Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chronic Arsenic Toxicity from Drinking Well Water in a Rural Area

Background: Drinking water is the most important cause of poisoning in the world. Iran is one of the countries with arsenic-contaminated water upper limit of normal. In this study, we decided to determine the effects of chronic arsenic poisoning on demographic, clinical and laboratory features of people. Methods: This descriptive-sectional study carried out on all people resided in Shahidabad Village, Qazvin Province in 2015. All of them were evaluated in terms of demographic features, blood pressure, diabetes, dermatologic, and neurologic lesions, and fasting blood sugar. People with exclusion criteria were excluded. The data were analyzed by SPSS software and descriptive statistics. Results: Out of 400 subjects, 278 (69.5%) females and 122 (30.5%) males), 88 (22%) people had positive urine test for arsenic and 312 (78%) subjects had negative urine test. The mean age of them was 48.9 ±16.6 yr. The mean age and duration of residence in the region in arsenic positive group were significantly higher than arsenic negative group (P<0.05). Blood pressure, history of diabetes, dermatologic and neurologic lesions, and fasting blood sugar had no significant differences between two groups. Conclusion: Although there were no significant differences between two groups in terms of many clinical and laboratory findings but the prevalence of 22% of poisoning with arsenic in the selected population reveals the necessity of screening, preventive measures and appropriate treatments in people exposed to arsenic contamination.
Job satisfaction and Life satisfaction: An analysis of the influence of socio-demographic factors and industries in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands

This study analyses the reciprocal nature of the relationship between job and life satisfaction as first introduced by Judge and Watanabe (1993). It focuses on the significance of autonomy at work, income satisfaction and industry sectors as predictors of job satisfaction and subjective general health and industry sectors as predictors of life satisfaction. Results are compared between three geographically close countries, namely Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. The significance of these predictors in the three countries is analysed through OLS regression using data from a survey conducted in 2012 provided by the European Social Survey (ESS). In this way, the following conclusions can be drawn: Firstly, the reciprocal relationship holds due to potential spill over between both job and life. Secondly, in all three countries, job satisfaction increases life satisfaction more than vice versa. Thirdly, more autonomy at work will lead to increased job satisfaction levels in all three countries with the effect being highest in the Netherlands. Further, only in Belgium will industry sectors influence both job and life satisfaction directly and indirectly. In contrast, in Germany and the Netherlands income dissatisfaction will lower job satisfaction directly but increase it indirectly. Lastly, a higher subjective general health will increase life satisfaction in these two countries while differences in predictors to Belgium were explained by varying working conditions. The study introduces the importance of comparing industries across countries when looking at job and life satisfaction. Future research might extend the study in this direction, but also attempt at validating these results over time and including ESS-data on several years. Additionally, further predictors as well as more countries or regions should be included to extend the insights delivered by this study.
SOLID STATE SYNTHESIS OF La-DOPED NaTaO₃ UNDER TIME-REDUCE CONDITIONS AND ITS PHOTOCATALYTIC PROPERTIES

*Unidad Morelia del Instituto de Investigaciones en Materiales, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Antigua Carretera a Pátzcuaro No. 8701, Col. Ex Hacienda de San José de la Huerta, C.P. 58190, Morelia, Michoacán, México **Departamento de Ingeniería de Procesos e Hidráulica, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, A.P. 55-534, 09340 México D.F. , México ***Departamento de Química, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Av. San Rafael Atlixco No 186, Col. Vicentina, México 09340, D.F. México ****Departamento. de Ciencias Químico Biológicas, Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez. Anillo Envolvente del PRONAF y Estocolmo s/n, C.P. 32300,Cd. Juárez Chih, México
The Parents’ Values of Early Childhood Education and Care in Russia: Discovering the Dimensions via Coding and Category Clustering

In this study I explore parents’ perceptions of kindergarten as a social institution for the provision of early childhood education and care (ECEC). Global reforms of this important part of the welfare state are a starting point for the research. Redefining welfare ideology and minimizing the social burden on the state leads to the public and scientific debate about the value of early childhood education and its role in investing in human development. In-depth interviews with 30 mothers were analyzed by coding and category clustering. The results show that parents understand the service provided by a kindergarten as complex, aimed primarily at daytime children’s education and development in a specifically organized educational space performed by professional educators. The greatest parental value is children’s opportunity to be socialized or "learn how to communicate," to resolve conflicts and to find compromises, and to relate their behavior with group-mates and peers followed by the development of life skills, surviving with routines, as well as the associated skill initiative. At the same time, the main professional competence of the educator is seen in her/his ability to create a positive emotional climate, an atmosphere of openness for the realization of a child’s individuality and to create a space for comfortable communication with parents.
Investigating of the Effects of Calcium Concentration under Hydroponic Conditions on Quantitative and Qualitative Growth of Lilium ‘Tresor

