Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of various alcohols and reaction time on the properties of hydroxyl terminated natural rubber synthesized via oxidative degradation

The oxidative degradation of deproteinized natural rubber (DPNR) using cobalt bis(acetyl acetonate) in the presence of different alcohols and various reaction time; followed by reduction with sodium borohydride (NaBH4) for the synthesis of hydroxyl terminated liquid natural rubbers (HTNRs) was carried out. The synthesis of HTNRs from natural rubber is particularly important as an alternative to hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene (HTPB); one of the current leading synthetic rubber for the production of rubber binders for composite solid propellants. Four different alcohols (i.e. methanol, ethanol, propanol and hexanol) were investigated in order to achieve degraded DPNR with lowest molecular weight. The structure of the obtained HTNRs were analysed using gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and fourier transform infrared (FTIR). Based on GPC analysis, it was found that the use of ethanol at 1 h reaction time resulted in lowest molecular weight of approximately 6,690 g/mol. Analysis of chain scission of the HTNRs were consistent with the molecular weight attained. FTIR analysis, on the other hand confirmed the presence of hydroxyl functional group in the synthesized HTNRs with the highest amount of hydroxyl group presence in the HTNR prepared using ethanol. Overall, the properties of synthesized HTNRs (molecular weight and functional groups) displays a potential material for the production of propellant binder and are comparable to the properties of commercially available HTPB.
Agmatine Ameliorates Nicotine Induced Lung Injury in Rats through Decrease TGF-ß1 and Bax Immunoexpression and by Anti-oxidative Sress Pathway: Histological, Immunohistochemical and Biochemical Study

Introduction: Nicotine (NIC), the chief alkaloid in tobacco, believed to be an active agent responsible for lungassociated diseases. This protocol targeted to analyze the ameliorating effect of agmatine (AG) on NIC induced lung damage. Mateiral and methods: Forty-five adult male rats were divided into: Control group received intraperitoneal (IP) injection of distilled water, 2) NIC group recieved NIC (10 mg/kg/day) IP and 3) (NIC+AG) group treated by AG (10 mg/kg/day) orally+NIC (10 mg/kg/day) by IP injection for 9 weeks. Total serum protein, triglycerides (TGs), total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein (HDL), Low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), reduced glutathione (GSH) and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM- 1) were estimated. Lung specimens were prepared and stained with H&E, Masson trichrome and immunehistochemical stains for assessment of transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1) and Bax. Morphometric study followed by statistical analysis were done. Results: NIC group showed elevation in serum levels of total protein, TC, LDL-C, TGs, MDA and VCAM-1 with evident diminishing in the serum levels of HDL-C, SOD, and GSH. Apoptosis and damage of alveolar epithelium and bronchiolar cells, marked fibrosis, inflammatory cell infiltrate and congestion of blood vessels were observed. Marked increase in the mean alveolar wall thickness, mean area% of collagen fibers deposition, mean area% of TGFβ1 immuno-expression and mean number of Bax immune positive cells while a decrease in the mean linear intercept were detected. AG co-administered with nicotine ameliorated these biochemical, histopathological and morphometric changes. Conclusion: AG ameliorates NIC induced lung damage in rats through improving the biochemical parameters and by decreasing TGF-s1 and Bax immunoexpression.
Sexual segregation in a wide-ranging marine predator is a consequence of habitat selection

Sexual segregation, common in many species, is usually attributed to intra-specific competi- tion or habitat choice. However, few studies have simultaneously quantified sex-specific foraging be- haviour and habitat use. We combined movement, diving, stable isotope and oceanographic data to test whether sexual segregation in northern gannets Morus bassanus results from sex-specific habitat use. Breeding birds foraging in a seasonally stratified shelf sea were tracked over 3 consecutive breeding seasons (2010�2012). Females made longer trips, foraged far- ther offshore and had lower δ 13 C values than males. Male and female foraging areas overlapped only slightly. Males foraged more in mixed coastal waters, where net primary production (NPP) was relatively high (>3 mg C m �2 d �1 ) and sea-surface temperature (SST) was relatively low ( 15°C) more than females, possibly as a consequence of foraging in productive mixed waters over offshore banks. Females foraged most frequently in stratified offshore waters, of intermediate SST (12�15°C), but exhibited no consistent response to NPP. Sex-specific differences in diving behaviour corresponded with differences in habitat use: males made more long and deep U- shaped dives. Such dives were characteristic of inshore foraging, whereas shorter and shallower V-shaped dives occurred more often in offshore waters. Heavier birds attained greater depths during V-shaped dives, but even when controlling for body mass, females made deeper V-shaped dives than males. Together,
The association between obesity related adipokines and risk of breast cancer: a meta-analysis

