Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sovereign Default, Private Investment, and Economic Growth

The literature on sovereign debt explains the ability of a country to borrow through various costs of a sovereign default. Existing models typically capture part of these costs as transitory drops in output of low persistence around the default. However, I show empirically that the costs of defaults seem long-lived. Even ten years after a default, GDP is roughly six percentage points lower than it would have been without a default. Output losses thus seem to be highly persistent or even permanent. Based on this observation, I develop a small open economy model that incorporates government borrowing from abroad and endogenous growth through the adoption of new varieties of intermediate goods. The model captures important stylized facts associated with sovereign borrowing, the business cycle in emerging economies and sovereign default. In the model, a sovereign default triggers a persistent loss in GDP relative to trend through a temporary reduction in technology adoption and investment. This persistence of the GDP losses adds to the cost of a default. Numerical experiments show that the long-run cost channel increases the average debt-to-GDP ratio by between 33 and 100 percent while keeping the default frequency constant or reducing it.
Study of ABO and Rh (D) Blood Groups among Gangadikara Vokkaligas of Mysore, Karnataka

Abstract Data are presented on frequency distribution of the ABO and Rh (D) blood groups among the Gangadikara Vokkaligas of Mysore, Karnataka, India. The O group recorded the highest frequency, followed by A and B. The incidence of Rh (D) negative was 2.67% and the gene frequency of recessive d allele was 0.1633. The results of the present study are compared with other caste populations of Karnataka.
Pedotransfer function application for estimation of soil hydrophysical properties using parametric methods

Soil hydraulic properties are needed as input data to describe and simulate the transport of water and solutes in the soil profile. The most important characteristics are the soil moisture retention curve (SMRC) θ(h) and the hydraulic conductivity function k(θ) or k(h), where θ is the soil moisture content, h is the pressure head and k is the hydrau- lic conductivity. SMRC represents the amount of water remaining in the soil under equilibrium conditions and is unique for each soil. The measurement of SMRC is laborious and time-consuming and so there are not enough data available sometimes. Various SMRC estimation models have been proposed and used extensively to overcome this problem. Other more easily available soil properties, such as particle size distribution, organic matter content, soil structure and bulk density, were used for the estimation of SMRC. Bouma and van Lanen (1987) called these models "transfer functions", and later on they were called "pedotransfer functions". This study is based on European works by Wosten et al. (1998, 1999), and others. The pedotransfer functions derived by Wosten et al. (1998) were used in the first part of the study. In the second part, the authors derived their own pedotransfer functions for the sites where all necessary data were available. The methodology of data processing was similar to that used by Wos - ten et al. (1998) for continuous pedotransfer functions. The use of continuous pedotransfer functions was tested on data sets from several sites in the Czech Republic (Cerhovice, Cernici, Brozany, Ovesna Lhota, Tupadly, Džbanov, Podlesi and Žichlinek). Unfortunately, the available Czech data sets are not as large as the data sets used in Wosten's work. Quite good new estimates of SMRC (expressed as pF curves) were found e.g. for the Cerhovice and Cernici sites; the estimates for a man-made soil profile in Brozany and for natural soils in Ovesna Lhota, Tupadly, Džbanov, Podlesi and Žichlinek were less successful, partly because of insufficient input data. The applications of continuous pedotransfer functions derived by Wosten et al. (1998) for the Czech data sets were not very successful, either. The quality and size of the input data sets are critical factors for a successful use of pedotransfer functions.
Trends in precipitation: analysis of long annual and monthly time series from mainland Portugal

Abstract. The purpose of this work is to investigate trends in annual and monthly precipitation in mainland Portugal by studying long time series. The data are from ten measuring stations scattered over mainland Portugal; some of the time series date back from the 19th century. Trends in these precipitation series were examined using the Mann-Kendall non-parametric trend test and the Sen's non-parametric method. Both full monotonic trends (i.e., over the record period) and partial trends were investigated. Results provide no evidences for rejecting the null hypothesis of no trend in annual precipitation, when a monotonic linear model was used. On the other hand, the analyses of partial trends in the time series identified a sequence of alternating decreasing and increasing trends in annual precipitation, which are sometimes statistically significant. This type of behaviour was also observed for the monthly precipitation.
Detailed numerical investigation of 90∘ scattering of energetic particles interacting with magnetic turbulence

