Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modelling global water stress of the recent past: on the relative importance of trends in water demand and climate variability

Abstract. During the past decades, human water use has more than doubled, yet available freshwater resources are finite. As a result, water scarcity has been prevalent in various regions of the world. Here, we present the first global assessment of past development of water stress considering not only climate variability but also growing water demand, desalinated water use and non-renewable groundwater abstraction over the period 1960–2001 at a spatial resolution of 0.5°. Agricultural water demand is estimated based on past extents of irrigated areas and livestock densities. We approximate past economic development based on GDP, energy and household consumption and electricity production, which are subsequently used together with population numbers to estimate industrial and domestic water demand. Climate variability is expressed by simulated blue water availability defined by freshwater in rivers, lakes, wetlands and reservoirs by means of the global hydrological model PCR-GLOBWB. We thus define blue water stress by comparing blue water availability with corresponding net total blue water demand by means of the commonly used, Water Scarcity Index. The results show a drastic increase in the global population living under water-stressed conditions (i.e. moderate to high water stress) due to growing water demand, primarily for irrigation, which has more than doubled from 1708/818 to 3708/1832 km3 yr−1 (gross/net) over the period 1960–2000. We estimate that 800 million people or 27% of the global population were living under water-stressed conditions for 1960. This number is eventually increased to 2.6 billion or 43% for 2000. Our results indicate that increased water demand is a decisive factor for heightened water stress in various regions such as India and North China, enhancing the intensity of water stress up to 200%, while climate variability is often a main determinant of extreme events. However, our results also suggest that in several emerging and developing economies (e.g. India, Turkey, Romania and Cuba) some of past extreme events were anthropogenically driven due to increased water demand rather than being climate-induced.
INTRA - ANNUAL VARIATION IN WOOD DENSITY' IN GMELINA ARBOREA FROM X -RAY DENSITOMETRY AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH RAINFALL

The variation in wood density within growth rings was determined from X -ray negative images of wood samples of Gmelina arborea. The within -tree and between tree comparisons showed that no two growth rings had exactly similar patterns of variation in the radial direction. The proportions of wood in four within -ring density classes were estimated. The variations in the proportions of wood in the four classes with age were nonlinear. On the average, the proportion of low density wood decreased with increasing age, while the proportion of high density wood increased with age. Regression analysis testing different curvilinear models showed that 37 to 99 per cent of the variations in the proportions of wood were associated with variations in age. Maximum and minimum ring density were negatively correlated with dry season rainfall. Variations in the proportion of high density wood and mean ring density were not associated with corresponding variation in dry season rainfall. The proportions of low and high density wood, mean ring density, maximum ring density and minimum ring density were not determined by annual rainfall. INTRODUCTION Although an annual ring is formed in one growth season, it is made up of wood cells formed in different periods or seasons of the year. Since environmental factors play some part in the determination of the ultimate structure of the wood, variation in wood properties should be expected (and have often been observed) within growth rings. The magnitude and pattern of such variation should be studied in important species in order to determine the degree of wood uniformity or variability in one year of wood formation. A good way of studying the effect of any environmental factor on a wood property is by within -ring analysis. Nowadays, it is easy to carry out a detailed study of the variation in the density of wood formed in one year by X -ray photography. Studies on the variation in wood properties within growth rings were regarded in the past as being only of academic interest. There is growing evidence suggesting that this kind of variation may affect industrial processing (Ifju 1969). For example, if growth rings are wide, with very light earlywood and extremely dense latewood, the wood may be rejected by "moulding" manufacturers and perhaps degraded in veneer plants. 2.5 cm boards cut from it would tend to `cup' from differential shrinkage and would be subject to splitting from nails. Some carpenters do not like 5 cm by 10 cm boards cut from such timber (Echols, 1973). The objectives of this study were: (a) To determine the pattern of within -ring density variation in Gmelina arborea. (b) To determine the proportions of wood of different density classes within the rings. (c) To assess the relationship between within -ring variation in density and rainfall.
Assessing the rock glacier kinematics on three different timescales: a case study from the southern Swiss Alps

