Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of mycorrhizal strategy on the foliar traits of the plants on the Tibetan Plateau in response to precipitation and temperature

Mycorrhizas play key roles in important ecosystem processes and functions. To enhance our understanding of the impact of mycorrhizal strategies on important foliar traits of host plants and their response to climate changes, we analysed 6 selected foliar traits among 54 plant species in 129 sampling sites of ascertained mycorrhizal types on the Tibetan Plateau based on their functional groups. The selected traits were leaf mass per area (LMA), nitrogen concentration (on mass and area bases, Nmass and Narea, respectively), photosynthetic capacity (Amass and Aarea) and photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE). The analysed foliar traits showed no significant difference between arbuscular mycorrhizas (AM) and non-mycorrhizas (NM) + AM in the grass group. Mycorrhizal strategies remarkably affected Nmass and Amass of the herb group, and LMA, Amass and Nmass in the shrub group. Responses of foliar traits to precipitation and temperature varied among different mycorrhizal strategies. The index of LMA, Aarea and Narea of AM, Narea of NM/AM, and PNUE of mean annual precipitation (MAP) were significantly affected by mean annual temperature (MAT). The responses among different mycorrhizal types to precipitation and temperature differed among plant functional groups.
An Investigation of Difficult Topics in the Senior Secondary School Mathematics Curriculum as Perceived by Student Teachers

This study investigates difficult topics in the senior secondary school Mathematics curriculum as perceived by student teachers. The study also investigated the influence of teachers teaching experience and gender differences on their perception of Mathematics topics. The participants consisted of 30 male and 30 female students drawn from two tertiary institutions in Lagos state through stratified random sampling procedure. The relevant data were generated using Mathematics Topic Difficulty Assessment Questionnaire (MTDAQ). The instrument has a reliability of 0.87 when tested during the pilot study. Five hypotheses were formulated and tested all at 0.05 level of significance. Results obtained indicated that there exist a significant difference of teachers teaching experience and there were no significant gender differences on their perception of Mathematics topics. Based on the findings of this study, some conclusions were drawn and recommendations were made.
The Role of Task Complexity and Task Motivation in Language Production

This study investigates the relationship between the cognitive demands of task complexity and learners’ motivation towards several tasks using task-based instruction during asynchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) writing tasks. According to Robinson’s Cognition Hypotheses (2001a, 2005, 2007), the production of language would be different when certain manipulation of task complexity was made. The tasks were manipulated following two variables from the Cognition Hypotheses, along resource-directing (+/- causal reasoning demand) and resource-dispersing (+/- task structure) dimensions. Eighty-eight undergraduate students from one of the technical universities in Malaysia were divided into four groups and assigned with a writing task. After the participants have completed the writing tasks, they were interviewed and asked to complete a questionnaire to gauge their motivation towards the tasks. Participants’ written language production was coded and analyzed using syntactic and lexical complexity measures. Further analysis of the data was conducted using Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) and correlational analysis. Analyses of the results showed that there is a correlation between task complexity and task motivation among learners. However, the correlation is only evident in lexical complexity production and no correlation was found for any of the syntactic complexity measures. This study is significant as it explores the roles of task complexity and task motivation in mediating the production of language. It also highlights how the manipulation of task complexity would encourage the production of the language in terms of its complexity.
Scrum-Based Learning Environment: Fostering Self-Regulated Learning

Academics teaching software development courses are experimenting with teaching methods aiming to improve students’ learning experience and learning outcomes. Since Agile software development is gaining popularity in industry due to positive effects on managing projects, academics implement similar Agile approaches in student-centered learning environments. In this paper, we discuss teaching introductory programming based on Scrum. Our learning environment, supported by the Doubtfire learning management system, fosters perceived autonomy and perceived competence by providing tools and opportunities for self-regulated learners to adjust their learning strategies. Evaluation of the learning environment revealed that students want to be in control of their learning
Pathology and Diagnosis of Theileria annulata and Theileria orientalis in Buffaloes

Tropical theileriosis is economically important disease of bovines, which is routinely diagnosed by microscopic examination of stained blood smear for presence of schizonts in lymphocytes or monocytes and piroplasms in erythrocytes, Although this method is widely used for laboratory based diagnosis, however it is combined to have certain diagnostic limitations.Hence, the present
Nutritional Interventions as Potential Strategy to Minimize Exercise-Induced Muscle Injuries in Sports