In the present paper, we re-visit a well-known problem in diffusion theory, namely the 90∘ scattering problem. We use a test-particle code to compute the pitch-angle Fokker-Planck coefficient at 90∘ for different values of the turbulent magnetic field strength and the magnetic rigidity. We consider a slab model and compare our numerical findings with the analytical result provided by second-order quasilinear theory. We show that the latter theory accurately describes 90∘ scattering. We also replace the slab model by a more realistic two-component model to explore the influence of the turbulence model on 90∘ scattering.
Agris on-line Papers in Economics and Informatics

The aim of this paper is to identify the motives of the decisions to join the agritourism business in the Czech Republic and the degree of fulfilment of these input motives. The research also identified the differences in motives for the entry of farmers into agritourism in the Czech Republic as compared to the results of a study on agritourism in the USA. In order to achieve the aims, descriptive statistic methods and non-parameterized testing through Wilcoxon test were used. It was found out that unlike the USA, in the Czech Republic the most dominant motives for joining agritourism are economic motives. The results also included a comparison of the approaches reflecting the impact of existing experience with agritourism with the change of approaches to the input motives. The article originated as a part of the Internal Grant Agency (IGA) of the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Registration Number 20121074.
ON SUN-TO-EARTH PROPAGATION OF CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS

We investigate how coronal mass ejections (CMEs) propagate through, and interact with, the inner heliosphere between the Sun and Earth, a key question in CME research and space weather forecasting. CME Sun-to-Earth kinematics are constrained by combining wide-angle heliospheric imaging observations, interplanetary radio type II bursts, and in situ measurements from multiple vantage points. We select three events for this study, the 2012 January 19, 23, and March 7 CMEs. Different from previous event studies, this work attempts to create a general picture for CME Sun-to-Earth propagation and compare different techniques for determining CME interplanetary kinematics. Key results are obtained concerning CME Sun-to-Earth propagation: (1) the Sun-to-Earth propagation of fast CMEs can be approximately formulated into three phases: an impulsive acceleration, then a rapid deceleration, and finally a nearly constant speed propagation (or gradual deceleration); (2) the CMEs studied here are still accelerating even after the flare maximum, so energy must be continuously fed into the CME even after the time of the maximum heating and radiation has elapsed in the corona; (3) the rapid deceleration, presumably due to interactions with the ambient medium, mainly occurs over a relatively short timescale following the acceleration phase; and (4) CME–CME interactions seem a common phenomenon close to solar maximum. Our comparison between different techniques (and data sets) has important implications for CME observations and their interpretations: (1) for the current cases, triangulation assuming a compact CME geometry is more reliable than triangulation assuming a spherical front attached to the Sun for distances below 50–70 solar radii from the Sun, but beyond about 100 solar radii we would trust the latter more; (2) a proper treatment of CME geometry must be performed in determining CME Sun-to-Earth kinematics, especially when the CME propagation direction is far away from the observer; and (3) our approach to comparing wide-angle heliospheric imaging observations with interplanetary radio type II bursts provides a novel tool in investigating CME propagation characteristics. Future CME observations and space weather forecasting are discussed based on these results.
Impact of integrated pest management strategies for shoot and fruit borer in brinjal

Shoot and fruit borer, Leucinodes orbonalis Guen is the major pest of brinjal and cause heavy economic loss to brinjal growers. To avoid ill effects of insecticides, Integrated Pest Management strategies had been promoted through front line demonstrations in 10 farmers field in Tiruvallur District during 2014 15 and 2015-16. IPM strategies include clipping and disposal of infested shoots, removal of fruits with boreholes, installation of pheromone traps @ 12/ha, release of Trichogramma chilonis @ 8 cc/ha for 4 times at weekly interval, spraying of Bacillus thurinjiensis @ 1 kg/ha and Flubendiamide 20 WDG 7.5 g /10 lit. The mean of the parameters in 10 demonstrations during 2014-15 and 2015-16 revealed that shoot and fruit borer damage at vegetative phase as shoot damage was 13.6 per cent in IPM field and 19.6 in farmers practice (only insecticides). Fruit damage was found to be low 15.9 per cent in IPM field while in farmers practice it was 25.0 per cent. Fruit yield was found to be high, 32.8 t/ha in IPM field when compared to farmers practice (Non IPM). Benefit Cost Ratio also was found to be high (4.05) in IPM field where as the ratio is low (3.1) in farmers practice.
A polynomial expansion of axial velocity profiles to solve transient laminar flow in elastic pipe

