Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Health and condition of Pacific herring Clupea pallasi from Prince William Sound, Alaska, 1994

This study determined baseline health and condition values of Pacific herring Clupea pall as^ in 1994 In Prince William Sound (PWS), Alaska. In April 1994, 134 herring were collected from 3 spawning sites in PWS, including a sequential sampling from l site. For each herring, morphometric characteristics, sex and presence of gross external and internal lesions were documented, and samples were processed for aging, virological, bacteriological and histological analysis. The study did not reveal trends in herring health and cond~tion in 1994 that could reasonably be attributed to the 'Exxon Valdez' oil spill in 1989. No viruses or pathogenic bacteria were detected, but herring worms, a coccidian parasite and a systemic and virulent fungal infection were found in the herring. The degree of vacuolation in liver cells, previously thought to indicate exposure of fish to oil, varied significantly with the stage of reproductive development of the herring. Similarly, the liver melanomacrophage index, also bel~eved to be correlated with environmental toxicant exposures, varied significantly among sample locations and with collection date. In this study, significant differences in age distribution of spawning herring populations occur in close geographic proximity and collect~on time intervals in PWS. Based on our results, the use of condition factor, disease and indices of liver function to indicate pollutant exposure are likely to be invalid unless other factors unrelated to pollutant exposure are taken into account, such as reproductive stage of the herring, spawning behavior and location, age of herring and collection date. Thus, we conclude that various hypotheses advanced regarding impacts of the 'Exxon Valdez' oil spill as well as other cases of environmental contamination cannot be supported without rigorous statistical evaluation of natural variations in indices of fish health and condition.
Irrigation water efficiency in wheat production in Chbika (Tunisia): parametric versus nonparametric comparisons.

The aim of this paper is to estimate the water use efficiency of wheat farms in irrigated areas in Chbika (Central Tunisia). Both Stochastic Frontier and Data Envelopment Analysis approaches were used for this purpose. Data were collected from 170 wheat farms during 2010-2011cropping season. The empirical results show that the average water use efficiency measured using the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method was around 41% under constant returns to scale and 43% under variable returns to scale while it was 47% when calculated by the Stochastic Frontier Approach (SFA). This suggests that there is substantial scope for improving irrigation water use efficiency in the study region using the existing technology on wheat farms. Spearmanâ€™s rank correlation coefficient between both methods in measuring irrigation water use efficiency, for our sample of wheat farms it is positive and significant at the 1% level. However, the average technical efficiencies obtained from the Stochastic Frontier method are higher than the ones estimated from Data Envelopment Analysis. This comparison shows that further empirical researches on sub-vectors efficiency calculation approaches are needed in order to obtain more accurate results than these estimations.
Agricultural Trade Liberalisation and Growth in Income of Rural Household in Bangladesh: A Quintile-Growth Approach to the Analysis of Distributional Consequences

The study has investigated the growth in income of rural households in Bangladesh with a view to analysing distributional consequences in the post-liberalisation era. Using data from secondary sources, it has applied a quintile-growth approach by dividing each group of households into five income clusters (quintiles) to analyse the incidence of growth in real income. It has found that although all groups of rural households experienced a moderate to high increase in real income, non-farm households experienced a larger increase than farm households due to a large reduction in consumer price. Farm households gained from the increase in productivity but experienced losses from producer price reduction. The two opposite forces – increase in productivity and reduction in producer price – offset the effects of each other, thereby affecting the income growth of farm households. Amongst the farm households, large and medium farmers gained the most and small farmers gained the least from the growth in real income, indicating that rich households experienced a much higher increase in real income than poor households – thereby adversely affecting the distribution of income and widening the income gap between rich and poor households. These findings demonstrated that while agricultural trade liberalisation benefited rural households generally, the benefits were not distributed equally and in fact, inequality increased amongst rural households. This study argues that the growth in real income of rural household was not pro-poor during 1985- 86 to 2005. This study suggests that agricultural trade liberalisation contributed to higher growth in the rural economy but it contributed to greater inequality in income distribution amongst the rich and poor income groups (quintiles). Government should reduce inequality through policy interventions with income transfer from the rich to the poor.
STRUCTURAL CERAMICS PRODUCED FROM SOAPSTONE