Muscle injury has been related to resistance exercise and prolonged endurance exercise paradigms both leading to significant local mechanical constraints followed by focal disorders such as sarcolemmal damage and leakage of intracellular proteins, oedema, myofibrillar disorganization and microtrauma-triggered inflammation. These unfavorable events lead to variable soreness, swelling, loss in muscle strength and function with reduced range of motion.
Edible Wild Fruit Trees and Shrubs and Their Socioeconomic Significance in Central Ethiopia

An ethnobotanical study was conducted to investigate indigenous knowledge and socioeconomics of edible wild fruit trees and shrubs (EWFTSs) in Arsi Zone, Central Ethiopia. A total of 90 respondents were interviewed and consisted of men, women, and children who were selected by stratified random sampling. A total of 30 EWFTSs bearing species that belong to 20 families were identified. Age and gender distribution of respondents on the choice of four of the top five species were homogeneous indicating that promotion can be planned indifferently to all households. Indigenous knowledge on EWFTSs varied significantly (P < 0.05) with age groups and gender as well as area of respondents. Elder males appeared more familiar with EWFTSs. Income generated from sales of EWFTSs is, however, marginal. A considerable proportion of the community acknowledged food values of EWFTSs, and more than half preferred EWFTSs over cultivated commercial fruit, suggesting that efforts towards their integration into the current farming system are appealing. Realizing the resource depletion, about 54% of the respondents planted EWFTSs while 87% showed interest to participate in domestication programs. The study explored a great potential of promoting EWFTSs in Arsi Zone and assisting the country’s efforts of ensuring food security.
Transformational leadership as a moderator of the relationship between psychological safety and learning behaviour in work teams in Ghana

Orientation: Transformational team leadership is an important variable that influences team members’ perception of the team as psychologically safe enough to engage in learning behaviours. Research purpose: The study was aimed at investigating the relationship between psychological safety and learning behaviour in teams, as well as the moderating role of transformational team leadership in this relationship. Motivation for the study: For a team to be effective, adaptive and innovative and engage in learning behaviours, the transformational team leader must set the right climate in the team, where he or she welcomes the team members’ opinions, questions and feedback at no risk to their image. An understanding of this will be important in team leader selection and training. Research design, approach and method: Using a cross-sectional survey design, 57 work teams comprising 456 respondents in teams of 7–9 members were purposively sampled from five financial institutions in Accra, Ghana. Hierarchical regression and moderation analyses were run on the data at the team level. Main findings: Results indicated a positive relationship between team psychological safety and team learning behaviour, with transformational team leadership moderating this relationship. Practical/managerial implication: Transformational team leadership is important in creating a climate of psychological safety that will enable team members to engage in learning behaviours. Contribution/value-add: The study provided theoretical and empirical evidence that, in organisational contexts, transformational team leadership is an important variable that can facilitate psychological safety and learning behaviour in teams.
Covariation in the Skull Modules of Cats: The Challenge of Growing Saber-Like Canines

ABSTRACT Shape variation in the vertebrate skull is often studied by considering this bony structure as a single discrete unit, but it can also be interpreted exploring covariation among functionally and developmentally distinct regions, or modules. In this paper, we explore the evolution of skull shape in extant and fossil carnivoran cats by looking at covariation between two distinct modules: the rostrum (splanchnocranium) and braincase (neurocranium). Previous work suggests that the evolution of extreme skull shapes in sabertoothed cats may occur along developmental axes similar to the allometric trajectory observed for extant conical-toothed cats. Here, we reassess this hypothesis by using geometric morphometric data to test for covariation between rostral and braincase modules in sabertoothed and conical-toothed cats. Using partial least squares analysis, we detect a correlated pattern of evolution between rostrum and braincase shape in both forms. However, when we compare within-module integration between conical and sabertoothed cats, we find significant differences in vector trajectories for the rostrum but not the braincase. Both skull modules of conical-toothed cats are more influenced by allometry. For sabertoothed taxa, relative canine height drives shape in the rostrum, but both size and canine length affect braincase shape. We suggest that sabertoothed skull morphology is the result of genetic and developmental processes that were affected by the growth rate of the upper canines. The striking convergence between independent sabertooth radiations indicates that elongation of the canines influenced interspecific skull shape variation in different lineages but in a similar way.
Effect of tillage, mulching and weed management practices on the performance and economics of chickpea

A field experiment was conducted to study the effect of tillage, mulching and weed management practices on growth, yield and uptake of nutrients by chickpea during rabi 2010 and 2011 at MARS, UAS Dharwad, Karnataka. Conventional tillage increased various growth, yield parameters and chickpea yield and also nutrient uptake and nitrogen use efficiency over minimum and zero tillage practices. Significantly higher gross return, net return and B:C ratio were recorded in conventional tillage as compared to minimum and zero tillage practices. Mulching practice showed higher growth, yield and yield parameters of chickpea and also nutrient uptake and economics over minimum and zero tillage practices. Significantly higher growth, chickpea yield and yield parameters, nutrient uptake, gross return, net return and B:C ratio were recorded in application of pendimethalin as compared to other weed management practices.
RADIAL STAR FORMATION HISTORIES IN 15 NEARBY GALAXIES

