Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Elastic wave simulation based on modal excitation in 3D medium

Paper describes a simulation of an elastic wave in homogenous isotropic waveguide with generic cross-section using semi-analytical finite element (SAFE) formulation. The wave is considered a travelling displacement field in the waveguide as a result to forcing excitation and is expressed via modes’ superposition. The solutions for modes are obtained solving SAFE governing eigen problem. Attenuation of the medium in SAFE framework differently from prior researchers is simulated via Rayleigh damping. It is shown, that severe damping is not properly supported by the SAFE formulation and revision for properly accepting linear viscosity is needed.
Predictive Factors of Acute Renal Failure in the Neonates with Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Background: Preterm birth occurs in a large number of pregnancies, and its incidence has been reported to be on the rise. Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication in the premature infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). The present study aimed to determine the predictive factors, clinical courses, and outcomes of AKI in the neonates with the clinical and radiological manifestations of RDS. Methods: Medical records of 84 premature neonates with RDS were evaluated in two groups of case (with AKI) (n=34) and control (without AKI) (n=50). Diagnosis of AKI was based on the increased level of serum creatinine (>1.5 mg/dL) after the third day of birth or increasing serum creatinine level. In addition, blood pressure and laboratory findings, including complete blood count, serum electrolytes, and urine volume, were compared between the two groups. Results: Mean age of the infants with AKI was 5.41±3.29 days, and the majority of the patients had nonoliguric renal failure. Among the samples, 23.5% died, and 76.5% were discharged without renal impairment. Birth weight, systolic blood pressure, blood urea nitrogen, calcium, and pH on admission had significant correlations with the presence of AKI. Moreover, birth weight was observed to be a relatively accurate predictive factor for AKI (AUC=0.08; 95% CI=0.68-0.91), with 73.5% sensitivity and 80% specificity. Conclusion: According to the results, AKI was more common in the low-birth-weight infants with severe RDS compared to the other subjects
Characterization of Asphalt Concrete Produced from Scrapped Tire Rubber

Scrapped tire rubbers have been proposed as flexible pavement components because they are waste materials. Sustainable development of flexible pavement by utilizing waste tire rubber to replace natural resources generates positive impact to the nature and reducing environmental pollution. This paper presents a study on the investigation of waste scrapped tire rubber as fine aggregate in the production of Asphalt Concrete (AC) mixture. There are three type of AC mixture with 0%, 50%, and 100% of waste scrapped tire rubber replacement of aggregate at fraction No. 50 (0.279 mm). Laboratory test is performed on six characteristics of Marshall test are void in mineral aggregate, void in mixture, voids filled with bitumen, stability, flow, and Marshall quotient. The results showed that the optimum asphalt content for ACStandard mixture is 6.78%, while ACScrapped-tire 50% mixture is 7.10% and ACScrapped-tire 100% mixture is 6.22%. Based on the Marshall Test characteristics, scrapped tire rubber can be used as an alternative material to replace fine aggregate in AC mixtures for road surface layer. The use of scrapped tire rubber in asphalt concrete mixtures can improve the resistance to permanent deformation due to ruts and provide better resistance to high temperatures and loads.
Measuring public preferences for the conservation of the traditional farm landscape

This paper explores individuals’ attitudes towards the traditional farm landscape. Results from a Generalised Tobit Interval model of willingness to pay for traditional farm landscape protection suggest that individuals are more willing to pay to support agricultural activities aimed at protecting landscape features associated with the wider biological and cultural diversity of the countryside (such as woodland, bogland, wild flora and fauna, water quality and aspects associated with our cultural heritage) than what could be described as more obvious and scenic landscapes associated with farming activities (such as open grass covered fields, grazing farm animals and well maintained traditional farm buildings). More generally, the results indicate broad public support for second pillar objectives under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) such as the protection of the traditional farm landscape.
The 30 cm radio flux as a solar proxy for thermosphere density modelling

The 10.7 cm radio flux (F10.7) is widely used as a proxy for solar UV forcing of the upper atmosphere. However, radio emissions at other centimetric wavelengths have been routinely monitored since the 1950 s, thereby offering prospects for building proxies that may be better tailored to space weather needs. Here we advocate the 30 cm flux (F30) as a proxy that is more sensitive than F10.7 to longer wavelengths in the UV and show that it improves the response of the thermospheric density to solar forcing, as modelled with DTM (Drag Temperature Model). In particular, the model bias drops on average by 0–20% when replacing F10.7 by F30; it is also more stable (the standard deviation of the bias is 15–40% smaller) and the density variation at the the solar rotation period is reproduced with a 35–50% smaller error. We compare F30 to other solar proxies and discuss its assets and limitations.
Determinants of Working Capital Management: Case of Nigerian Manufacturing Firms

