Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Alternative approaches to evaluation of cow efficiency

The purpose of this study was to evaluate alternative expressions of genetic merit for cow efficiency. Weights of Pinzgauer cattle taken at birth, weaning, and maturity were extracted from the South African National Database. Average daily gain from birth to weaning (ADG) and cow weight (CWT) were analyzed with a multi-trait mixed model. The model included direct and maternal genetic effects, a permanent environmental effect attributable to dams on ADG, a direct genetic effect and a permanent environmental effect attributable to there being multiple observations from the same cow on CWT as random effects. Heritability estimates for direct and maternal additive effects on ADG were 0.27 ± 0.04 and 0.06 ± 0.02, respectively. The estimated heritability for CWT was 0.45 ± 0.06. Estimates of repeatability for ADG and CWT were 0.42 and 0.67, respectively. Estimated breeding values based on the preceding results and using the maternal genetic effect on ADG as a proxy for the direct genetic effect on milk production were combined in six indexes of cow efficiency. These indexes sought to increase output and decrease input simultaneously, to increase output holding input constantly, and to hold input constant while decreasing input. The diversity of emphasis applied across these indexes suggests the need for due diligence in developing breeding objectives for improvement of cow efficiency. Indexes that are consistent with the econometric definition of efficiency and seek to simultaneously increase output and reduce input are recommended. ______________________________________________________________________________________ Keywords : genetic parameters, multiple trait selection, Pinzgauer, selection index
The Mediator Effect of Customer Satisfaction between Quality Management Practices and Communication Behavior amongst Malaysia Hajj Pilgrims: Survey Result

Quality management practices (QMP) is one of the most important management in ensuring an organisation continuously improves their business performance. In order to continuously improve in the service and operation, the adoption of QMP is necessary to ensure business excellence. Most previous works have given less emphasis on mediator effect of customer satisfaction (CS) between QMP and communication behavior (CB) amongst Malaysia Hajj pilgrims. A questionnaire was prepared and given to 500 respondents of Malaysian pilgrims which gave a 70.0% response rate or 350 respondents. Overall descriptive result depicts high level of QMP, CS and CB, showing that Malaysia Hajj Pilgrims have high satisfaction towards Hajj services, which are being provided by Hajj Pilgrims organiser. Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH), which manages more than 80.0% of Malaysia Hajj Pilgrims every year, has performed the excellent performance towards QMP, CS and CB. This study also revealed that QMP has significant effect on CS with r = 0.91 at p<0.01 and CS has significant impact on CB with r = 0.39 at p<0.01. The model has r2=0.75, meaning that 75% of CB is accounted by the CS and QMP.
Elevated Interleukin-10 Levels Correlate with Disease Activity in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Background: We analyzed the relationship between serum interleukin (IL)-10 levels and disease activity in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methods: The study enrolled 50 SLE patients and 30 healthy adults who were used as the control group. The IL-lO levels in the serum were determined and compared according to disease activities, which were measured using the SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) and laboratory parameters such as C3, C4, anti-dsDNA antibodies, IgG, IgM and IgA. Results: The IL-IO levels of the SLE patients were significantly higher than those of the control group (34.3 ± 7.2 vs 5.8 ± 1.2 pg/ml, p ＜ 0.05). Serum IL-l0 titers in SLE patients positively correlated with the SLEDAI (r = 0.42, P ＜ 0.01) and anti-dsDNA antibodies (r = 0.3, P ＜ 0.05), but negatively correlated with complement C3 levels (r = -0.45, p ＜ 0.01). However, there was no significant association between IL-l0 and C4 levels. Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that serum levels of IL-10 were elevated in SLE patients and increased lL-10 correlated with SLE disease activity.
A Revised Framework for Treating Primary Organic Aerosol Emissions in Inventories and Models