The use of tailings for the synthesis of new materials is a worldwide concern today. This paper approaches the utilization of tailings of soapstone (steatite) in order to produce ceramics. The results show that the addition of soapstone in a ratio over 20% in the ceramic mass has enhanced the bending resistance of the ceramic samples when they were fired at temperatures of 900°C or 1000°C.
Germination of Echium plantagineum L. seeds submitted to dormancy overcoming and variations in temperature, light and depth of sowing

The objective of this study was to evaluate methods of overcoming dormancy, light regimens, temperature and depth of sowing variations in the physiological quality of Echium plantagineum seeds. The diaspores (agglutinated fruits from the seeds) were submitted to treatments using accelerated aging, potassium nitrate and gibberellic acid to overcome dormancy. A 7 x 2 factorial design was used to evaluate the temperatures (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 °C) and light regimens (presence or absence of light). A 6 x 2 factorial design was used for sowing depth (0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 cm) and soil coverage (presence or absence of straw). In all experiments, a completely randomized design with four replicates of 50 diaspores was used. The main evaluations were germination, first germination count, germination speed index and emergence. The seeds showed dormancy, which was overcome by the immersion of the diaspores in potassium nitrate and gibberellic acid. The ideal temperature for germination was 20 °C, showing greater germination in the presence of light, considered as preferentially positively photoblastic. The highest germination percentage occurred when the diaspores were positioned on the soil surface in the presence of straw.
Electromagnetic Fields in Quasi-Fractal Waveguides Coated with Chiral Nihility Metamaterial

Solutions of Maxwell’s equations for electromagnetic fields inside a waveguide coated with chiral nihility meta-material and having one axis fractal are presented in this paper. A two-dimensional line source placed at the center of the waveguide is taken as an excitation. Power of electromagnetic fields inside the waveguide is determined, and results are plotted for various fractal dimension values ranging from 1 < D ≤ 2, and thickness of the chiral nihility coating.
Correlation between endogenous elements and development of hollowing in the root of radish (Raphanus sativus L.) cultivars.

The present investigation was carried out to discover the relationship between endogenous element content determined by Wavelength-Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence (WDXRF) spectrometer and development of hollowing in the radish root by varying cultivars. Four radish (Raphanus sativus L.) cultivars (‘Siyah’, ‘Beyaz’, ‘Antep’ and ‘Iri Kirmizi’) were used as plant material in this work. Cultivars varied significantly in their resistance to development of hollowing. ‘Siyah’ was found to be more resistant than ‘Antep’, ‘Beyaz’ and ‘Iri Kirmizi’. Significant correlations between development of hollowing and endogenous element content of the radish cultivars used in this study: N (r = 0.701, P < 0.01), Na (r = 0.703, P < 0.01), Cl (r = 0.672, P < 0.01), Ca (r = 0.544, P < 0.01), Mn (r = 0.414, P < 0.05), Zn (r = 0.567, P < 0.01), Br (r = 0.393, P < 0.05) and Ba (r = 0.528, P < 0.01). In addition to simple correlation coefficients of hollowing and endogenous elements; similar results were obtained in stepwise multiple regression analysis. Regression equation [Y = 35.104 + (49.94 x Na) – (2935.93 x Ba) – (4.29 x N) – (20978.88 x Sn)] and R square (0.823, P < 0.01) were determined. According to results of this study, the providing of extra or deficient plant nutritional elements in soil or growing media such as especially N, Cl, Ca, Mn, Zn, Br, Sn and Ba may affect development of hollowing in the case of cvs. ‘Beyaz’, ‘Antep’ and ‘Iri Kirmizi’. However, cv. ‘Siyah’ may not be affected by the endogenous elements because of its resistance and thus hollowing does not develop.
RISK FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH PREVALENCE OF BRUCELLOSIS IN BLACK BENGAL GOATS IN BANGLADESH