Surface temperature increases since the 1990s have often been associated with an increase in the speed of rock glaciers. Evidence of similar links on the centennial to millennial scale are, however, still lacking due to less focus to date on the medium‐ and long‐term kinematics of these landforms. In order to assess (palaeo)climatic variations in rock glacier kinematics, we analysed the movements of the Stabbio di Largario rock glacier in the southern Swiss Alps using three different timescales. The Schmidt hammer exposure‐age dating (SHD) was applied to study long‐term kinematics in order to extrapolate the minimal age of the formation of the rock glacier, which may have started its development after the Mid‐Holocene climate optimum, and to detect possible accelerations of the horizontal surface velocity during the Medieval Warm Period. Georeferentiation and orthorectification of six historical photographs of the rock glacier taken between ad 1910 and today were analysed using monoplotting to detect the rock glacier displacement on the decennial scale from the end of the Little Ice Age. Finally, differential global positioning system (dGPS) monitoring data available since ad 2009 were used to assess annual and seasonal creep rates of the rock glacier at present. Our results show a link between the periods of increase in mean air temperature on different timescales and variations in rock glacier kinematics and provide important new insights into rock glacier development and evolution on the long‐term scale. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Carnitine Transporter CT2 (SLC22A16) is over- expressed in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and target knockdown reduces growth and viability of AML cells

AML (acute myeloid leukemia) cells have unique reliance on mitochondrial metabolism and fatty acid oxidation (FAO). Thus, blocking FAO is a potential therapeutic strategy to target AML cells. In the current study, I assessed carnitine transporters as novel therapeutic targets for AML. I examined the expression of the known carnitine transporters, OCTN1, OCTN2, and CT2 in AML cell lines and primary AML samples and compared expression to normal hematopoietic cells. Of the three carnitine transporters, CT2 demonstrated the greatest differential expression between AML and normal cells. I knocked down CT2 and demonstrated that target knockdown impaired the function of the transporter. In addition, knockdown of CT2 reduced the growth and viability of AML cells with high expression of CT2 (OCI-AML2 and HL60), but not low expression. CT2 knockdown reduced basal oxygen consumption without a concomitant increase in glycolysis. Thus, CT2 may be a novel target for a subset of AML.
The Perceived Influence of AIDS Advertising: Third-Person Effects in the Context of Positive Media Content

Although there is consistent evidence indicating that people perceive themselves to be less influenced than others by negative media content and persuasive communications with negative intent (viz., a third-person effect), much less is known about the perceived impact of positive media content and public service advertisements. This study investigated the perceived impact of 11 AIDS advertisements promoting a common message for safe sex, in an attempt to clarify the conditions in which people might judge themselves as more, rather than less, influenced than others. Results indicated that student respondents perceived themselves as less vulnerable than others to low-quality AIDS advertisements, but as more influenced than others by high-quality AIDS advertisements. Respondents who believed strongly that it is good to be influenced by AIDS campaigns saw themselves as relatively vulnerable to such messages, whereas other respondents did not distinguish between the level of impact on self and other. Results are consistent with motivational accounts that emphasize the ego-enhancing function of social comparisons.
Predicting Bank Financial Failures Using Discriminant Analysis, And Support Vector Machines Methods: A Comparative Analysis In Commercial Banks In Sudan (2006-2014)

: Bank failures threaten the economic system as a whole. Therefore, predicting bank financial failures is crucial to prevent and/or lessen its negative effects on the economic system. Financial crises, affecting both emerging markets and advanced countries over the centuries, have severe economic consequences, but they can be hard to prevent and predict, identifying financial crises causes remains both science and art, said Stijn Claessens, assistant director of the International Monetary Fund. While it would be better to mitigate risks, financial crises will recur, often in waves and better crisis management is therefore important. Analyses of recurrent causes suggest that to prevent crises, governments should consider reforms in many underlying areas. That includes developing prudent fiscal and monetary policies, better regulating the financial sector, including reducing the problem of too-big-to-fail banks, and developing effective macro-prudential policies. Despite new regulations and better supervision, crises are likely to recur, in part because they can reflect deeper problems related to income inequality, the political economy and common human behavior. As such, improvements in crisis management are also needed. This is originally a classification problem to categorize banks as healthy or non-healthy ones. This study aims to apply Discriminant analysis and Support Vector Machines methods to the bank failure prediction problem in a Sudanese case, and to present a comprehensive computational comparison of the classification performances of the techniques tested. Eleven financial and non-financial ratios with six feature groups including capital adequacy, asset quality, Earning, and liquidity (CAMELS) are selected as predictor variables in the study. Credit risk also been evaluated using logistic analysis to study the effect of Islamic finance modes, sectors and payment types used by Sudanese banks with regard to their possibilities of failure. Experimental results are evaluated using accuracy of prediction. Features selection has shown that new groups can be identified from CAMELS ratios and narrowing the data set space to 11 factors instead of eighteen. Discriminant analysis has identified 3 ratios with highest predictive power which are: EAS (Ratio of
Comparison study of ring current simulations with and without bubble injections

