Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modeling of non‐point source nitrogen pollution from 1979 to 2008 in Jiaodong Peninsula, China

Efforts to reduce land‐based non‐point source (NPS) pollutions from watersheds to coastal waters are ongoing all around the world. In this study, annual yield of NPS nitrogen (NPS‐N) pollution in Jiaodong Peninsula, China from 1979 to 2008 was estimated. The results showed that: from 1979 to 2008, NPS‐N yields exhibited significant inter‐annual variations and an increasing trend on decadal scale. High NPS‐N yield was mainly found in east and south parts, as well as the urbanized coastal regions in Jiaodong Peninsula. Among the 32 river basins, the three largest basins yielded more than 41.16% of the NPS‐N. However, some small coastal watersheds along the South Yellow Sea and Jiaozhou Bay had higher per unit area yield. Most of the small watersheds characterized by seasonal runoff had coastal waters pertain to mild and moderate pollution levels. The ratio of watershed area to shoreline length and the up‐stream land use had significant impacts on NPS‐N flux through the shoreline. Among the four adjacent coastal areas of Jiaodong Peninsula, Jiaozhou Bay was the most noteworthy one not only because of high levels of land‐based NPS‐N pollution but also because of its nearly enclosed structure. The combination between integrated coastal zone management and integrated river basin management, land use planning and landscape designing in Jiaodong Peninsula is recommended. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Five New Species of the Botryosphaeriaceae from Acacia Karroo in South Africa

Abstract The Botryosphaeriaceae represents an important, cosmopolitan family of latent pathogens infecting woody plants. Recent studies on native trees in southern Africa have revealed an extensive diversity of species of Botryosphaeriaceae, about half of which have not been previously described. This study adds to this growing body of knowledge, by discovering five new species of the Botryosphaeriaceae on Acacia karroo, a commonly occurring native tree in southern Africa. These species were isolated from both healthy and diseased tissues, suggesting they could be latent pathogens. The isolates were compared to other species for which DNA sequence data are available using phylogenetic analyses based on the ITS, TEF-1&agr;, &bgr;-tubulin and LSU gene regions, and characterized based on their morphology. The morphological data were, however, useful to make comparisons with other species found in the same region and on similar hosts. The five new species were described as Diplodia allocellula, Dothiorella dulcispinae, Do. brevicollis, Spencermartinsia pretoriensis and Tiarosporella urbis-rosarum. Evidence emerging from this study suggests that many more species of the Botryosphaeriaceae remain to be discovered in the southern Africa.
HRM PRACTICES AND EMPLOYEE SATISFACTION IN SMES: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

Growing academic research indicating theprofound and positive link between Human Resource Management and job satisfaction is well documented in literature. However, barring some rare exceptions, the employee or supervisors’ voice has been offered very little attention. Besides, researchers have used separate measures for assessing the relationship between HRM and JS. The present study therefore, using a sample of 153 supervisors from three firms falling in Cement Industry of the state of Jammu & Kashmir, made a couple of useful deviations from the existing line of research in studying employee satisfaction towards select HRM practices: (a) instead of separately studying the various HRM practices and relating those to employee satisfaction which is the normal trend found in the extant literature, the study attempted to directly investigate the extent of employee satisfaction with the select HRM practices; (b) the study gathered information from a number of employees in a bid to capture a comprehensive picture with regard to employee satisfaction tow ards given HRM practices rather than depending upon a single respondent usually a HR manager from the given organisation. Results of the study on the whole indicate low satisfaction among employees from the select HR practices.
PROFITABILITY AND CREDIT CULTURE OF NPAS: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF PSBs

