015 and produced 275.7 mil. hl of wine worldwide (50 % in European regions). Such a large industry produces a great amount of waste materials. During grapevine technological processing (wine production) waste biomass is produced in the form of vineshoots, pruning, stems, seeds or fruit pressings and is commonly used as fertilizer, plowed into soil or burnt. Therefore, the present research deals with the suitability of grapevine residues (fruit biomass) reusing for briquette production purposes. The investigated material consists of the following parts: skins, pulps, seeds and stems, thus, occurred in heterogeneous mixture. The initial form of the material exhibited high moisture content, thus, had to be dried in a laboratory dryer and subsequently crushed and homogenized. The produced briquette samples were densified into cylindrical shape with diameter 50 mm with different length and weight. Determination of the briquette final quality was stated directly after briquette production. The chemical analysis was focused on the briquette moisture, ash content and calorific value while the mechanical analysis described the mechanical durability and volume density of the briquette samples. The result values of experimental testing proved great level of the moisture content (5.3 %), ash content (6.2 %); the gross calorific value was equal to 19.2 MJ·kg –1 which is a great result. However, the result values of the briquette mechanical quality indicators exhibited low level; the mechanical durability was equal to 28.3 ± 3.5 %, which is an unsatisfactory result. It can be concluded that the investigated material is advantageous for combustion purposes, but the performance of the biofuel was not suitable. This fact offers an opportunity to improve bad mechanical properties of briquettes by mixing with other feedstocks with high lignin content (natural binder).
Energy dissipation in two-dimensional unsteady plunging breakers and an eddy viscosity model

An experimental study of energy dissipation in two-dimensional unsteady plunging breakers and an eddy viscosity model to simulate the dissipation due to wave breaking are reported in this paper. Measured wave surface elevations are used to examine the characteristic time and length scales associated with wave groups and local breaking waves, and to estimate and parameterize the energy dissipation and dissipation rate due to wave breaking. Numerical tests using the eddy viscosity model are performed and we find that the numerical results well capture the measured energy loss. In our experiments, three sets of characteristic time and length scales are defined and obtained: global scales associated with the wave groups, local scales immediately prior to breaking onset and post-breaking scales. Correlations among these time and length scales are demonstrated. In addition, for our wave groups, wave breaking onset predictions using the global and local wave steepnesses are found based on experimental results. Breaking time and breaking horizontal length scales are determined with high-speed imaging, and are found to depend approximately linearly on the local wave steepness. The two scales are then used to determine the energy dissipation rate, which is the ratio of the energy loss to the breaking time scale. Our experimental results show that the local wave steepness is highly correlated with the measured dissipation rate, indicating that the local wave steepness may serve as a good wave-breaking-strength indicator. To simulate the energy dissipation due to wave breaking, a simple eddy viscosity model is proposed and validated with our experimental measurements. Under the small viscosity assumption, the leading-order viscous effect is incorporated into the free-surface boundary conditions. Then, the kinematic viscosity is replaced with an eddy viscosity to account for energy loss. The breaking time and length scales, which depend weakly on wave breaking strength, are applied to evaluate the magnitude of the eddy viscosity using dimensional analysis. The estimated eddy viscosity is of the order of 10−3 m2s−1 and demonstrates a strong dependence on wave breaking strength. Numerical simulations with the eddy viscosity estimation are performed to compare to the experimental results. Good agreement as regards energy dissipation due to wave breaking and surface profiles after wave breaking is achieved, which illustrates that the simple eddy viscosity model functions effectively.
eu PRIME GAMMA-NEAR-RINGS WITH ( σ , τ )-DERIVATIONS

Let N be a 2 torsion free prime Γ-near-ring with center Z(N) and let d be a nontrivial derivation on N such that d(N) ⊆ Z(N). Then we prove that N is commutative. Also we prove that if d be a nonzero (σ,τ)-derivation on N such that d(N) commutes with an element aofN then ether d is trivial or a is in Z(N). Finally if d1 be a nonzero (σ,τ)-derivation and d2 be a nonzero derivation on N such that d1τ = τd1, d1σ = σd1, d2τ = τd2, d2σ = σd2with d1(N)Γσ(d2(N)) = τ(d2(N))Γd1(N) then N is a commutative Γ-ring. AMS Subject Classification: 16Y30, 19W25, 16U80
Breeding Habitats of the Rose-Ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri ) in the Cultivations of Central Punjab