A total of 242 milk and 208 blood samples of goat were collected from three organized goat farms and surrounding rural areas of Bangladesh Agricultural University to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of brucellosis in Black Bengal goats during the period from December 2008 to September 2009. Milk samples were screened by Milk Ring Test (MRT) and serum samples by Rose Bengal test (RBT) and Micro Agglutination Test (MAT) for detection of brucella specific antibody in milk and blood respectively. The overall prevalence was recorded as 13.64% in milk by MRT; 3.85% and 3.37% in serum by RBT and MAT respectively. About 21.21(7/33) % and18.18 (6/33) % of MRT positive goat showed positive reactions in RBT and MAT respectively. Does aged up to 4 years had lower prevalence (3.70%) of brucellosis than those aged over 4 years (12.50%). About 2.1 (odds ratio, OR = 2.1; 95% CI: 1.21- 4.53) and 47.1(OR = 47.1; 95% CI: 5.3- 416.6) folds increased odds of seropositivity of brucellosis were observed in aborted and placental retention cases respectively. Significantly (p<0.05) higher prevalence of brucellosis was recorded at late lactation stage (17.94%) than those were in mid (16%) and early lactation stage (11.76%). A significantly higher odds of seropositivity of brucellosis was observed in does (OR = 23; 95% CI: 3.08- 173.62). About 7 folds (OR = 6.8; 95% CI: 1.13- 5.32) increased odds of seropositivity was observed in pregnant does. DOI = http://dx.doi. org/10.3329/bjvm.v8i2.11198 Bangl. J. Vet. Med. (2010). 8 (2) : 141-147
Effect of bleaching on microleakage, surface hardness, surface roughness, and color change of an ormocer and a conventional hybrid resin composite

Objectives: the aim of this study was to determine the effects of two bleaching systems on an ormocer and a conventional hybrid resin composite. Methods and materials: Microleakage, hardness, roughness, and color change of an ormocer (Admira/Voco), and a hybrid composite (Glacier/SDI), were determined before and after bleaching using two bleaching systems (Vivastyle paint-on/ Vivadent)(VSP), and ((Vivastyle/ Vivadent)(VS), for 2 weeks. A total of 120 samples were prepared, thermocycled, and classified into: Group 1: 30 human premolars into which class V cavities were prepared, restored (15 using Admira, & 15 using Glacier), then examined for microleakage using dye-penetration method and stereomicroscope. Groups 2,3, and 4:each consisted of 30 disc-shaped samples, divided into 15 samples of each restorative material, subdivided into: 5 control samples, 5 samples bleached using (VSP) once daily for 20 minutes, and 5 samples bleached using (VS) once daily for 2 hours. Groups 2, was tested for hardness using Vickers tester, group 3, was tested for roughness using talysurf machine, and group 4 was tested for color change using spectrophotometer. Data were analyzed using Mann-Whitney and paired sample t-test. Results: Both bleaching regimens significantly increased microleakage, decreased hardness, increased roughness, and caused lighter color change, but the effects caused by VSP were higher than those of VS. Conclusion: Ormocer achieved a light color change on bleaching, and showed greater resistance to adverse microleakage and hardness effects.
By-product Extraction of a Rationality-based Agency Conflict Index from Selected Credit Unions in Kenya: Introducing the Agency Conflict Discriminant

For ages, there has not been a mathematical model that measures agency conflict. While all and sundry agree that there may not exist business activities without the concept of agency, little on development of a standard measure of the same has been achieved. This study attempts to develop a quantitative model for agency conflict measurement by utilizing entropy-q rationality model using data from select credit unions in Kenya. Analysis of 47 members and 14 management staff of Stima credit union, 133 members and 16 management staff of Unitas credit union, and 91 members and 16 management staff of Mwalimu National credit union showed overall existence of agency conflict as indicated by the negative value of the rationality difference. The conflict was more severe in Mwalimu National credit union. However, Stima credit union posted a positive agency conflict of 20.64%; on which basis, the regulator may set an appropriate index for the sector financial performance monitoring.
A Path Analysis of the Effects of Mental Health and Socio-personal Factors on Breastfeeding Problems in Infants Aged Less than Six Months