This study explored the factors determining the working capitalwith the view to providing information on empirical tests that constitutes the determinants of working capital management in the listed manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The study used secondary data sources which were collected from the Annual Report and Accounts of sixty purposively selected non-financial quoted companies in the Nigerian Stock Exchange Fact book. Data on financial variables such as sales, purchases, inventory, creditors, debtors and total assets were extracted from the Annual Reports of these non-financial quoted companies between the periods 2000-2009. This was when the country started to experience financial policies for the banking sector under the democratic dispensation. Macroeconomic data on the annual growth rate of the Gross Domestic Product was obtained from the Statistical Bulletin of the Central Bank of Nigeria. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed that the significant factors determining working capital included sales growth, size of the firm, gross domestic product, leverage. The proportion of fixed assets to total assets and the net trading cycle, also determined working capital but were not significant at the five percent level. Keywords: working capital management, purposive, non-financial quoted companies, financial policies, democratic dispensation.
Persistence in Japanese language study and learners' cultural/linguistic backgrounds

Motivational characteristics of students learning Japanese as a foreign language at universities in Australia were investigated to find out what affecting factors are closely related to their intentions for continuing/discontinuing their study. The results showed that students’ cultural/linguistic backgrounds have a significant impact on their performance in learning the language, and sustaining motivation, which is closely related to their interest in aspects of Japanese culture, is an important determinant for persistence in their study. Developing intrinsic cultural interest is an important factor for sustaining motivation, which is more likely to occur when learners have distant cultural/linguistic backgrounds from Japanese. Closer cultural/linguistic backgrounds, on the other hand, may become hazardous for having accurate self-efficacy.
The UK Code of Corporate Governance: Link between Compliance and Firm Performance

Listed companies in the UK are required to comply or give reasons for non-compliance with the recommendations of the UK code of corporate governance called The Combined Code. Prior studies investigating the relationship between compliance and firm performance have found the link to be either non-existent or at best weak. This study, taking a more holistic view of compliance develops an index of non-compliance for a panel of FTSE350 companies for four years (2000-2003). Using total shareholder return (TSR) as the measure of firm performance, we find that the Index is negatively related to TSR, implying that more compliant firms have higher returns. Contrary to the widely held assumption that governance variables are endogenous, our direct test for the endogeneity of the Index finds no evidence of endogeneity. This implies that causation runs from the Index to performance. One reason for the clear contrast of our findings with previous work could be our choice of performance measurement. Assuming that compliance with the Code is a means of signaling to investors that firms are well governed and by implication working in the interests of shareholders, the effects of such positive perceptions can be argued to fall more on market driven measures of firm performance than on measures that rely on accounting based values, such as the various proxies for Tobin's Q. Another reason could be the emphasis on constructing a finely tuned, comprehensive index, incorporating elements of compliance with both the letter as well as the spirit of the Code. Overall, our results suggest that for today's informed and discerning investors, compliance matters not just as a box ticking exercise but as a real change in the governance of large listed companies, for which they are willing to pay a premium.
Lessons Learned from Student Satisfaction Surveys of CDIO Project Courses

The paper reports on a study of student satisfaction in CDIO project courses. The aims are to investigate if there are statistically significant differences in levels and variation of student satisfaction metrics between CDIO project courses and “traditional” courses, and to identify possible causes for these differences. The study was carried out at Chalmers University of Technology and focused on courses in its mechanical, automation and industrial design engineering programs. In these programs, about 20 CDIO project courses and 235 traditional courses are offered each year. In the study, student satisfaction and some other quantified metrics collected from Chalmers’ course evaluation system are compared for the two groups of courses. Further, the paper examines in more detail selected CDIO project courses, with high and low student satisfaction ratings. The results of the study provide support for the hypothesis that there are significant differences in ratings. A number of causes are identified and discussed, including course leadership, perceived workload, assessment, and freedom to select task.
Flexible tuning of departure decisions in response to weather in black redstarts Phoenicurus ochruros migrating across the Mediterranean Sea