The risk of breast cancer is significantly increased among obese women as the deleterious adipokines can be over secreted and beneficial adipokines can be hyposecreted. We aim to evaluate the association between obesity-associated adipokines and breast cancer. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Chinese Biomedical Literature (CBM) databases for studies reporting association of obesity related adipokines with breast cancer published before Sept. 15, 2015. Initially, 26783 publications were identified, and later, 119 articles were selected for further meta-analysis. Out of these 119 studies, twenty-six studies had reported adipokine levels among obese and non-obese healthy subjects and ninety-three studies had reported adipokine levels among patients with breast cancer. The subjects with BMI >25 kg/m2 had significantly lower adiponectin levels and higher leptin and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels than those with BMI <25 kg/m2. Decreased concentrations of adiponectin, and increased concentrations of leptin, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α, resistin and visfatin were significantly associated with risk of breast cancer. Adipokine levels were strongly associated with breast cancer among Asian women as compared to non-Asian women. Our results might explain the relationship of obesity, adipokine levels and risk of breast cancer, especially in Asian women.
An analysis of SAM pricing in the UK

This paper investigates the pricing and valuation of Shared Appreciation Mortgages (SAMs) issued in 1997 in the UK. The analysis indicates a high expected value of returns to the lenders that was clearly apparent ex-ante, with extremely high upside potential and virtually no material risk of loss to the investors. Since SAMs had been invented decades before, the high returns to the UK lenders do not represent pay for financial engineering a new innovative product. Instead, the high effective interest rates on the SAMs appear to represent compensation for misleading repackaging of a product existing elsewhere.
Investigating Linguistic Sources of Differential Item Functioning Using Expert Think-Aloud Protocols in Science Achievement Tests

Even if national and international assessments are designed to be comparable, subsequent psychometric analyses often reveal differential item functioning (DIF). Central to achieving comparability is to examine the presence of DIF, and if DIF is found, to investigate its sources to ensure differentially functioning items that do not lead to bias. In this study, sources of DIF were examined using think-aloud protocols. The think-aloud protocols of expert reviewers were conducted for comparing the English and French versions of 40 items previously identified as DIF (N = 20) and non-DIF (N = 20). Three highly trained and experienced experts in verifying and accepting/rejecting multi-lingual versions of curriculum and testing materials for government purposes participated in this study. Although there is a considerable amount of agreement in the identification of differentially functioning items, experts do not consistently identify and distinguish DIF and non-DIF items. Our analyses of the think-aloud protocols identified particular linguistic, general pedagogical, content-related, and cognitive factors related to sources of DIF. Implications are provided for the process of arriving at the identification of DIF, prior to the actual administration of tests at national and international levels.
A 9-year study of academically and vocationally educated parents' perceptions of their children's general abilities

Although parents’ beliefs in their children’s specifi c academic competencies have been investigated extensively, parental perceptions of the children’s general abilities have received little attention. This study examined changes in parents’ perceptions of their children’s problem-solving skills, social skills, dexterity and creativity and investigated whether parents’ perceptions diff erentiated according to their education and the children’s gender. The participants were a group of academic and vocational parents (N = 326) who were asked to assess their children’s abilities in a 9-year longitudinal study of the children’s formal schooling years. We found that the assessments carried out in the children’s preschool year correlated fairly strongly with those carried out even at the end of junior high school. Throughout the follow-up period, the academic parents ascribed more problemsolving skills to their children than the vocational parents and tended to emphasize these skills in relation to dexterity and creativity, whereas the vocational parents emphasized their children’s sociability. Girls were seen as better than boys in social skills, dexterity and creativity, while there was no gender diff erence in the perceived problem-solving skills. The parents seemed to have fairly established views of their children’s abilities from the beginning of the children’s schooling, and the formation of these views were associated with the parents’ education and the children’s gender.
INCOME , CHARITABLE GIVING , AND PERCEPTION BIAS

This paper analyses income and charitable giving from the perspective of perception bias. We show that perception bias affects charitable giving through its effects on warm glow, while inequality aversion counteracts these effects. Donors’ perception bias regarding a recipient’s situation does not necessarily decrease their charitable giving. Specifically, perception bias regarding the recipients’ effort and life shock decreases donors’ charitable giving. Perception bias regarding the recipients’ ability decreases donors’ giving to charities designed to help low-ability recipients but increases their giving to charities designed to help high-ability recipients. We also show that perception bias increases with donors’ income. Fundraising professionals shall allocate more efforts to those who do not care about inequality that much when correcting the donors’ perception bias; focus their efforts on correcting the donors’ perception bias, especially for rich donors, when raising money for charities with low-ability recipients; but increase donors’ perception bias regarding the recipients’ ability when raising money for charities with high-ability recipients.
Replicating the Properties of Hedge Fund Returns