For many years, stand‐alone ring current models have been successfully producing storm time ring current enhancements without specifying explicit localized transient injections along their outer boundaries. However, both observations and simulations have suggested that the frequent burst flows or bubble injections can contribute substantially to the storm time ring current energy. In this paper, we investigate the difference in the spatial and temporal development of the ring current distribution with and without bubble injections using the Rice Convection Model‐Equilibrium. The comparison study indicates that the simulation with bubble effects smoothed out along geosynchronous orbit can predict approximately the same large‐scale ring current pressure distribution and electric potential pattern as the simulation with bubble effects included. Our results suggest that the increase of the hot plasma population along geosynchronous orbit can be envisaged as an integrated effect of bubble injections from the near‐Earth plasma sheet. However, the observed fluctuations in the plasma population and electric field can only be captured when the mesoscale injections are included in the simulation. We also confirmed again that adiabatic convection of fully populated flux tubes cannot inject the ring current from the middle plasma sheet. The paper provides a justification for using stand‐alone ring current models in the inner magnetosphere to simulate magnetic storms, without explicit consideration of bubbles and magnetic buoyancy effects inside geosynchronous orbit.
COMBINED EFFECTS OF STOCKING DENSITY AND BACKGROUND COLOUR ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND SURVIVAL OF NILE TILAPIA (Oreochromis niloticus, L.) FRY REARED IN AQUARIA

The effect of tank background colour and stocking density on growth rates and survival of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fry (0.32 g) were investigated. The fish were reared in aquari-um with blue, black and clear backgrounds at two stocking densities of 2 fish L-1 and 4 fish L-1. The outside walls and bottoms of each aquarium were painted to achieve one of two colours (blue and black), while noncoloured (clear) aquarium served as a control. The fish were fed a commercial diet (40% crude protein) at a daily rate of 5% of their body weight twice a day for 70 days. The best growth rates, weight gain, specific growth rate, food conversion ratio and survival were achieved in larvae reared under 2 fish L-1 stocking density in the blue back-ground. Fish performance was significantly (P
Immunocompetency of two chicken backyard variety with 25% Aseel inheritance

The experimental study was carried out to evaluate the humoral and cell mediated immune response in Type I and Type II backyard chicken varieties with 25% Aseel inheritance. The humoral response was computed against sheep red blood cells (SRBCs) for haemagglutinin (HA) antibodytitre on 5 days postimmunization. It was expressed as log2 of the highest dilution which shows complete haemagglutination. The HA titers of Type I and Type II genetic groups were 8.17 ± 0.50 and 7.60 ± 0.48, respectively with males having higher titre over their counterpart females. The in vivo cell response to Phytohaemagglutinin-P (PHA-P) was quantified as Foot Index (FI) in mm where the respective Type I and Type II genetic group’s1.61 ± 0.09 and 1.60 ± 0.09 with significant sex effect i.e males exhibited significantly higher response than females. The result of present study suggests that the two genetic groups, Type I and Type II are equally competent and had better immune response to fight against infections.
Complete Blood Count Indices in Pregnancies With Isolated Intrauterine Growth Restriction

Aim: Our aim was to compare the complete blood count indices in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) with healthy pregnant controls and to investigate whether any hematological changes have predictive value for the prediction of adverse pregnancy outcomes in IUGR. Material and Methods: Mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), plateletcrit (PCT), platelet large cell ratio (P-LCR) and red cell distribution width (RDW) levels f 35 pregnant women with isolated IUGR and 105 healthy pregnant women were retrospectively evaluated. Results: Wom n with IUGR had significantly higher MPV (mean 11.21 ± 0.99 vs. 9.99 ± 0.84; P<0.001), PDW (mean 14 ± 2.51 vs. 28.22 ± 6.99; P<0.001) and P-LCR (median 31.5 U/L vs. 44.7 U/L; P<0.001) values, when compared with controls. Statistically significant negative correlations were found between RDW and gestational age at birth (r:-0.39, p:0.02) and also between PCT and 1-min APGAR scores (r:-0.34, p:0.04). Conclusion: Cheap and easily measurable complete blood count indices including MPV, PCT, PDW, P-LCR and RDW levels may be valuable markers of IUGR.
Testing the Test: Comparing SEMAC and Exact Word Scoring on the Selective Deletion Cloze

A number of questions surround the issue of cloze tests and their various scoring methods, with proponents on both sides making contentious claims to their validity or lack there of. Before language teachers can determine which side the agree with, they should investigate the matter themselves and make an informed decision based upon their findings. This paper studies two issues: 1) The statistical correlation between Exact Word and Semantically Acceptable (SEMAC) scoring methods on a selective deletion cloze test and 2) The reliability coefficients of the selective deletion cloze test using both scoring methods under a variety of classroom conditions. In a series of four experiments, Exact Word and SEMAC scoring were found to correlated very highly, suggesting that both scoring methods are measuring the same language quality. Depending upon the pedagogic concerns of the teacher, either scoring method can be used. Care must be taken, however, as this study also finds the reliability coefficients of SEMAC scoring to be significantly lower than Exact Word scoring.
Determinant Factors of Satisfaction and the Implications to Customer Loyalty of Syariah Public Bank in Malang Indonesia