The Asiatic hybrid lily, a bulbous ornamental plant, has a special position in the horticulture as cut flower. To overcome some problems in nutrition of bulb flowers, the use of hydroponic system and nutrient solution is important in the cultivation of these flowers. The Asiatic Hybrid Lilium bulbs “Tresor” cultivar, used for the current research were planted under 3 different calcium levels including 2, 4 and 6 mM as randomised completely designed with five replications. Comparing the mean values of the data showed that 6 mM calcium produced maximum height of the plant, stem diameter, procreative height, number of buds, flower diameter and longevity of cut flowers.
Diagnostics for Near-Surface Wind Response to the Gulf Stream in a Regional Atmospheric Model*

AbstractThe mechanisms acting on near-surface winds over the Gulf Stream are diagnosed using 5-yr outputs of a regional atmospheric model. The diagnostics for the surface-layer momentum vector, its curl, and its convergence are developed with a clear separation of pressure adjustment from downward momentum inputs from aloft in the surface-layer system. The results suggest that the downward momentum mixing mechanism plays a dominant role in contributing to the annual-mean climatological momentum curl, whereas the pressure adjustment mechanism plays a minor role. In contrast, the wind convergence is mainly due to the pressure adjustment mechanism. This can be explained by the orientation of background wind to the sea surface temperature front. The diagnostics also explain the relatively strong seasonal variation in surface-layer momentum convergence and the small seasonal variation in curl. Finally, the surface-layer response to other western boundary currents is examined using a reanalysis dataset.
Brightest group galaxies – II: the relative contribution of BGGs to the total baryon content of groups at z < 1.3

We performed a detailed study of the evolution of the star formation rate (SFR) and stellar mass of the brightest group galaxies (BGGs) and their relative contribution to the total baryon budget within $R_{200}$ ($f^{BGG}_{b,200}$). The sample comprises 407 BGGs selected from X-ray galaxy groups ($M_{200}=10^{12.8}-10^{14} \;M_{\odot}$) out to $z\sim1.3$ identified in the COSMOS, XMM-LSS, and AEGIS fields. We find that BGGs constitute two distinct populations of quiescent and star-forming galaxies and their mean SFR is $\sim2$ dex higher than the median SFR at $ z 2$ dex. The mean (median) of stellar mass of BGGs has grown by $0.3$ dex since $z=1.3$ to the present day. We show that up to $\sim45\% $ of the stellar mass growth in a star-forming BGG can be due to its star-formation activity. With respect to $f^{BGG}_{b,200}$, we find it to increase with decreasing redshift by $\sim0.35$ dex while decreasing with halo mass in a redshift dependent manner. We show that the slope of the relation between $f^{BGG}_{b,200}$ and halo mass increases negatively with decreasing redshift. This trend is driven by an insufficient star-formation in BGGs, compared to the halo growth rate. We separately show the BGGs with the 20\% highest $f^{BGG}_{b,200}$ are generally non-star-forming galaxies and grow in mass by processes not related to star formation (e.g., dry mergers and tidal striping). We present the $ M_\star-M_h $ and $ M_\star/M_h-M_h $ relations and compare them with semi-analytic model predictions and a number of results from the literature. We quantify the intrinsic scatter in stellar mass of BGGs at fixed halo mass ($\sigma_{log M_{\star}}$) and find that $\sigma_{log M_{\star}}$ increases from 0.3 dex at $ z\sim0.2 $ to 0.5 dex at $ z\sim1.0 $ due to the bimodal distribution of stellar mass.
Chinese Herbal Medicine Safflower (Flos carthami) Does Not Increase Bleeding Complications: A Population-based Cohort Study

Safflower (Flos carthami; FC) has been used widely as a food additive, as a coloring and flavoring agent. It has also been used as a Chinese herbal medicine for improving blood flow and resolving thrombosis. This study investigated whether the risk of bleeding complications is increased among FC users. We conducted a retrospective study involving a test group that used FC and a control (non-FC users) group. The participants were aged 18 years and above, and were recruited from the 2000 – 2006. The participants were from beneficiaries of LHID2000. The FC cohort included participants who had been prescribed FC accumulated for more than 30 days, whereas the non-FC cohort included people who were not using FC prescriptions. The compared cohort individuals were randomly selected at a ratio of 1:4 and frequency matched by age, gender, and index year from FC user cohort group. The primary outcome was a new diagnosis of bleeding disorders including gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding (ICD-9-CM: 578.0, 578.1, 578.9), intracranial hemorrhage (ICD-9-CM: 432.0, 432.9), and blood transfusions (ICD-9-CM op-code: 99.0). The results showed that the proportions of participants with bleeding disorders were 2.6% and 2.3% in the FC and non-FC cohorts, respectively (P = 0.6675). In univariate and multivariate Cox’s proportional hazard regression models, the adjusted hazard ratio for bleeding disorders was 0.86 for the FC cohort relative to the non-FC cohort (P = 0.6094). In conclusion, the risk of bleeding complications was not increased among Chinese herbal medicine FC users.
Another Look at Travel Patterns and Urban Form: The US and Great Britain