Post reform era has changed the whole structure of banking sector of India. The emerging competition has resulted in new challenges for the Indian banks. Hence, parameters for evaluating the performance of banks have also changed. This paper provides an empirical approach to the analysis of profitability indicators with a focal point on non-performing assets (NPAs) of commercial banks in the Indian context. The paper discusses NPA, Factors contributing to NPA, Magnitude and Consequences. By using analytical perspective, the paper observed that NPAs affected significantly to the performance of the banks in the present scenario. On the other hand, factors like better credit culture, managing the risk and business conditions which lead to lowering of NPAs. The empirical findings using observation method and statistical tools like DEA, correlation, regression and data representation techniques, identified that there is a negative relationship between profitability measure and NPAs.
Empowering Non-licensed-in-English Language Teachers to Construct Professional Knowledge in Their Actual and Imagined Communities of Practice

Research has accumulated important knowledge over recent decades on how licensed language teachers develop and learn from cognitive and socio-cultural stances. Yet, relatively little evidence exists on how non-licensed-in-English language teachers (NLELTs) grow professionally in their communities. Similarly, few studies have yet investigated the concept of “imagined communities” in the language teaching field with these particular types of population. This study attempts to fill this gap by exploring the possible forms of professional knowledge that NLELTs build through participation in the activities of a learning community. Four non-licensed language teachers participated in a nine-month collaborative-reflective process focused on language teaching practices, in a public school in Bogota (Colombia). In analyzing their interactions and consequent products, we discuss three dimensions of knowledge construction propelled by the individual visions they brought into the community. Furthermore, we analyze how learning in that present community granted the teachers access to envisioned practices in imagined communities for a desirable future. Based on the findings we argue that success or failure in participation in present, real communities determines imagined affiliation to future communities, their practices and even the NLELTs’ preferred future positionings as professionals.
Confidence Intervals for Treatment Effect in Meta-Analysis

Confidence intervals for the treatment effect in random effects metaanalysis model obtained from Harville-Jeske-Kenward-Roger approach are obtained in explicit form. They are compared to some other intervals commonly used in collaborative studies with a small number of participants possibly with heterogeneous, study-specific variances. Monte Carlo simulation experiments recommend the latter intervals.
Safety Evaluation of the Wear Life of High-Speed Railway Bridge Bearings by Monitoring Train-Induced Dynamic Displacements

Bridge bearings experience numerous small-amplitude displacements under environmental loads. The continuous cyclic accumulations of these small-amplitude displacements will result in severe wear on the poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) plates in the bridge bearings, which seriously endangers the service life of bearings. Traditional method directly uses the linear wear rate of cumulative displacements in a short period to evaluate the wearing life, but the linear wear rate only in a short period such as several days may not represent the characteristics in the whole bridge service life. Hence, this research takes the spherical steel bearings of the Nanjing Dashengguan Yangtze River Bridge as a study object. The cumulative dynamic displacement (CDD) under the action of a single train and the cumulative bearing travel (CBT) under the continual actions of many trains are studied using the monitored longitudinal displacement data from spherical steel bearings. Furthermore, the probability statistics and the Monte Carlo sampling simulation for CDD are studied, and the safety evaluation method for bearing wear life in the real environment is proposed using a reliability index regarding the failure probability of monitored CBT over the wear limit during service lifetime. In addition, safety evaluation on the bearing wear life was performed to assess the condition of spherical steel bearings in the real service environment. The results can provide an important reference for analysis on the bearing wear life of long-span railway bridge structures.
The effect of quinine on myeloperoxidase activities in the neutrophil

Quinine has been known to impair the functions of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN). Myeloperoxidase is the most abundant enzyme found in the neutrophil. The enzyme is known to catalyse the formation of hypochloride from hydrogen peroxide and chloride, as part of the normal cellular defence system in the polymorphonuclear neutrophil. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of quinine on myeloperoxidase. To test the effects of quinine on the myeloperoxidase activity, the enzyme was isolated and purified from human blood. The effect of different parameters including concentration, pH, partition ratio estimation and kinetics of inhibition of the drug on the enzyme were then studied. The activity of the enzyme was most inhibited at 0.02 mM with partition ratio estimation of 40 enzymatic turnover cycles for complete inhibition. The inhibition of the enzyme by quinine was favoured in an acidic medium with an increase in the Michaelis Menten constant (Km) value from 0.46 to 1.0 mM and an inhibition constant Ki of 0.09 mM. It is considered that the inhibition of myeloperoxidase as demonstrated in this study by quinine may partly explain the impairment of PMN and consequent reduction of the strength of the host defense system against secondary infections.
SELF-COMMUTATORS OF COMPOSITION OPERATORS WITH MONOMIAL SYMBOLS ON THE BERGMAN SPACE