Banking institution as a service company emphasizes more on marketing concept by doing approaches to customers by fulfilling customers’ needs, desires, and expectations. Therefore it is important to pay attention on the customers’ satisfaction and loyalty for the company's survival. This research aimed to: (1) analyze the influence of service quality, sales people and relational benefit to customer satisfaction of Syariah Public Banks in Malang; (2) analyze the effect of service quality, sales people and relational benefit to customer loyalty of Syariah Public Banks in Malang; (3) analyze the effect of customers’ satisfaction to customer loyalty of Syariah Public Banks in Malang; (4) analyze the effect of service quality, sales people and relational benefit to loyalty through customers’ satisfaction of Syariah Public Banks in Malang. The sample in this research was 190 customers of deposits and financing of Syariah Public Banks. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling method. Analysis Technique used was Structural Equation Model, which was to study the effect of service quality, sales people and relational benefit on loyalty through customers’ satisfaction of Syariah Public Banks. The research result showed that the better quality of service, sales force and relational benefit on Syariah Public Banks would be able to increase customer satisfaction and had influence on the customer loyalty. Keywords : Quality of service, sales people, relational benefit, satisfaction, customer loyalty, Syariah Public Banks.
Non-convex anisotropic surface energy and zero mean curvature surfaces in the Lorentz-Minkowski space

An anisotropic surface energy functional is the integral of an energy density function over a surface. The energy density depends on the surface normal at each point. The usual area functional is a special case of such a functional. We study stationary surfaces of anisotropic surface energies in the euclidean three-space which are called anisotropic minimal surfaces. For any axisymmetric anisotropic surface energy, we show that, a surface is both a minimal surface and an anisotropic minimal surface if and only if it is a right helicoid. We also construct new examples of anisotropic minimal surfaces, which include zero mean curvature surfaces in the three-dimensional Lorentz- Minkowski space as special cases.
The high rate of infestation of chewing lice (Phthiraptera) in Rock Pigeons (Columba livia Gmelin 1789) in Pakistan

Sixty-eight feral Rock Pigeons ( Columba livia intermedia Strickland 1844) and five wild Rock Pigeons ( C. livia neglecta Hume 1873) were examined for chewing lice (Phthiraptera) in the Karachi Region of Pakistan. At least one species of chewing louse was found on every bird examined. Seven species of chewing lice were identified. Their overall prevalence and mean intensities (within parentheses) were: Colpocephalum turbinatum Danny 1842 (35.3%; 1437.1), Colpocephalum Nitzsch 1818 (7.35%; 5.4), Hohorstiella lata Piaget 1880 (51.4%; 230.1), H. streptopeliae Eichler 1953 (1.47%; 4), Campanulotes compar Burmeister 1838 (58.8%; 614.3), Columbicola columbae Linnaeus 1758 (70.5%; 467.4), C. tschulyschman Eichler 1942 (2.94%; 5). Only three species of lice, C. turbinatum , C. columbae and C. tschulyschman , were found on wild pigeons. Over 50% of pigeons examined were heavily infested (500-3007 lice per bird). Serious damage to the plumage and overall health of the birds is discussed. Feral pigeons parasitized with so many lice may pose a threat to racing pigeons in the Karachi Region.
EMC² = comprehension: A reading strategy instruction framework for all teachers

Comprehension is a critical part of the reading process, and yet learners continue to struggle with it and teachers continue to neglect it in their teaching. Many reasons exist for the lack of focus on reading comprehension instruction, but for the most part, teachers simply do not seem to view comprehension as part of the reading process, are not able to teach the concept, and are seemingly not taught to do so during their teacher training years. In addition to this, comprehension continues to be viewed as part of ‘language teaching’, and is therefore viewed as the so-called ‘language teacher’s’ domain. In support of effective comprehension instruction in the unique, multilingual South African education environment, this article proposes a framework for reading strategy instruction, aimed specifically at teachers. The framework was developed from a research study, and refined through subsequent application in a university course as well as a further study. The framework acknowledges that reading is a multifaceted and complex process, and accordingly, provides sufficient structure for teachers. It further addresses the issue of comprehension instruction through the use of selected reading strategies, designed to be applied by all teachers in all subjects in a flexible and easy manner. Keywords : reading comprehension framework, reading comprehension instruction; reading strategies; reading strategy instruction; teachers and reading comprehension