Six major habitats viz . , croplands, villages, roadside forest plantations, canal side forest plantations, city road avenues and a university campus, all located in Central Punjab, of the rose-ringed parakeet ( Psittacula krameri borealis ) were surveyed during the breeding season of the parakeet in 1997 and 1998. In the croplands, from a total of 2224 trees, 64 nests (0.002 nests per tree), from 2094 trees of the road side forest plantations, 248 nests (0.118 nests per tree), from 3952 trees of the canal side forest plantations 96 (0.002 nests per tree), from 258 trees of the city road avenues 56 nests (0.217 nests per tree), and from 199 trees of the university campus 52 (0.26 nests per tree) were recorded. It was inferred that the kind of trees and their age were the important factors determining the number of parakeet nests in various habitats.
Are Exporters More Environmentally Friendly? A Re-Appraisal that Uses China’s Micro-Data

Is a firm’s ability to export an important determinant of environmental performance? To answer this question, we construct a unique micro dataset that merged two rich firm-level datasets for China for 2007. When combining this new dataset with well-received empirical specifications, we found that both export status and export intensity are associated with lower sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions intensity. In addition to the traditional OLS estimation, we verified this association by using the propensity score matching method. Our findings show that the baseline result still holds. In short, exporters are more environmentally friendly than non-exporters, which is in line with previous evidence reported for developed economies. We further discuss mechanisms that explain the observed pattern and show that exporters realize higher abatement efforts compared to non-exporters. This study complements the literature in terms of providing China’s micro evidence on SO2 abatement efforts. It also serves as a first step toward a better understanding of the impact of trade on the environment, especially in developing countries.
Litter quality and nutrient cycling affected by grazing‐induced species replacements along a precipitation gradient

One of the potential mechanisms for the impact of herbivores on nutrient cycling is the effect of selective grazing on litter quality through changes in species composition. However, the scarce evidence collected on this mechanism is controversial and seemingly influenced by site-specific variables In this paper, we explored the consequences of grazing-induced changes in species composition on litter quality and nitrogen cycling with a regional perspective. Along a 900-mm of mean annual rainfall gradient, we selected species promoted and diminished by grazing from three natural rangelands of Argentina, analyzed their litter quality, and determined their decomposition and nutrient release kinetics under common greenhouse conditions. Litter quality and decomposition rates were strongly associated with plant response to grazing. However, the magnitude and direction of these differences depended on the ecosystem considered. In the wettest site, the species promoted by grazing (forbs) had higher nitrogen and phosphorus contents, faster decomposition rates, and higher release of nitrogen to the soil than species diminished by grazing (C 3 and C 4 grasses). In the intermediate and dry sites, species promoted by grazing had lower nitrogen and phosphorus contents, and slower decomposition rates than those diminished by grazing (C 3 grasses in both cases). Decomposition of the entire group of species was not correlated with mean annual rainfall, but when litter of the species diminished by grazing was analyzed, it was negatively correlated with precipitation. Nitrogen was immobilized more often than mineralized, even after one year of incubation. Immobilization was negatively correlated with precipitation. All these results indicate that grazing may significantly alter nutrient cycling by affecting litter quality through changes in species composition. These effects seem to be larger when species replacements induced by grazing either involve functional groups, as it was the case in our wettest site, or change root to shoot ratios. Therefore, the functional groups involved in the replacement of species as well as shifts between belowground and aboveground allocation should play a key role in grazing-induced changes on nitrogen cycling.
Excluding sum stable distributions as an explanation of second moment condition failure - the Australian evidence

This paper examines the issue of stock return moments in the Australian stock market. The existence of at least second moments is a fundamental assumption of underlying finance theory. We determine, using characteristic exponent point estimates, that the population variance may be infinite but on the same data, we also find that Hill-estimates are above 2 for all stocks, indicating that second moments do exist. This conflicting result is resolved by setting up a simulation experiment in which we show that the empirical combination of the Hill-estimate and the characteristic exponent lies outside the simulated confidence intervals for sum stables. This enhances the evidence for the existence of second moments in Australian stock returns.
Scalar flux modeling of solute transport in open channel flows: Numerical tests and effects of secondary currents Modélisation du transport scalaire d'un soluté en canal: tests numériques et effets des courants secondaires

Numerical experiments involving various algebraic scalar flux models for solute transport in open channel flows are presented. Five algebraic scalar flux models including these of Daly and Harlow, Abe and Suga, Suga and Abe, Sommer and So, and Wikstrom et al. are tested. For the flow computation, a Reynolds stress model is used. The models are applied to laboratory experiments of solute transport in rectangular and compound open channel flows. The performance of each model is evaluated both qualitatively and quantitatively. It is found that Daly and Harlow’s model, although simple, predicts the solute transport most accurately. Further, with reference to the simulation results, the roles of the Reynolds fluxes and secondary currents in the solute transport equation are investigated. It is found that the Reynolds fluxes and secondary currents reduce and move the peak concentration, respectively.