Let φ(z) = zm, z ∈ U, for some positive integer m, and Cφ be the composition operator on the Bergman space A2 induced by φ. In this article, we completely determine the point spectrum, spectrum, essential spectrum, and essential norm of the operators C∗ φCφ, CφC ∗ φ as well as self-commutator and anti-self-commutators of Cφ. We also find the eigenfunctions of these operators.
Antibiotics Susceptibility Profile of Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Poultry Birds in Kaduna, Nigeria

Periodic antibiotic susceptibility study is imperative for the treatment and management of disease outbreak in clinics, community and poultry farms. This study evaluated the antibiotic resistant profile of S. aureus isolated from poultry farms in Kaduna metropolis. S. aureus isolation and biochemical identification were carried out using standard microbiological techniques, while susceptibility test was carried out using agar disc diffusion method. The result showed that out of 670 samples collected from broilers and layers nostril, cloacae, trachea and droppings and the farm workers’ ears and nostrils; 164 (55.8%) S. aureus were identified. Other Staph species identified were Staph. xylosus (19.5%), Staph. hyicus (6.8%), Staph. cohnii (6.8%) and Staph. intermedius (3.7%). S. aureus was more in layer (51.2%) samples than broilers (48.8%) poultry birds samples in Kaduna metropolis. High resistance was observed against tetracycline (76.8%), ciprofloxacin (60.4%), oxacillin (36.6%), and cotrimoxazole (26.6%). While the isolates showed significant susceptibility to cefoxitin (97.7%), amoxiclav (97.6%) and gentamicin (96.9%). On comparing the percentage resistance of the isolates, this study observed that isolates from farm workers were more resistant to tetracycline, ciprofloxacin, cotrimoxazole and oxacillin than those from broilers while layers were the list resistant. Isolates from layers exhibited high multidrug resistant profile of 81.5% followed by those from farm workers (66.7%), then isolates from broilers (45.9%). High percentage (81.7%) of the S. aureus had MAR index ≥ 0.3 and 49.4% (81/164) were multidrug resistant. The most resistance patterns observed among the MDR isolates were: TE, CIP, and OX=12.8% (21); TE, CIP, VA=10.4% (17); TE, CIP, and SXT=7.3% (12); TE, CIP, SXT, and OX=7.3% (12); and TE, CIP, VA, and SXT=6.7% (11). The high resistance to tetracycline and ciprofloxacin showed their frequent use in poultry farm in Kaduna metropolis and immediate action should be taken to correct this anomalies’ as this might contribute significantly to community associated multidrug resistance, increased morbidity and economic loss.
Disappearing Dividends in the Thai Capital Market: Changing Firm Characteristics or Lower Propensity to Pay

The number of firms in the Stock Exchange of Thailand that pay cash dividends has declined from 84.2 percent in 1990 to 46.4 percent in 2002. This decline is partly due to the changing characteristics of listed firms, which are increasingly becoming non-payers with high growth, small size and high earnings, but no dividends. This paper investigates the correlation between dividend yield, different market ratios and the characteristics described by Fama and French (2001), in the Thai capital market.
A Newer Human Development Index