This paper discusses a revised framework for treating primary organic aerosol emissions in inventories and models. Instead of using static aerosol emission factors, we represent the organic aerosol emissions using a volatility distribution. Conceptually, this distribution can be derived from speciated emissions data by lumping species with similar saturation vapor pressures. However, this is not possible in practice because less than 10% of the condensed and semivolatile mass has been speciated. We determine volatility distributions by fitting isothermal dilution data with absorptive partitioning theory, similar to well-established analyses of secondary organic aerosol. Representing emissions with a volatility distribution allows explicit treatment of both gas-particle partitioning and photochemical aging of primary emissions. We have implemented this approach using the chemical transport model PMCAMx, and present results from simulations conducted over the Eastern United States. The results show a dramatically altered picture of ambient organic aerosol.
Unbiased Inference for Discretely Observed Hidden Markov Model Diffusions

We develop a Bayesian inference method for diffusions observed discretely and with noise, which is free of discretisation bias. Unlike existing unbiased inference methods, our method does not rely on exact simulation techniques. Instead, our method uses standard time-discretised approximations of diffusions, such as the Euler--Maruyama scheme. Our approach is based on particle marginal Metropolis--Hastings, a particle filter, randomised multilevel Monte Carlo, and importance sampling type correction of approximate Markov chain Monte Carlo. The resulting estimator leads to inference without a bias from the time-discretisation as the number of Markov chain iterations increases. We give convergence results and recommend allocations for algorithm inputs. Our method admits a straightforward parallelisation, and can be computationally efficient. The user-friendly approach is illustrated on three examples, where the underlying diffusion is an Ornstein--Uhlenbeck process, a geometric Brownian motion, and a 2d non-reversible Langevin equation.
Crystal-structure refinement of a F-bearing spessartine garnet

The crystal structure of a F-bearing spessartine from the Henderson molybdenite deposit in Clear Creek County, Colorado, has been investigated by single-crystal X-ray methods. Electron-microprobe and infrared spectroscopic data indicate a composition of Mn_(2.67)Fe_(0.33) Ca_(0.05)Al_(1.97)Si_(2.70)O_(10.7)F_(1.0)(OH)_(0.35) with up to 3.8 wt% F. The garnet has a cubic unit-cell edge of 11.628(1)A. No reflections violating space group Iɑ3d were observed. The structure was refined to a final R of 0.054 (R_(wt) = 0.038) using 2682 intensity measurements that reduced to 550 symmetry-independent reflections, of which 493 were greater than three times the standard deviation of the background count rate. The final oxygen positional parameters are x = 0.0336(1), y = 0.0481(1); and z = 0.6520(1). The total Z-site occupancy was found to be 0.90(1) Si and is consistent with the chemical analysis that indicates a Si cation deficiency of approximately 10%. The Si-O distance of 1.656(1)A is longer than observed for fully occupied Si sites in spessartines, indicating that F substitutes for O in Si-absent tetrahedra, similar to the OH substitution in hydrogrossular. The study indicates that it is not necessary to have the strong polarity of OH^- to achieve a F^(4-)_4 substitution for SiO^(4-)_4. Garnets may thus preserve a record of variable F activity in hydrothermal processes.
OVIPOSITION BEHAVIOUR AND VULNERABILITY OF EGGS TO PREDATION IN FOUR NEWT SPECIES (GENUS TRITURUS)

Most animals develop some kind of parental care in order to protect eggs or offspring from predation. Female newts (genus Triturus) protect eggs from predators by wrapping them individually in plant leaves. We studied oviposition characteristics of four newt species inhabiting the northern Iberian Peninsula (marbled newt, Triturus marmoratus; alpine newt, T. alpestris; palmate newt, T. helveticus and Bosca’s newt, T. boscai). All of these species are able to wrap their eggs in aquatic plants in laboratory experiments, but ‐ whereas T. marmoratus, T. alpestris and T. helveticus wrapped more than 90% of their eggs ‐ T. boscai covered only half of the eggs completely with leaves. T. boscai is found in running waters more frequently than the other species, and lays larger eggs relative to female size, as is typical of running water urodeles. A parallel experiment exposing newt eggs to predation by larvae of the dragonfly Aeshna cyanea, demonstrated the protective value of wrapping behaviour. About half of the unwrapped eggs were consumed, whereas protected eggs remained almost unattacked.
Empirical modelling of lake water-temperature relationships: a comparison of approaches