This paper explores the relationship between land-use patterns and individual mobility from a comparative international perspective. There is a vast literature on US automobile dependence. Major explanatory factors include: transport, housing, land-use and tax policy; per capita incomes; American cultural preferences; national geography; and the spatial structure of US metropolitan areas (itself a result of the first three factors). Emphasising the policy environment, many researchers have cast their analysis in comparative terms, noting the differences in automobile use between European countries and the US. It is argued that US patterns of metropolitan form, with low development densities and dispersed population and employment, reinforce vehicle dependence. In contrast, most European metropolitan areas, with higher densities and more centralised land-use patterns, have lower levels of car use. Stronger controls on land use employed in many European countries are seen as having preserved the compact form of metropolitan areas. These arguments imply significant relationships between land-use patterns and travel behaviour. Using travel diary data from the US and Great Britain, these relationships are compared across the two countries. It is found that differences in daily trips and miles travelled are explained by differences in both the urban form and household income. While the effect of income on daily travel is similar for the US and Great Britain, the effect of density is more pronounced in the US.
A Comparison of Marine and Terrestrial Radiocarbon Ages from Northern Chile

The calibration of radiocarbon dates on marine materials involves a global marine calibration with regional corrections. Data from well-associated marine and terrestrial materials in archaeological artifacts from northern Chile indicated that the calibration is valid for the period ad 200–900 and suggest that coastal upwelling intensities during that period were similar to those of the early 20th century.
Hydrogeologic controls on disconnection between surface water and groundwater

Understanding how changes in the groundwater table affect surface water resources is of fundamental importance in quantitative hydrology. If the groundwater table below a stream is sufficiently deep, changes in the groundwater table position effectively do not alter the infiltration rate. This is referred to as a disconnected system. Previous authors noted that a low‐conductivity layer below the surface water body is a necessary but not sufficient criterion for disconnection to occur. We develop a precise criterion that allows an assessment of whether surface water–groundwater systems can disconnect or not. We further demonstrate that a disconnected system can be conceptualized by a saturated groundwater mound and the development of a capillary zone above this mound. This conceptualization is used to determine the critical water table position at the point where full disconnection is reached. A comparison of this calculated critical water table position with a measurement of the water table depth in a borehole allows the assessment of the disconnection status. A sensitivity analysis of this critical water table showed that for a given aquifer thickness and river width, the depth to groundwater where the system disconnects is approximately proportional to the stream depth and the hydraulic conductivity of the streambed sediments and inversely proportional to the thickness of these sediments and the hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer. The conceptualization also allows the disconnection problem to be analyzed using both variably saturated and fully saturated groundwater models and provides guidance for numerical and analytical approaches.
The relationship between government expenditure and poverty: A cointegration analysis

The study examines the long run as well as short run relationship between the fiscal deficits, which is outcome of high government expenditure over the level of tax revenue collection, and poverty. The results reveal a negative relationship between government expenditure and poverty based on time series data from 1976 to 2010. The short run and long run relationships between poverty and other variables are identified by ECM model and Johnson Cointegration test respectively. The results show that there exist short run as well as long run relation between the poverty and government expenditure.
Employee Development in Small and Medium Enterprises in the Light of Demographic Evolution

Trends in the job market taking worker knowledge, abilities and skills into account show that the demand for qualified, experienced workers has been rising and that the trend will continue into the future. Accordingly, companies must put a life-long learning and development strategy in place so that even older employees (55+), the proportion of whom has been rising in organizations and in the marketplace, may maintain their positions in the job market for as long as possible. This paper aims to assess how small and medium enterprises in the Czech Republic reflect current demographic developments in terms of age management support and employee development. The data was obtained from small and medium enterprises in the Czech Republic (n = 432). The results show that age management is not an official primary focus of small and medium enterprises; but they naturally act in line with age management practices nevertheless. Any efficient solution to demographic development in the enterprises studied here, however, must be based upon an overall change of attitude coming from both entrepreneurs and company leadership focusing on young employees, as well as older employees themselves, where their ability to pass on their experience to younger coworkers is stressed. To maintain economic prosperity, continuous development is important for both categories.
Critical aspects of feed protein evaluation systems for ruminants

The current feed protein evaluation systems taking into account the amount of amino acids absorbed from the small intestine are critically reviewed. Especially the differences in the concepts of estimating protein values and limitations of techniques used to estimate parameter values are discussed. Validation of different approaches to estimate the microbial component of metabolizable protein using data from production experiments was conducted. The review is focused on empirical models based on factorial approaches. In the future, the mechanistic models, which can better take into account interactions in the digestive tract and tissue metabolism, should be developed.
Deregulation and the current account