New deep optical and near-infrared imaging is combined with archival ultraviolet and infrared data for 15 nearby galaxies mapped in the Spitzer Extended Disk Galaxy Exploration Science survey. These images are particularly deep and thus excellent for studying the low surface brightness outskirts of these disk-dominated galaxies with stellar masses ranging between 108 and 10 11 M ⊙ . > The spectral energy distributions derived from this data set are modeled to investigate the radial variations in the galaxy colors and star formation histories. Taken as a whole, the sample shows bluer and younger stars for larger radii until reversing near the optical radius, whereafter the trend is for redder and older stars for larger galacto-centric distances. These results are consistent with an inside-out disk formation scenario coupled with an old stellar outer disk population formed through radial migration and/or the cumulative history of minor mergers and accretions of satellite dwarf galaxies. However, these trends are quite modest and the variation from galaxy to galaxy is substantial. Additional data for a larger sample of galaxies are needed to confirm or dismiss these modest sample-wide trends.
The effectiveness of English teaching program in senior high school: A case study

This research seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of the English teaching program in senior high school: Case of SMAN3 Yogyakarta, grade eleven. This study was a summative case study using a mixed-method. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative data and qualitative data followed a descriptive analysis following the CIPP model. The informants were 43 students of SMAN3 and two English teachers. The context findings showed that program objectives, classroom condition, students’ needs and barriers were in effective category. In input component, it is found that both teachers were qualified and experienced. The teaching training was not enough; students’ textbooks and course designs were in effective category. The process component showed that teaching materials, teaching methods, teaching activities and assessments were in effective category. The product component showed that English marks, students’ needs and barriers were in effective category. However, the teaching materials were in ‘not effective’ category .
General Model for Adequate Cloud Service Selection using Decision Making Methods

Cloud Computing (CC) is a technology that surely brings innovations in today’s business world, more and more companies around the world are widely incorporating this technology into their businesses. From a technical, as well as organizational point of view transferring enterprise IT to the Cloud is a complex task. Various factors have to be taken into consideration in order to make a right choice when moving IT services to the Cloud. The goal of this paper is to identify and to discuss in detail all factors that influence organization’s decision to adopt Cloud. General model for Cloud adoption, introduced in Pantelic et al. [13]a, consists of the key factors driving the organizational benefits when moving to the Cloud. The purpose of the model is to support decision makers in evaluating the benefits, risks and costs of using Cloud Computing. In this paper the general model is extended with two new aggregation methods for harmonization of alternatives rankings in a group decision process. We present the results of two new methods using the method results from previous research [13], as rank inputs, into an aggregate (group) preference. The idea is to find consensus ranking that minimizes disagreement among previous methods results. There were no strong differences between the results of performed methods. The results have shown that Software as a service model and Storage as a service model dominated according to not just arithmetic-mean method, but also to geometric-mean method.
Interparental Conflict, Adolescent Behavioral Problems, and Adolescent Competence: Convergent and Discriminant Validity

To address the lack of studies examining the convergent and discriminant validity of cross-informant ratings, several statistical approaches were used in this study to evaluate the convergent and discriminant validity for ratings of interparental conflict, adolescent behavioral problems, and adolescent competence. A total of 272 adolescent-motherfather triads completed measures assessing interparental conflict, adolescent behavioral problems, and adolescent competence. The validity of these measures appeared questionnable when relationships were examined using Campbell and Fiske’s criteria and confirmatory factor analysis, respectively. In contrast, analyses demonstrated adequate fit of cross-informant ratings in a correlated uniqueness model, supporting convergent and discriminant validity. Overall, results suggested that informant effects should be analyzed when examining interparental conflict and adolescent adjustment. These findings emphasize the importance of considering the measurement issues of cross-informant ratings when examining interparental conflict, adolescent behavioral problems, and adolescent competence.
Brain Mapping of Lexico-Semantic Functions in Bilinguals