This study provides a theoretical and numerical modelling of shear stress due to the friction of transient laminar flow on pipe wall. This work is a simplified model of Prado et al. [1]. It is based on the expansion of the instantaneous velocity profiles of the flow in polynomial series in time and radial variable across the section of pipe. The set partial derivatives equations obtained from the conservation of mass and the theorem of momentum is then solved by the method of characteristics. The results obtained are in good agreement with those of Holmboe and Rouleau [2], in steady state Newtonian laminar flow.
Alteration of Lipid Peroxidation and Total Antioxidant Capacity in Patients With Head and Neck Cancers Following Radiotherapy

Background: Head and neck cancers are one of the main causes of cancer related death in the world. The common approach in the treatment of head and neck cancers is radiotherapy either alone or in combination with other therapeutic strategies. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of radiotherapy on lipid peroxidation and total antioxidant levels as biomarkers of oxidative stress in patients with head and neck cancers. Patients and Methods: Head and neck cancers were documented by two blinded expert pathologists. Whole saliva samples were collected from 30 patients with head and neck cancers before and after radiotherapy and 30 healthy individuals. The unstimulated whole saliva malondialdehyde (MDA), as an indicator of lipid peroxidation, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were assayed by thiobarbituric acid and decolorization of ABTS radical cation method, respectively. Data was analyzed by ANOVA followed by Tukey’s post hoc test. Results: The levels of antioxidants capacity were significantly increased before radiotherapy in patients in comparison to healthy control (P < 0.05). Moreover, antioxidants capacity levels were significantly enhanced after radiotherapy in patients. Furthermore, lipid oxidation levels slightly decreased after radiotherapy in non-significant manner. Conclusions: Lipid peroxidation slightly reduced in patients with head and neck cancers after radiotherapy. However, antioxidant status improved in these patients after radiotherapy.
Ionospheric effects of solar flares at Mars

From an analysis of electron density profiles recorded aboard Mars Global Surveyor, we report observations of some new and aeronomically important solar flare effects in the ionosphere of Mars. We find that all flares result in the formation of a well defined E layer peak, not always seen on other days. Further, while majority of flares result in elevated electron densities in the E region alone, some flares affect both the E and F1 layers. These altitude ‐ related effects can provide vital information on the relative enhancement of photon fluxes in the various wavelength bands during solar flares. By using the unit optical depth values at Mars from Fox (2004) and the XUV irradiance model of Meier et al. (2002) for the Bastille Day solar flare, we infer that the well defined E peaks could result from enhancement of photon fluxes in the 10–13 nm spectral band. The extension of effect to the F1 layer is due to hardening of the 26–91 nm spectral band, as supported by Solar EUV Monitor measurements on Solar Heliospheric Observatory.
A Vivisection of the ev Computer Organism: Identifying Sources of Active Information

ev is an evolutionary search algorithm proposed to simulate biological evolution. As such, researchers have claimed that it demonstrates that a blind, unguided search is able to generate new information. However, analysis shows that any non-trivial computer search needs to exploit one or more sources of knowledge to make the search successful. Search algorithms mine active information from these resources, with some search algorithms performing better than others. We illustrate these principles in the analysis of ev . The sources of knowledge in ev include a Hamming oracle and a perceptron structure that predisposes the search towards its target. The original ev uses these resources in an evolutionary algorithm. Although the evolutionary algorithm finds the target, we demonstrate a simple stochastic hill climbing algorithm uses the resources more efficiently.
Trade and Agglomeration: the Strategic use of Protection Revisited

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the strategic motive for protection present in trade and agglomeration models, in the so-called new economic geography framework, is sensitive to the standard assumption that there is a sole agglomeration industry. We first investigate unilateral trade policy effects on the international production and trade pattern and the resulting national welfare levels in a new economic geography model including several agglomeration industries. The strategic use of trade policy is then examined by identifying optimal policy positions as well as equilibrium policy strategies in a Nash policy game between the trade partners. Our results show that the strategic use of protection and the resulting "tariff war" outcome prevalent in standard trade and agglomeration models is sensitive to the inclusion of several agglomeration industries. Specifically, trade liberalising policies are optimal and free trade equilibria result from the Nash game unless there is a too wide industry gap in agglomeration economies. Our results show that the case for free trade can be directly attributed to either a relatively strong direct policy impact on national real income (working through raised import prices and reduced import volumes) or similar agglomeration economies in the two industries. The results of this paper jointly suggest that the stark argument for the strategic use of protection present in standard new economic geography models can be attributed to overemphasised gains from agglomeration and/or the lack of industries with similar agglomeration economies.
Value of medium range weather forecasts in the improvement of seasonal hydrologic prediction skill