Departure and stopover decisions are crucial for a successful migration. Such decisions are modulated by a complex interplay between endogenous (physiological state) and external factors, such as weather (e.g. wind) and geography (ecological barriers). In this study of the black redstart Phoenicurus ochruros, a short-distance migrant passerine, we investigate the effect of weather, as gauged by tailwind and crosswind conditions, rainfall, temperature, and barometric pressure, on departures from a stopover site in the central Mediterranean Sea, off the western coast of Italy (Ventotene island), during both spring and autumn migration. We found that stopover duration was longer in birds arriving with lower fat stores, and that birds departed with generally favourable weather conditions (favourable tailwinds, weak or no crosswinds, low rainfall, high temperatures, and high pressure). However, the effects of weather on departure decisions were stronger in autumn: this could be related to 1) a seasonal difference in selection pressures for early arrival at the goal areas, that are expected to be stronger in spring than in autumn or 2) a difference in the residual extent of sea crossing since, in autumn, birds are confronted with a much longer non-stop sea crossing (at least 300 km) than in spring (� 50 km). In spring we also found males to leave the study site under less favourable tailwinds than females, and adults to leave with more favourable tailwinds than young. Our findings indicate that departure decisions are flexible and differently affected by weather in different seasons, either because of seasonal effects or because of different distances to be covered before reaching the next stopover site. Moreover, our study suggests that sex-specific weather selectivity should be regarded among the proximate factors affecting differential spring migration of either sex.
Influence of Plant Growth Regulators on Morphological, Floral and Yield Traits of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)

The possibility was examined of altering the plant frame and inducing femaleness at early stages in the development of cucumber for productivity enhancement and early development using various plant growth regulators at the Vegetable Experimental Farm, Division of Vegetable Science and Floriculture, S.K. University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu, India during the springsummer season of 2009. Three plant growth regulators were sprayed onto plants at the two-, four- and six-leaf and full-bloom stage using the cucumber variety Cucumber Long Green. Two of the growth regulators, maleic hydrazide and ethephon, were each applied at two different concentrations of 100 and 200 ppm and the third, naphthalene acetic acid, was applied at 50 and 100 ppm, and some combined applications of growth regulators were also tested. The experiment comprised 15 treatments and was laid out in a randomized block design with three replications. The results revealed that the influence of the plant growth regulators was variable on the morphological traits of cucumber but the floral and yield traits were significantly affected by a combined application of 100 ppm maleic hydrazide and 100 ppm ethephon. This treatment induced early development, maximized the sex ratio with regard to yield and was comparatively helpful in reducing plant expansion. This treatment also produced the best economic results for the production of cucumber.
Linear prices vs. contracts for a dominant firm

The paper compares linear prices and bilateral contracts as selling procedures for a dominant firm in the presence of a fringe. When a buyer is served by the dominant firm, a contract establishes an efficient relationship between them; the number of buyers that the dominant firm chooses to serve, however, is inefficiently low. Consumers are always worse off with contracts than with linear prices, whereas the effect on total welfare is ambiguous and depends on the specific values of the parameters that characterize the industry. Finally, it is shown the dominant firm has incentives to consolidate the industry, exacerbating the effects of contracts on welfare.
Community commodified: planning for a sense of community in residential subdivisions

In New Zealand private property developers have begun to influence urban form in new ways by building large residential subdivisions and master planned developments reminiscent of those that have been built in the US for several decades. By creating these residential subdivisions and master planned developments, private property developers have had an increasing influence on urban form. Many have used the concept of ‘community’ in their advertising and promotional activities as a key selling point for these developments. Thus far, while there has been a great deal of research involving the residents of these new subdivisions, insufficient research has been carried out on the land developers themselves, their motives, intentions, and methods in regard to building communities. This paper presents the results of research that explored Christchurch real estate developers’ understandings of ‘community’ and how they went about incorporating these understandings in shaping their developments and in the associated promotional material. In addition to in-depth interviews with real estate developers, advertising material, physical design, and section prices were examined.
In vivo antimalarial activity of crude aqueous leaf extract of Pyrenacantha staudtii against Plasmodium berghei (NK65) in infected mice

Antimalarial activity of the crude aqueous leaf extract of Pyrenacantha staudtii was evaluated using chloroquine-sensitive Plasmodium berghei infection in mice with an objective to finding scientific evidence for the use of the plant as traditional antimalarial remedy in Ido/Osi LGA of Ekiti state, Nigeria. The crude aqueous extract of P. staudtii Engl. (Icacinaceae) (100, 200 and 500 mg/kg) was administered orally to mice infected with P. berghei in 4 days suppressive test. The antiplasmodial effect during the test of the plant in blood was determined and the extract at these doses induced 58.0 to 63.4% activity in comparison with untreated (negative) control group. Chloroquine produced 100% activity. The antimalarial activity showed by P. staudtii during the test justifies its use in traditional medicine for treating of malaria in the area.
Nitrous oxide emissions from crop rotations including wheat, oilseed rape and dry peas