In this paper we use a dynamic general-equilibrium model to study how removing barriers to competition in the nontraded goods sector affects the current account, the real exchange rate, and the factor prices in a small open economy. We show that the expansion of the nontraded sector that results from a "deregulation shock" is associated with an accumulation of foreign assets unless production of nontraded goods is very capital-intensive. Moreover, while the real exchange rate decreases monotonically towards its new steady state, the real wage may temporarily overshoot its long-run level.
Evaluation of Some Egyptian Barley Cultivars under Water Stress Conditions Using Drought Tolerance Indices and Multivariate Analysis

The present work was carried out in two separate field experiments of Sakha Research Farm during two growing seasons 2012/2013 and 2013/2014 to evaluate 15 barley cultivars under normal and water stress conditions. The results indicated that the cultivars Giza 2000, Giza 126 and Giza 131 had the highest performance for most of the studied traits under normal and water stress conditions. Also, these cultivars exhibited highly significant differences for all drought tolerance indices. First principal component analysis (PCA1) contributed 76.1% of the total variation with high positive values of grain yield under normal (Gyp), under water stress conditions (GYs), yield index (YI) ,stress tolerance index (STI), mean product (MP), geometric mean product (GMP) and harmonic mean (HM) indices while had negative values with tolerance index TOL and stress susceptibility index (SSI), but second PCA2 explained 23.0% of the total variability. Biplot diagram and cluster analysis divided the cultivars into four groups A, B, C and D based on the basis of PCA1 values, PCA2 values, GYp, GYs and selection drought tolerance indices. So, the cultivars which are found on A region, had high yield under both normal and water stress conditions, so we could consider these cultivars Giza 2000, Giza 126 and Giza 131 as water stress tolerant and we recommend them for using in breeding program for high yielding under normal and water stress conditions, and consider YI, STI, MP, GMP and HM as major and suitable indices for selecting cultivars with high yield at both environments.
Studies on restricted suckling in dual purpose and dairy breed cattle in Mexico

The aim of this thesis was to investigate the effects of rearing calves by restricted suckling (RS) compared to artificial rearing (AR) in dual purpose and dairy breed cattle in Mexico, milked once or three times a day, respectively. The following parameters were recorded during the first eight weeks after calving: social, abnormal and general behaviours and weight gain of Zebu crossbred and dairy calves; and milk yield, milk composition and udder health in the Zebu crossbred dams and udder health and milk let-down in the Holstein dams. RS reduced the abnormal behaviours of the calves and resulted in less foraging behaviours compared to AR. AR dairy calves consumed four-fold as much concentrate as RS dairy calves, whereas the amount of milk ingested was similar in the two treatments. A higher fat content in the milk ingested by RS calves compared to whole milk fed to AR calves, resulted in similar total ME intake from milk and concentrate in both treatments. Irrespective of type of animals RS resulted in similar weight gain in comparison to AR. Cow-calf separation five days after calving induced fewer indications of physiological stress in RS cows and calves. RS further increased the saleable and total (saleable and suckled) milk yield and decreased the fat content in saleable milk. RS improved udder health of the Zebu crossbred cows as judged according to elevated CMT scores and lower lactose content in AR cows. RS of Holstein dairy cows did not impair milk let-down and udder health tended to be improved according to the CMT. RS calves showed a front teat preference, which did not impair udder health according to similar CMT scores of front and rear teats. These studies indicate that RS is economically viable for the farmer as once daily milking combined with twice daily suckling considerably increased the saleable and total milk yield of Zebu crossbred cows and improved animal well-being.
Habitat quality predicts the distribution of a lizard in fragmented woodlands better than habitat fragmentation

Organisms often face a higher risk of local extinction in fragmented than in continuous habitat. However, whether populations are affected by reduced size and connectivity of the habitat or by changes in habitat quality in fragmented landscapes remains poorly investigated. We studied the regional distribution and microhabitat selection of the lacertid lizard Psammodromus algirus in a fragmented landscape where the existence of deciduous and evergreen woodlands brought about variation in habitat quality. Lizards never occupied any fragment smaller than 0.5 ha. However, above that limit fragment size no longer predicted lizard occurrence, which was explained by woodland type instead, with lizards being more frequently found in deciduous than in evergreen woodlands. Lizards selected microhabitats that had structural features favouring thermoregulation, foraging and predator avoidance, and we identified better conditions for thermoregulation and food acquisition in deciduous than in evergreen woodlands. Our results support the idea that variation in habitat quality can sometimes override the effect of habitat fragmentation on animal populations. We consider the implications of our study for the conservation of Mediterranean lizards, discussing our results in a broader context framed by previous studies conducted in nearby areas.