1. As a result of the role that temperature plays in many aquatic processes, good predictive models of annual maximum near-surface lake water temperature across large spatial scales are needed, particularly given concerns regarding climate change. Comparisons of suitable modelling approaches are required to determine their relative merit and suitability for providing good predictions of current conditions. We developed models predicting annual maximum near-surface lake water temperatures for lakes across Canada using four statistical approaches: multiple regression, regression tree, artificial neural networks and Bayesian multiple regression. 2. Annual maximum near-surface (from 0 to 2 m) lake water-temperature data were obtained for more than 13 000 lakes and were matched to geographic, climatic, lake morphology, physical habitat and water chemistry data. We modelled 2348 lakes and three subsets thereof encompassing different spatial scales and predictor variables to identify the relative importance of these variables at predicting lake temperature. 3. Although artificial neural networks were marginally better for three of the four data sets, multiple regression was considered to provide the best solution based on the combination of model performance and computational complexity. Climatic variables and date of sampling were the most important variables for predicting water temperature in our models. 4. Lake morphology did not play a substantial role in predicting lake temperature across any of the spatial scales. Maximum near-surface temperatures for Canadian lakes appeared to be dominated by large-scale climatic and geographic patterns, rather than lake-specific variables, such as lake morphology and water chemistry.
Geological Age by Instrumental Analysis: The 29th Hallimond Lecture

Abstract The need in geology for in situ U-Pb age determinations of minerals is illustrated by two examples: the internal age dispersion developed within the zircon SL13 shortly after original crystallization, and the occurrence within minerals of old cores and later overgrowths. SL13 contains rare mm-sized patches of unsupported radiogenic Pb and a mainly bimodal distribution of 206Pb/238U ages otherwise. Both observations are consistent with original crystallization at 580 Ma and Pb loss at 565 Ma. Age precision is controlled by the ions counted for radiogenic Pb, and varies with instrumental sensitivity, age and U contents of the target. Laser-ablation ICPMS has similar spatial resolution and sensitivity to SIMS but consumes more sample because of much greater hole-depth in practice. Like SIMS, the measured Pb+/U+ is biased and also changes with depth so comparison with a standard mineral is necessary. Analyses of reference zircons reported here indicate that the reproducibility of Pb/U ages by ICPMS is limited by residual bias, not ion counting errors. For multipurpose ICPMS at least, the Hg background at mass 204 prohibits the measurement of 204Pb for common Pb estimation. A third micro- analytical method, 'CHIME', and future developments in SIMS and ICPMS are discussed briefly.
Prevalence of premenstrual syndrome and associated functional disability among female students of Addis ketema preparatory school, Ethiopia

Premenstrual syndrome is a psycho-neuro-endocrine disorder having biological, psychic and social parameters. It is a serious health problem affecting the young females and any women in a reproductive age group. The recurrent nature of this problem has potential impact on the daily lives of women; making a central issue in women well-being. Although it has been widely studied in many countries only limited studies have been conducted in Ethiopia and the study area in particular. To determine the prevalence and severity of premenstrual syndrome and functional disability associated among female students of Addis Ketema preparatory school. Cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence and severity of premenstrual syndrome and associated functional disability among female students. A total of 210 sampled female students were included in the study. The information for the study was collected by a pre-designed self administered questionnaire by reviewing literatures. The diagnosis of premenstrual syndrome was done according to American College of Obstetrics and Genecology premenstrual syndrome clinical management guideline for Obstetrician. Assessment of the severity was determined using Taylor D. premenstrual syndrome scoring technique symptom management. Data analysis was done by SPSS version 19.0 computer statistical soft ware. One hundred eighty female students completed questionnaire making a response rate of 85.7%. one hundred fifty five(86.1%) reported to have experienced premenstrual syndrome, out of which 71 (41.3%) had mild, moderate 47(27.3%), severe 29 (26.9%) and extremely severe (3.5%) forms of premenstrual syndrome. premenstrual syndrome for most of them started at their age of menarche (45.9%). 73% reported that the symptoms have interfered and decreased their daily activity. Eighty nine (49.4%) reported to have changed their diet (10.5%) used analgesics and exercise (3.9%) as coping mechanism to relive the symptoms. Statistical significant association was observed between occurrence of premenstrual syndrome and academic year (p<0.05). The prevalence of premenstrual syndrome is high among the studied female students. Even though nearly half of them used some form of coping mechanism, the symptoms have interfered their daily activity. There is significant association between occurrence of premenstrual syndrome and their academic activities. Identifying and providing appropriate medical treatment and counseling for the female students at school clinics needs to be considered. Information education communication on premenstrual syndrome and possible coping method should be provided at schools.
Odonata assemblages along an anthropogenic disturbance gradient in Ghana’s Eastern Region