Abstract. Approximately 65% of anthropogenic emissions of N2O, a potent greenhouse gas (GHG), originate from soils at a global scale, and particularly after N fertilisation of the main crops in Europe. Thanks to their capacity to fix atmospheric N2 through biological fixation, legumes can reduce N fertilizer use, and possibly N2O emissions. Nevertheless, the decomposition of crop organic matter during the crop cycle and residue decomposition, and possibly the N fixation process itself, could lead to N2O emissions. The objective of this study was to quantify N2O emissions from a dry pea crop (Pisum sativum, harvested at maturity) and from the subsequent crops in comparison with N2O emissions from wheat and oilseed rape crops, fertilized or not, in various rotations. A field experiment was conducted over 4 consecutive years to compare the emissions during the pea crop, in comparison with those during the wheat (fertilized or not) or oilseed rape crops, and after the pea crop, in comparison with other preceding crops. N2O fluxes were measured using static chambers. In spite of low N2O fluxes, mainly due to the site's soil characteristics, fluxes during the crop were significantly lower for pea and unfertilized wheat than for fertilized wheat and oilseed rape. The effect of the preceding crop was not significant, while soil mineral N at harvest was higher after the pea crop. These results should be confirmed over a wider range of soil types. Nevertheless, they demonstrate the absence of N2O emissions linked to the symbiotic N fixation process, and allow us to estimate the decrease in N2O emissions by 20–25% through including one pea crop in a three-year rotation. On a larger scale, this reduction of GHG emissions at field level has to be added to the decrease due to the reduced production and transport of the N fertilizer not applied to the pea crop.
Physical structure of the envelopes of intermediate-mass protostars

Context. Intermediate mass protostars provide a bridge between low- and high-mass protostars. Furthermore, they are an important component of the UV interstellar radiation field. Despite their relevance, little is known about their formation process. Aims. We present a systematic study of the physical structure of five intermediate mass, candidate Class 0 protostars. Our two goals are to shed light on the first phase of intermediate mass star formation and to compare these protostars with low- and high-mass sources. Methods. We derived the dust and gas temperature and density profiles of the sample. We analysed all existing continuum data on each source and modelled the resulting SED with the 1D radiative transfer code DUSTY. The gas temperature was then predicted by means of a modified version of the code CHT96. Results. We found that the density profiles of five out of six studied intermediate mass envelopes are consistent with the predictions of the “inside-out” collapse theory. We compared several physical parameters, like the power law index of the density profile, the size, the mass, the average density, the density at 1000 AU and the density at 10 K of the envelopes of low-, intermediate, and high-mass protostars. When considering these various physical parameters, the transition between the three groups appears smooth, suggesting that the formation processes and triggers do not substantially differ.
Coverage of Player Arrests in Sports

There are numerous studies that exist which discuss the issue of race along with media coverage. This issue exists as studies often find that the coverage of white athletes is significantly different than that of black athletes. Many of these previous studies are centered around the main concept of the Critical Race Theory. This study went more in depth with this theory and examined if the specific coverage of player arrests differed by race. A content analysis was performed that looked at the featured articles from Sports Illustrated dealing with player arrests over a three year period from 2008 to 2010. The results of the study found that racism did not exist within the Sports Illustrated articles over this time period. Document Type Undergraduate Project Professor's Name Emily Dane-Staples Subject Categories Sports Management This undergraduate project is available at Fisher Digital Publications: http://fisherpub.sjfc. edu/sport_undergrad/44 Running Head: SPORTS ILLUSTRATED COVERAGE 1 Sports Illustrated Coverage of Player Arrests in Sports Jacob P. Quinn St. John Fisher College
Gluteus Medius Muscle Activities According to Various Angle of Mediolateral Ramp During Cross Walking and One-leg Standing

PURPOSE: The purpose of study was to clear up the environmental risk factor that can be easily occurred unstability of hip during gait and one leg standing at various ramp angle. METHODS: Twenties healthy males of 69 subjects is participated in this study. Participants was measured activation on gluteus medius muscle during both conditions (walk across the ramp and one leg stand in the transverse direction) of seven different angle. The measured data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA to investigate the effect of muscle activation on the each condition. The statistical analyses were performed using SPSS ver. 18.0 and p-value less than . 05 were considered significant for all cases. A post-hoc test was performed by Bonferoni method.
Comparing Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Scientific Census Data on Primate Populations in the Sucusari Community, Peruvian Amazon

x INTRODUCTION . 1 OBJECTIVES . 5 MAIJUNA INDIGENOUS PEOPLE . 6 STUDY AREA . 8 METHODS . 11 Data collection. 11 Interviews . 11 Field surveys . 14 Data analysis . 14 Freelisting and cultural salience . 14 Identification and location of primates using photos . 15 Field surveys . 16 Comparison of primate group size between field surveys and TEK . 17 Comparison of primate habitat use between field surveys and TEK . 18