We investigated the contribution of medium range weather forecasts with lead times of up to 14 days to seasonal hydrologic prediction skill over the conterminous United States (CONUS). Three different Ensemble Streamflow Prediction (ESP) based experiments were performed for the period 1980–2003 using the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) hydrology model to generate forecasts of monthly runoff and soil moisture (SM) at lead-1 (first month of the forecast period) to lead-3. The first experiment (ESP) used a resampling from the retrospective period 1980–2003 and represented full climatological uncertainty for the entire forecast period. In the second and third experiments, the first 14 days of each ESP ensemble member were replaced by either observations (perfect 14-day forecast) or by a deterministic 14-day weather forecast. We used Spearman rank correlations of forecasts and observations as the forecast skill score. We estimated the potential and actual improvement in baseline skill as the difference between the skill of experiments 2 and 3 relative to ESP, respectively. We found that useful runoff and SM forecast skill at lead-1 to -3 months can be obtained by exploiting medium range weather forecast skill in conjunction with the skill derived by the knowledge of initial hydrologic conditions. Potential improvement in baseline skill by using medium range weather forecasts for runoff [SM] forecasts generally varies from 0 to 0.8 [0 to 0.5] as measured by differences in correlations, with actual improvement generally from 0 to 0.8 of the potential improvement. With some exceptions, most of the improvement in runoff is for lead-1 forecasts, although some improvement in SM was achieved at lead-2.
Comparison of different imputation methods

Genotype imputation is a powerful tool to include animals genotyped with low density panels into higher density genomic evaluation without having to genotype them with more expensive high density panels. A range of different imputation software programs is available and it is necessary to compare their performance with data that represents the population for which the programs will be used. This study selected five imputation programs (AlphaImpute, BEAGLE, FImpute, findhap, PHASEBOOK) that were feasible for the structure and size of dairy genomic data sets and compared their ability to impute genotypes from the Illumina Bovine3K BEAD chip (3k) to genotypes from the Illumina Bovine SNP50 chip (50k) using two data sets. The first data set aimed to represent data from a small dairy breed with limited number of genotyped dams. The second data set mimicked a large dairy breed with many animals genotyped and majority of parents genotyped. All five compared programs performed very well in imputing genotypes from 3k to 50k density. On average, all of them imputed more than 90% genotypes correctly. Each of them had certain strengths and weaknesses. FImpute was the fastest program and was the most accurate software program for animals with family information. BEAGLE was the most accurate software for animals with limited family information. The choice of optimal imputation software is highly dependent on structure of the genotype file, namely the proportion of animals with their ancestors genotyped. Blending results from FImpute and BEAGLE seems to be a viable solution for current dairy data sets, which contains a proportion of animals without genotyped parents.
Nematode morphometry and biomass patterns in relation to community characteristics and environmental variables in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Nematode morphometry and biomass were investigated in the dry season of 2009 at the mouth of eight Mekong estuaries in Vietnam. We investigated how morphometry and biomass of nematodes were related to community characteristics and environmental gradients. Mean nematode lengths were significantly greater along the Co Chien estuary. In contrast, there were no significant differences in nematode width, length/width ratio, individual biomass and total biomass between stations at the estuarine mouth and along the Co Chien estuary. This study further confirmed that nematode morphometry and biomass distribution reflect specific modes of life in terms of feeding strategies, life history, and diversity. There were also particular morphotypes associated with specific environmental conditions. Over the whole area and especially along the mouth stations, nematodes were especially longer in sandy substrates where chlorophyll a concentrations were low, possibly due to the presence of predators and an associated reduction in the density of small opportunistic deposit feeders. An increase in the silt fraction together with pigment concentrations, especially along the Co Chien estuary, was positively correlated with the number, total biomass and abundances of small opportunistic genera resulting in a low maturity index and a high number of nematode genera.
Positive education: positive psychology and classroom interventions

Positive education is defined as education for both traditional skills and for happiness. The high prevalence worldwide of depression among young people, the small rise in life satisfaction, and the synergy between learning and positive emotion all argue that the skills for happiness should be taught in school. There is substantial evidence from well controlled studies that skills that increase resilience, positive emotion, engagement and meaning can be taught to schoolchildren. We present the story of teaching these skills to an entire school—Geelong Grammar School—in Australia, and we speculate that positive education will form the basis of a ‘new prosperity’, a politics that values both wealth and well‐being.