Background: Despite the large number of studies conducted on breastfeeding, no studies have yet examined the direct and indirect effects of socio-personal factors and mental health on breastfeeding. Aim: This study aimed to analyze of the effects of mental health and socio-personal factors on breastfeeding in infants aged less than six months. Method: This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 465 eligible mothers visiting general health centers in a northern city of Iran, in 2015. Data were collected using the researcher-made scale of socio-personal factors of breastfeeding, Spielbergerâ��s State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Beckâ��s Depression Inventory, Cohenâ��s Perceived Stress Scale, the Breastfeeding Difficulties Questionnaire, the Access to Healthcare Questionnaire, and the Poor Health Behaviors Questionnaire. Results: The path analysis of the mental health variables showed that breastfeeding problems are associated through a direct path with depression, through an indirect path with stress, and through both paths with anxiety; a positive correlation was thus observed between these variables and breastfeeding problems. Poor health behaviors also contributed to mothersâ�� breastfeeding problems through a direct path and indirectly by affecting their level of depression. Income had the highest positive effect (B=0.66), while the number of children had the highest negative effect (B=-3.16) on breastfeeding problems through a direct path. Poor health behaviors had the highest positive effect (B=0.75) and family support had the highest negative effect (B=-0.11) on breastfeeding. Implications for Practice: The early diagnosis of poor postpartum mental health in mothers can help reduce breastfeeding problems.
The Use of Lactic Acid Bacteria as Ruminant Probiotic Candidates Based on In Vitro Rumen Fermentation Characteristics

This research was conducted to select, to identify LAB isolates and to investigate the effects of the LAB as probiotics candidate in the rumen fermentation. Nine isolates exhibited the potency as candidate probiotics for cattle. The experiment was arranged in randomized block design with ten treatments and three different times of in vitro as a block. The substrate consisted of 70% forage and 30% concentrate proportion. The substrate was incubated at 39 o C using serum bottle of 100 ml capacity for fermentation. Approximately 0.75 g of substrates was put inside the serum bottle glass and filled with 73 ml of buffered rumen fluid and 2 ml of LAB inoculant. Gas production was measured every 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h of the incubation period. Gas production kinetic was estimated by the Orskov’s equation. The LAB with the highest gas production, as probiotics candidate, were identified using partial 16S rDNA sequence. The results of this research indicated that nine LAB produced high gas production in the range of 193-198 ml compare to that of control (173 ml). The addition of LAB in rumen fermentation resulted in digestibility 65-75%, organic matter digestibility 51-73%, and 6.67-6.68 pH. Based on the molecular identification, 8 isolates are Lactobacillus plantarum and 1 of uncultured bacteria. The LAB strain 32 L. plantarum showed the best for a ruminant probiotic candidate based on the in vitro rumen fermentation characteristic.
Modelling Continuance Intention in Mobile Commerce Usage Activities: An Early Insight

This article, which is based on a preliminary study, aims to examine Malaysian consumers’ continuance intention in mobile commerce usage activities by extending the Expectation-Confirmation Model (ECM). Data was gathered from 45 consumers who had prior experience using mobile commerce and analyzed using Partial Least Squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique. Findings revealed that only satisfaction was found to be significantly related to continuance intention, explaining 68.6% of the variance. Surprisingly, perceived usefulness and personal innovativeness were found to have no significant relationships with continuance intention. Finally, limitation and suggestions for future research are also elaborated.
Draft The unique giant Irish moss ( Chondrus crispus ) from Basin Head : Health assessment in relation to reference sites on