In this article, the authors implement a multivariate extension of the Dybvig [1988] Payoff Distribution Model that can be used to replicate not only the marginal distribution of most hedge fund returns but also their dependence on other asset classes. In addition to proposing ways to overcome the hedging and compatibility inconsistencies in Kat and Palaro [2005], the authors extend the results of Schweizer [1995] and adapt American option pricing techniques to evaluate the model and also derive an optimal dynamic trading (hedging) strategy. The proposed methodology can be used as a benchmark for evaluating fund performance, as well as to replicate hedge funds or generate synthetic funds.
Do Firms Benefit from Active Labour Market Policies?

This paper investigates the link between variation in the supply of workers who participate in specific types of active labour market policies (ALMPs) and firm performance using a new exceptionally informative German employer-employee data base. For identification we exploit that German local employment agencies (LEAs) have a high degree of autonomy in determining their own mix of ALMPs and that firms' hiring regions overlap only imperfectly with the areas of responsibility of the LEAs. Our results indicate that in general firms do not benefit from ALMPs and in some cases may even be harmed by certain programs, in particular by subsidized employment and longer training programs. These findings complement the negative assessment of the cost-effectiveness of ALMPs from the empirical literature on the effects for participants.
The effectiveness of comprehensive corrective feedback in second language writing

Corrective feedback (CF) or error correction is a widely used method of targeting linguistic problems in second language (L2) learners’ writing. The role of CF in the process of acquiring an L2, however, is an issue of considerable controversy in the field of second language acquisition (SLA). Questions such as if, how, and when CF works, what type of CF is most effective, and which errors are (most) correctable, are yet to be answered by empirical research. The studies presented in this book intend to contribute to the settlement of these issues. In two quantitative experiments and one qualitative study, Catherine van Beuningen investigates the effects of direct and indirect comprehensive CF on L2 learners’ writing. The studies set out to explore both the value of CF as an editing tool, as well as its ability to constitute long-term accuracy improvement. In addition, the studies test whether CF has negative side-effects that harm accuracy development, and look into the influences of potentially mediating factors, such as the nature of the targeted error. In providing robust evidence on the effectiveness of written error correction, the results presented in this thesis suggest that comprehensive CF is a valuable pedagogical tool. The findings also advance the theoretical understanding of the language learning potential of written CF. Therefore, this book is of interest to SLA scholars, writing researchers, and L2 teachers alike.
Modular forms invariant under non-split Cartan subgroups

In this paper we describe a method for computing a basis for the space of weight $2$ cusp forms invariant under a non-split Cartan subgroup of prime level $p$. As an application we compute, for certain small values of $p$, explicit equations over $\bf Q$ for the canonical embeddings of the associated modular curves.
X-ray line coincidence photopumping in a solar flare

Line coincidence photopumping is a process where the electrons of an atomic or molecular species are radiatively excited through the absorption of line emission from another species at a coincident wavelength. There are many instances of line coincidence photopumping in astrophysical sources at optical and ultraviolet wavelengths, with the most famous example being Bowen fluorescence (pumping of O III 303.80 A by He II), but none to our knowledge in X-rays. However, here we report on a scheme where a He-like line of Ne IX at 11.000 A is photopumped by He-like Na X at 11.003 A, which predicts significant intensity enhancement in the Ne IX 82.76 A transition under physical conditions found in solar flare plasmas. A comparison of our theoretical models with published X-ray observations of a solar flare obtained during a rocket flight provides evidence for line enhancement, with the measured degree of enhancement being consistent with that expected from theory, a truly surprising result. Observations of this enhancement during flares on stars other than the Sun would provide a powerful new diagnostic tool for determining the sizes of flare loops in these distant, spatially-unresolved, astronomical sources.
The Effects of Regulations and Business Cycles on Temporary Contracts, the Organization of Firms and Productivity

We assess the impact, on workforce contract composition, employment adjustment dynamics and productivity, of a combination of changes in the Colombian labor legislation which increased firm’s ability of using contracts of a temporary nature, and posterior changes that increased the costs associated with longer term contracts. Until 1990, labor regulations in Colombia practically banned the possibility of using fixed-term contracts for horizons of less than one year (see, e.g. Kugler, 2004). The labor market component of a broad package of market reforms adopted at the beginning of the nineties opened the possibility of hiring under fixed term contracts of different types. Some of these contracts not only free employers of potential dismissal costs, but are also subject to reduced, or even zero, non-wage costs. Regulatory changes occurred in the decade that followed further increased incentives to use fixed term contracts.
Some personal observations on the debate on the link between financial reporting quality and the cost of equity capital