The Human Development Index has experienced substantial modifications in the 2010 edition of the Human Development Report (changes in some of the variables, a different aggregation procedure, and the introduction of distributive considerations, among others). Those changes respond to some well-known shortcomings of the traditional design of this index and entail substantial improvements. There are still some inconsistencies in the new construction that have to be addressed (in particular, the use of a composite variable to approach educational achievements, the use of logs for the income variable and the type of normalization adopted). We discuss in this paper those inconsistencies and suggest some relatively minor changes that would suffice to avoid them.
The Determinants of Merger Waves

One of the most conspicuous features of mergers is that they come in waves, and that these waves are correlated with increases in share prices and price/earnings ratios. We test four hypotheses that have been advanced to explain merger waves: the industry shocks, q-, overvaluation and managerial discretion hypotheses. The first two are neoclassical in that they assume that managers maximize profits, mergers create wealth, and the capital market is efficient. The last two, behavioral hypotheses relax these assumptions in different ways. We test the four hypotheses by estimating models of the amounts of assets acquired by firms, models that identify the characteristics of targets, and estimates of the returns to acquirers’ shareholders. Although some support is found for each of the four hypotheses, most of the evidence favors the two behavioral hypotheses. ZUSAMMENFASSUNG - (Die Determinanten von Fusionswellen) Es ist eines der auffallendsten Merkmale von Unternehmenszusammen-schlussen, dass sie in Wellen stattfinden und dass diese Wellen mit dem Anstieg der Aktienkurse und des Preis/ Ertragsverhaltnisses zusammen hangen. Wir untersuchen vier Hypothesen, die als Erklarung von Unternehmenszusammenschlussen genannt werden: die der Industrieschocks, die q-Hypothese, die Hypothese der Uberbewertung und die Hypothesen des Ermessensspielraums von Managern. Die ersten zwei sind neoklassischer Natur insofern als sie davon ausgehen, dass Manager Gewinne maximieren, Unternehmenszusammenschlusse Reichtum schaffen und der Kapitalmarkt effizient ist. Die zwei letzteren sind Verhaltenshypothesen, die die neo-klassischen Annahmen (auf unterschiedliche Weise) lockern. Wir untersuchen die vier Hypothesen, indem wir Modellschatzungen der von Unternehmen akquirierten Aktien vornehmen. Dabei werden in den Modellen die Charakteristika der bei Zusammenschlussen aufgekauften Unternehmen identifiziert und die Rendite fur die Aktionare des aufkaufenden Unternehmens geschatzt. Auch wenn alle vier Hypothesen in gewisser Hinsicht Bestatigung finden, untermauern die meisten Belege die zwei Verhaltenshypothesen.
Structural and functional characterisation of the extracellular chaperone clusterin

The incidence of protein conformational disorders is a problem affecting the aging population and is an increasing cost on the health system. These diseases involve the breakdown of control mechanisms within and outside of cells leading to accumulation of unfolded and misfolded proteins. The control of protein folding, both inside and outside the cell, is important to maintain the integrity of all proteins. Dysfunctions in this control may lead to the development of protein conformational disorders. Intracellularly the mechanisms monitoring the correct translation, modification, assembly and transport of synthesised proteins are very well studied. However, in the harsh extracellular environment, mechanisms to control protein folding need further investigation. Extracellular chaperones have recently been proposed as an important part of extracellular quality control for protein folding.
SPATIAL DYNAMICS OF ALTERNATIVE REPRODUCTIVE STRATEGIES: THE ROLE OF NEIGHBORS