The authors are grateful to Rufford Foundation for providing financial support (20322-1) for this study. Special thanks to Tropical Biology Association (www.tropical-biology.org) for their advice and mentoring. My heartfelt appreciation to Viola Clausnitzer and Klaas-Douwe B. Dijkstra for providing us with the identification hand books and for their immense contribution, mentoring, advice and guidance for the species identifications and towards the successful completion of the study. Finally, to David Amaning Kwarteng, Daniel Acquah-Lamptey, Paul Tehoda, Sulemana Bawa and Emmanuel Amoah, for their role in field data gathering.
Numerical modeling of diffuse transverse cracks and induced delamination using cohesive elements

This article is devoted to the modeling of spread kind of damages such as matrix cracking and induced delamination in symmetric and asymmetric cross-ply laminates of composite materials using cohesive elements. For matrix crack modeling, parallel rows of cohesive elements are used between every row of 2D elements in 90° layers. Delamination is also modeled by cohesive elements at the 90°/0° interface. Since matrix cracking is a diffuse kind of damage mechanism, application of cohesive elements is not straightforward, and special techniques are necessary to resolve the modeling difficulties. For this purpose, two techniques of “bisecting” and “random distribution of strength of cohesive elements” are proposed here. Both techniques are applied to various symmetric laminates of [0/903]s and [90n/0]s (n = 1 to 3). The predicted stiffness and damage progresses from both techniques are in good agreement with the experimental results. Then, asymmetric cross-ply laminates of [90n/0] (n = 1 to 3) are analyzed to show the capability of this method in progressive damage analyses. The proposed method is less restricted in comparison with available micromechanical methods and is able to predict damage initiation, propagation and damage-mode transition for any symmetric and asymmetric cross-ply sequence. Therefore, this method can be used for development of “in-plane damage” of constitutive laws especially when specimens are subjected to complex loading and boundary conditions.
Synthesis of bismuth(III) oxide films based anodes for electrochemical degradation of Reactive blue 19 and Crystal violet

The Bi2O3 films-based anodes were synthesized by electrodeposition of Bi on stainless steel substrate at constant current density and during different deposition times, followed by calcination, forming Bi2O3. The thickness of the films was determined by two methods: the observation under the microscope and by calculation from mass difference. The electrochemical processes at the anodes were ivestigated by linear sweep voltammetry. At the anodes obtained within 2, 5, 10 and 15 min of deposition, two dyes, namely: Reactive blue 19 and Crystal violet, were decolorized by oxidation with • OH radical, generated from H2O2 decomposition at the anodes. Decoloration times of the anodes varied, and the shortest one was achieved with the anode obtained during 5 min of deposition, with the film thickness of 2.5±0.3 μm. The optimal H2O2 concentration for the dyes degradation was found to be 10 mmol dm –3
Collaboratively Weighting Deep and Classic Representation via $l_2$ Regularization for Image Classification

Deep convolutional neural networks provide a powerful feature learning capability for image classification. The deep image features can be utilized to deal with many image understanding tasks like image classification and object recognition. However, the robustness obtained in one dataset can be hardly reproduced in the other domain, which leads to inefficient models far from state-of-the-art. We propose a deep collaborative weight-based classification (DeepCWC) method to resolve this problem, by providing a novel option to fully take advantage of deep features in classic machine learning. It firstly performs the L2-norm based collaborative representation on the original images, as well as the deep features extracted by deep CNN models. Then, two distance vectors, obtained based on the pair of linear representations, are fused together via a novel collaborative weight. This collaborative weight enables deep and classic representations to weigh each other. We observed the complementarity between two representations in a series of experiments on 10 facial and object datasets. The proposed DeepCWC produces very promising classification results, and outperforms many other benchmark methods, especially the ones claimed for Fashion-MNIST. The code is going to be published in our public repository.
A Simple Nonparametric Test for the Existence of Finite Moments