Within the last decade there has been much written about the possible link between the quality of a firm’s external financial reporting and its cost of equity capital. In this paper I provide my personal observations about the literature. I make the following points. I find the Francis et al. (2005) paper interesting and innovative. This paper documents a positive association between portfolio returns formed on the basis of accrual quality and firms’ realized returns after controlling for the Fama-French three factors. Francis et al. conclude that accrual quality is a priced risk factor. Second, while this conclusion might be too strong based on their results, I think the Core et al. (2008) critique of the Francis et al. claim is also too strong and does not lead me to reject accrual quality as a priced risk factor. Third, the evidence of an association between financial reporting quality and implied cost of capital estimates is robust. However several papers question the construct validity of these measures which are based on analyst earnings forecasts. I discuss these papers and conclude that the implied cost of capital does have empirical validity. Finally, various papers model the relation between financial reporting quality and cost of capital and, while interesting, mostly restrict themselves to a single factor asset pricing model. However, restricting the model to a single factor model by assumption rules out the possibility of information quality being a separately priced risk factor and further restricts the role information quality to informing about a firm’s covariances (or estimation error in the CAPM beta) because it is assumed that information quality is diversifiable. I think whether something is diversifiable is an empirical question that cannot be resolved by assumption within a theoretical model.
Classroom Reward Structure: An Analytical and Practical Review

At various times in the history of social psychology, interest has arisen in the reward structure of the classroom, particularly in the idea of using reward structures that place students in mutual dependence for rewards-cooperative reward structures. Some high points in the study of classroom reward structure were publications by Deutsch (1949a, 1948b), who presented a comprehensive theory of cooperation and competition, Miller and Hamblin (1963), and Johnson, D. W. and Johnson, R. T. (1974). Of these, only Johnson and Johnson reviewed the large body of research that has been done on cooperative, competitive, and individual reward structures, but their review was lacking in analysis of these findings. The present paper attempts to fill this gap by drawing theoretical and practical conclusions from the research on reward structures.
Respiratory-Related-Evoked Potential Measures of Respiratory Sensory Gating in Attend and Ignore Conditions

Respiratory sensory gating is evidenced by decreased respiratory-related-evoked potentials (RREP) amplitude of the N1 peak for the second stimulus (S2) when two occlusions are separated by a 500-millisecond interval. The RREP N1 peak amplitude ratio of the S2 and the first occlusion (S1), S2/S1, is usually <0.5. Controlled attention of respiratory loads is measured by the P300 peak of the RREP. We hypothesized that the paired occlusion elicited N1 and the P300 peak amplitudes will be modulated by controlled attention. The RREP was recorded in ignore and attend trials. The amplitudes of the RREP Nf, P1, N1, and P300 peaks for S1 and S2 and the S2/S1 ratios were measured for both trials. The S1 amplitudes of the Nf, P1, and N1 peaks were not significantly different between the attend and ignore conditions. The S2 Nf, P1, and N1 peak amplitudes were not significantly different between conditions but were all significantly less than S1. The S2/S1 ratios for Nf, P1, and N1 peaks were not significantly different between the attend and ignore conditions. The S1 RREP P300 peak amplitude in attend trials was significantly greater than in ignore trails. The attend S1 P300 amplitude was significantly greater than the attend S2 amplitude. The attend P300 S2/S1 ratio was significantly less than the ignore ratio. These results demonstrated that respiratory gating is evident in both attend and ignore conditions. The P300 peak S2/S1 ratio is consistent with controlled attention modulation of central neural gating of respiratory mechanosensation.
Trading solidarity: dockworkers and the EU liberalisation of port services

This paper discusses the implications that the free trading of labour can have on workers solidarity. The idea of the free trading of labour is introduced as a way to explore the implications of new modes of neoliberal governance within the EU which are increasingly focusing on the free trading of services, therefore, having direct implications on how labour is understood and, more importantly, regulated. To do so, it focuses on European dockworkers and their struggle during the 2000s against the two EU directives designed to liberalise port services (EU directives on Market Access to Port Services). Considering that European dockworkers have, so far, successfully challenged the liberalising attempts of the Commission, the paper contributes to our understanding of successful transnational trade union action.
Regularity of A Complex Monge-Amp\`{e}re Equation on Hermitian Manifolds

We obtain higher order estimates for a parabolic flow on a compact Hermitian manifold. As an application, we prove that a bounded $\hat{\omega}$-plurisubharmonic solution of an elliptic complex Monge-Amp\`{e}re equation is smooth under an assumption on the background Hermitian metric $\hat{\omega}$. This generalizes a result of Sz\'{e}kelyhidi and Tosatti on K\"{a}hler manifolds.