In a typical cognitive experiment, you may be shown an image of a dog and asked to name it. As a monolingual, you have several options: “dog” “poodle” “canine”, and so on. As a bilingual, however, your options are doubled. Consequently, how bilinguals select and utter the correct word for a particular object has been carefully studied in psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics. Many neuroimaging studies over the past several years have focused on the spatial aspect of this question, but other aspects, such as the developmental time course and differences between individuals, remain largely uninvestigated. In this article we provide a brief review of the literature, along with some pointers to new directions of research concerning individual variability and the development of lexico-semantic functions in bilinguals.
Developments in non-mandatory disclosures in annual reports of companies: a case study

The paper investigates the extent of non-mandatory disclosure of information (NMD) in the annual reports of the companies listed on the South Pacific Stock Exchange (SPSE) in Fiji and whether NMD by these companies has changed over time. The empirical data was gathered from the years 2008 to 2010 to provide a picture of the change in the level and extent of NMD. All companies showed some degree of NMD, and on average this demonstrates an increasing trend. A large variation still exists between the level and extent of the NMD and the different listed companies. It was established that disclosure is impacted by what happens in the reporting period, and can explain why one period may have greater disclosure than another. The paper aims to extend earlier work of Sharma and Davey (2013) on the extent of NMD in a Fijian context. The study has shown that corporate governance code issued in 2009 by Capital Market Development Authority has influenced the level of NMD.
AN ANALYSIS OF THE PRIORITY NEEDS OF COOPERATIVE EXTENSION AT THE COUNTY LEVEL

Cooperative Extension’s role as a relevant provider of nonformal education is dependent upon its ability to improve and adjust in response to internal and external pressures. Periodically conducting needs assessments focused on the Extension organization can aid in Extension’s efforts to deliver quality educational programs by pinpointing priority areas in need of improvement. A qualitative analysis of the final reports from the University of Florida’s IFAS Extension annual county program review process was conducted to identify challenges and threats facing county Extension offices. Common challenges were marketing deficits, loss of human capital, and technology barriers. Common threats were the economy, increased numbers of urban residents, and insufficient facilities. Developing and implementing strategic plans to resolve the needs identified in this study may increase the effectiveness and efficiency of Extension.
First records of the round goby Neogobius melanostomus (Pallas, 1814) in the Elbe River, Germany

The round goby Neogobius melanostomus (Pallas, 1814), a Ponto-Caspian gobiid species, was recorded for the first time in the Elbe River, Germany in May 2008. Between then and June 2013, 22 records comprising 36 specimens of N. melanostomus have been collected from the Elbe River, mainly in the tidal river section of the city of Hamburg.
Participation of Women in Agriculture: Reality or Rhetoric?

Feminist discourses - from Women in Development (WID) to Gender and Development (GAD) approaches - have not fundamentally engaged with the structural inequalities that perpetuate women’s subordination. Governments on the African continent tend to adopt a market-driven model in agriculture that emphasises women’s participation as a means to achieve both subsistence and income-generation. Women have not fared well under such programmes, begging the question: what assumptions and biases underpin this approach to development? This empirical study interrogates women’s empowerment in the agricultural sector by posing questions around one key issue: why do agricultural programmes fail to transform women’s material conditions even where there are adequate resources in the form of donor support and female service providers? Data collection methods comprised of observations, interviews and documentary analysis. The findings reveal that the factors that arise out of the Western modernisation project are multidimensional and intertwined, with consequences that reinforce the subjugation of poor women in particular. This article challenges these silences in mainstream feminist discourses to open up discursive spaces for further engagement.
Toxicity assessment of the methanol extract from Elaeagnus angustifolia against larvae of Drosophila melanogaster meign (Diptera/Drosophilidae)

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the toxicological potential of the methanol extract of Elaeagnus angustifolia plant against the 3rd instar larvae of Drosophila melanogaster megin (Diptera/Drosophilidae) by contact method. The larvae were exposed to the treatment of the studied extract for 24, 48, 72, 96 and 120 hours intervals. The mortality rate of larvae, retrieval of pupae and emergence of adults were noted at each interval of treatment. The obtained results indicated that methanol extract of E. angustifolia possess toxic potential against D. melanogaster larvae. With 1, 2 and 3% concentration of the studied extract, mortality rate was found to be 10, 10, 10 (for 24 hours), 10, 30, 90 (for 48 hours), 10, 50, 90 (for 72 hours), 10, 60, 90 (for 96 hours) and 10, 60, 90 (for 120 hours) respectively. The mortality rate of the larvae indicated that toxicity of the extract increases linearly with the increase of concentration and time period of treatment. This extract can be used against dipterous larvae and for the control of insect pests. The use of botanical extracts as a tool for biological control of pests is environment friendly and has no impaired health risks unlike those associated with chemical control measures. In this way, it is concluded that extract of E. angustifolia has toxic potential and can be effectively used for the control of insect pests.