This paper proposes a simple, fast and direct nonparametric test to verify if a sample is drawn from a distribution with a finite first moment. The method can also be applied to test for the existence of finite moments of another order by taking the sample to the corresponding power. The test is based on the difference in the asymptotic behaviour of the arithmetic mean between cases when the underlying probability function either has or does not have a finite first moment. Test consistency is proved; then, test performance is illustrated with Monte-Carlo simulations and a practical application for the S&P500 index.
Changes in soil organic carbon storage predicted by Earth system models during the 21 st century

Soil is currently thought to be a sink for carbon; however, the response of this sink to increasing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide and climate change is uncertain. In this study, we analyzed soil organic carbon (SOC) changes from 11 Earth system models (ESMs) contributing simulations to the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). We used a reduced complexity model based on temperature and moisture sensitivities to analyze the drivers of SOC change for the historical and high radiative forcing (RCP 8.5) scenarios between 1850 and 2100. ESM estimates of SOC changed over the 21st century (2090–2099 minus 1997–2006) ranging from a loss of 72 Pg C to a gain of 253 Pg C with a multi-model mean gain of 65 Pg C. Many ESMs simulated large changes in highlatitude SOC that ranged from losses of 37 Pg C to gains of 146 Pg C with a multi-model mean gain of 39 Pg C across tundra and boreal biomes. All ESMs showed cumulative increases in global NPP (11 to 59 %) and decreases in SOC turnover times (15 to 28 %) over the 21st century. Most of the model-to-model variation in SOC change was explained by initial SOC stocks combined with the relative changes in soil inputs and decomposition rates ( R2 = 0.89, p < 0.01). Between models, increases in decomposition rate were well explained by a combination of initial decomposition rate, ESM-specificQ10-factors, and changes in soil temperature (R2 = 0.80, p < 0.01). All SOC changes depended on sustained increases in NPP with global change (primarily driven by increasing CO2). Many ESMs simulated large accumulations of SOC in high-latitude biomes that are not consistent with empirical studies. Most ESMs poorly represented permafrost dynamics and omitted potential constraints on SOC storage, such as priming effects, nutrient availability, mineral surface stabilization, and aggregate formation. Future models that represent these constraints are likely to estimate smaller increases in SOC storage over the 21st century.
Inhibition of Escherichia coli 0157 : H 7 Growth by Gamma Radiation Improves the Hygienic Quality of Chilled Fresh Beef Meat

The focus of this study was to evaluate the effect of γ radiation and chilling on the hygienic quality of fresh beef meat, fatty acids content and survival of Escherichia coli as food poisoning microorganisms. Sixty fresh beef samples were hygienically examined, surveyed for E. coli O157: H7; eight samples were positive (13.3%). Sensory examination revealed that there were no significant changes between γ radiated (at 3 kGy) and non-irradiated groups in color, odor and texture. γ radiation caused slight significant effect on the chemical analysis after irradiation; there was no significant changes in pH values it slightly increased the amount of total volatile basic nitrogen (TVN), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBA) and peroxide value. Fatty acids of irradiated chilled samples were slightly affected as compared with control samples; the irradiated samples had higher saturated fatty acid content (C16:0, C18:0) and lower unsaturated fatty acid content (C18:1, C18:2) than the non-irradiated sample. We recommend exposing meat to 3 kGy of γ radiation to prolong its chilling life hygienically.
Ramsey theory in noncommutative semigroups

By utilizing ultrafilters we give a general version of the Central Sets Theorem [6, Proposition 8.21]. This enables us to derive noncommutative versions of van der Waerden's Theorem and several of its generalizations. We also derive some standards results, including the Hales-Jewett Theorem