Irish moss (Chondrus crispus Stackhouse) is a common red alga of the Atlantic Canada region. A unique strain of this species, the giant Irish moss, grows in a single location and is under strict protection. Unlike the common coastal form, the giant Irish moss reproduces solely by fragmentation and is found in gametophyte form. A 99.9% decline in giant Irish moss abundance (1999-2012) prompted this study to address two questions: whether the giant Irish moss remains 100% vegetative and gametophytic, and whether such decline is related to factors leading to a reduction in photosynthetic health. Six populations of the common Irish moss strain were compared with two populations of giant Irish moss, and their life history phases determined using a resorcinol method. The common Irish moss populations exhibited a 65-86% ratio of gametophytic:tetrasporophytic fronds, while both giant strain populations were 100% gametophytic. Photosynthetic efficiency was measured with PAM fluorometry and neither giant moss had significantly different quantum yield values from the littoral Page 1 of 18 https://mc06.manuscriptcentral. com/botany-pubs Botany
Intensity and prevalence of some crustacean fish parasites inTurkey and their molecular identification

In the present study, intensity, prevalence, and some pathologic effects of Caligus minimus, Nerocila spp. , and Livoneca punctata on fishes extending from the eastern Black Sea coast of Turkey were determined. In addition, besides morphological characters of parasites, diagnosis of the species was carried out by using a molecular method (polymerase chain reaction) in characterization. Caligus minimus was isolated for the first time from wild sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) from the eastern Black Sea coast of Turkey. Seasonal distribution of Nerocila spp. Was determined. The highest prevalence rates of Nerocila were determined on snouted sole (Pegusa nasuta, syn. Solea nasuta) at 26.94%, wrasse or corkwing (Symphodus spp.) at 16.77%, rusty blenny (Parablennius sanguinolentus) at 11.76%, goby fishes (Gobius niger and Neogobius melanostomus) at 5.21%, and pipefish (Syngnathus sp.) at 3.44%. Conversely, Nerocila spp. Were not isolated from whiting (Merlangius merlangus), horse mackerel (Trachurus mediterraneus), Atlantic bonito (Sarda sarda), sardine (Sardina pilchardus), Black Sea herring (Alosa immaculata), or picarel (Spicara smaris). Livoneca punctata was only isolated from Black Sea herring (Alosa immaculata). The most common pathological symptoms were mechanical injury on the skin and fins of the infested fish.
Functionalized Mesoporous Silica with Very Large Pores for Cellulase Immobilization

Organo-functionalized FDU-12 type silicas exhibiting large pore sizes and ordered mesoporous structures were synthesized at low reaction (15 °C) and high hydrothermal (160 °C) temperatures via the co-condensation of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) with a suite of organosilanes, i.e., 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES), 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS), vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS), and phenyltrimethoxysilane (PTMS), in the presence of structure directing micelles formed using the surfactant pluronic F127 and the pore enlarging reagent trimethylbenzene (TMB). Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) confirmed that all synthesized materials possessed a face-centered cubic mesostructure (space group Fm3m), while nitrogen sorption analyses showed that the synthesized materials had extra large pores with cavity sizes of up to 25.4 nm and entrance sizes of up to 10.8 nm. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and 13C solid-state magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic res.
Using eye-tracking to study anaphoric relations processing in European Portuguese

In this study we evaluate processing costs of different types of anaphoric expressions during reading. We consider three types of anaphoric expressions in Subject sentential position: a null pronoun (pro), and two gaps produced by syntactic movement: a WHvariable and a NP copy. Given that coreferential pro exhibits more referential weight than wh- and NP-gaps, and grounded on theories of referential processing based on relations of hierarchy and accessibility of the antecedent, we raise the hypothesis that the more dependent on its antecedent the anaphoric null constituent is, and the more minimal is the distance in terms of hierarchical structure between the anaphoric null element and its antecedent, the lower are the cognitive costs in processing. To test our hypothesis, we registered the eye movements with R6-HS ASL system of 20 Portuguese adult native speakers. Text regions including the selected anaphoric expressions were delimited and tagged. We analyzed the reading time of each region taking into account the number and duration of eye fixations per region; we used the reading time by character in milliseconds in order to compare values between regions of different length. We found a significant advantage in the reading time of the gaps arising from movement over the reading time of pro.