In territorial species, the reproductive success of a male is dependent on the quality of his territory. One important component of territory quality is spatial location. High-quality territories not only should be located in areas of high food abundance and low predation, but also should be located in areas that offer optimal amounts of social interaction. Such optima might be different for individuals according to their sex, domi- nance, or genotype. We studied territory quality (size, vegetation structure, and placement) in a socially monogamous, polymorphic passerine, the White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis), in order to determine how spatial attributes contribute to selection intensity on two genotypes. In this species, plumage (white and tan), behavior, and life-history char- acteristics have a genetic basis and are correlated with the presence or absence of a chro- mosomal inversion. Using remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), we found that the territories of white and tan males do not differ in size or vegetation structure, suggesting that these factors are not of primary importance to males when deciding where to establish a territory. Instead, we suggest that the placement of white and tan territories depends on the number of neighbors (particularly, white male neighbors). Tan males settle in low-density, neighbor-restrictive habitats where intruder pressure from white males seek- ing extra-pair copulations is reduced. In contrast, white males tend to settle in high-density areas where the probability of encountering neighboring fertile females is greatest. This segregation has led to intraspecific niche partitioning in the two disassortative pair types so that each male morph can best exploit its respective reproductive strategies. These factors may, in turn, contribute to the maintenance of this unusual mating system and, ultimately, the stability of the polymorphism in this species. Similar forces may be operating in other species without distinct morphological markers; we suggest that researchers keep social factors in mind when examining habitat selection.
Phase Pure Synthesis and Morphology Dependent Magnetization in Mn Doped ZnO Nanostructures

Zn0.95Mn0. 05O nanostructures were synthesized using sol gel derived autocombustion technique. As-burnt samples were thermally annealed at different temperatures (400, 600, and 800°C) for 8 hours to investigate their effect on structural morphology and magnetic behavior. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopic studies demonstrated the improvement in crystallinity of phase pure wurtzite structure of Mn doped ZnO with variation of annealing temperature. Energy dispersive X-ray elemental compositional analysis confirmed the exact nominal compositions of the reactants. Electrical resistivity measurements were performed with variation in temperature, which depicted the semiconducting nature similar to parent ZnO after 5 at% Mn doping. Magnetic measurements by superconducting quantum interference device detected an enhanced trend of ferromagnetic interactions in thermally annealed compositions attributed to the improved structural morphology and crystalline refinement process.
A Theory of the Term Structure of Interest Rates Under Non-expected Intertemporal Preferences

This paper presents general equilibrium term structure models under a non-expected lntertemporal utdity funchon, in which two disparate preference elements - lntertemporal subshtuhon and risk aversion are disentangled. One major finding is that in a nsk averse produchon economy, bond prices are independent of intertemporal substitution and thus separating the two preference components becomes totally irrelevant. The models produce several other results that are contrasted with those found in the exlstmg literature.
Debt Capacity of Real Estate Collateral

type="main"> We study whether real estate assets have a greater positive influence on firm leverage than other tangible assets. Using a large sample of COMPUSTAT firms, we find a significant positive relation between tangibility and leverage in general, and the relation is strongest for real estate collateral. Furthermore, we find that the relation holds only for credit-constrained firms, i.e., those likely to highly value the additional borrowing capacity of real estate. Our results imply that knowing the composition of a firm's tangible assets is important in understanding its leverage. Our findings could help explain why real estate investment trusts are relatively highly leveraged, even though debt offers them no tax benefit.
EFFECTS OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT DRIVERS ON ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE: A SURVEY OF THE HOTEL INDUSTRY IN KENYAN COAST

This study seeks to examine the effects of Strategic Management drivers on the performance of classified hotels in Kenyan Coast. The specific objectives are the effects of: customer relationship management strategy, strategic planning, competitive positioning, information communication Technology and organizational learning on the performance of the hotel industry in Kenyan Coast. The study seeks to determine the conceptualized Strategic Management Drivers’ influence on the performance of hotels in Kenyan Coast. The study will adopt a mixed research design which will be both quantitative and qualitative. The target population of the study will be 180 managers of classified hotels in Kenya’s Coast. The sampling technique to be used will be stratified random sampling. Secondary and primary data will be collected using a self administered questionnaire. The questionnaire will be piloted in order to check for validity and reliability. Questionnaires will be administered through drop and pick method. The data collected will be analyzed using various statistical tools and instruments such as ANOVA, correlation and multiple regression analysis.