Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do Firms Learn to Manage Alliance Portfolio Diversity? The Diversity‐Performance Relationship and the Moderating Effects of Experience and Capability

Building on organizational learning theory, this study examines whether firms learn to manage alliance portfolio diversity. We argue that alliance portfolio diversity may be advantageous as well as disadvantageous for alliance portfolio performance. Subsequently, we theorize that the diversity-performance relationship is moderated by the firm's alliance experience and capability. Bridging the previously separated literature of diversity and learning, our findings show a curvilinear relationship between diversity and performance. More important, using survey data, we reveal some key processes through which firms learn to manage alliance portfolio diversity.
Production of high polyvalent antisera against Salmonella

The production of polyvalent Salmonella antisera was carried out by immunizing rabbits. The antigens were obtained from four strains of Salmonella species. The production of the antisera was achieved by administration of antigen emulsions in alum throughout the duration of immunization, antigen emulsions in alum used only at the primary immunization while subsequent antigens were administered intravenously without alum throughout the duration of the immunization period. The results obtained showed high titres of Salmonella antisera that ranged from 1:1024 ‐ 1:4096, 1:256 ‐ 1:1024 and 1:64 ‐ 1:256 for antigen emulsions in alum throughout the immunization period, antigen emulsions in alum for primary immunization only and antigen without alum, respectively. Specificity test revealed that the antisera produced were specific to Salmonella antigen although slight reactions were observed with Escherichia coli at a very low titre ranging from 1:4 ‐ 1:16. The avidity test showed that the antisera produced were of high standard and ranged from 12 - 32 s. There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) between the commercially produced antigen and locally produced antigen against the antisera. The work therefore, demonstrated the possibility of producing high Salmonella antisera by immunizing rabbits with Salmonella antigens.
Reconstruction of total solar irradiance 1974-2009

Context. The study of variations in total solar irradiance (TSI) is important for understanding how the Sun affects the Earth’s climate. Aims. Full-disk continuum images and magnetograms are now available for three full solar cycles. We investigate how modelled TSI compares with direct observations by building a consistent modelled TSI dataset. The model, based only on changes in the photospheric magnetic flux can then be tested on rotational, cyclical and secular timescales. Methods. We use Kitt Peak and SoHO/MDI continuum images and magnetograms in the SATIRE-S model to reconstruct TSI over cycles 21–23. To maximise independence from TSI composites, SORCE/TIM TSI data are used to fix the one free parameter of the model. We compare and combine the separate data sources for the model to estimate an uncertainty on the reconstruction and prevent any additional free parameters entering the model. Results. The reconstruction supports the PMOD composite as being the best historical record of TSI observations, although on timescales of the solar rotation the IRMB composite provides somewhat better agreement. Further to this, the model is able to account for 92% of TSI variations from 1978 to 2009 in the PMOD composite and over 96% during cycle 23. The reconstruction also displays an inter-cycle, secular decline of 0.20 +0.12 −0.09 Wm −2 between cycle 23 minima, in agreement with the PMOD composite.
Granulocyte Colony-stimulating Factor: Is there an Association between Follicular Fluid Levels in the Largest Follicle and In Vitro Fertilization Outcome?

Background: It has been suggested that the level of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) in follicular fluid (FF) might act as a noninvasive biomarker of oocyte competence and assist in embryo selection during in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles. The aim of this study was to evaluate the G-CSF concentration in the FF of the largest follicle as a prognostic factor in IVF cycles. Methods and Findings:This was a prospective cohort analysis comprising 40 infertile women undergoing IVF treatment. Fluid was collected from the first (largest) follicle aspirated. Levels of G-CSF were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The findings were compared between women who achieved pregnancy (n=15) and those who did not (n=25). The mean concentration of G-CSF in FF was 85.7 ± 7.5 pg/ml. No significant differences were found between the concentration in women who achieved pregnancy and those who did not (92.3 ± 15.6 pg/mL vs. 81.8 ± 7.7 pg/ml; p=0.45). Conclusions:The concentration of G-CSF in the FF of the largest follicle during oocyte retrieval was not correlated with the IVF pregnancy rate in this study.
New opportunities for future tourism after 25 years of political and socioeconomic transformation – foresight in Poland’s tourism planning

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present the changes in political and socioeconomic conditions after 25 years of transformation and how it provided to adopt new methodology in tourism planning. It shows the possibilities offered by the use of the foresight process in planning the development of tourism in Poland. Since one of the main foresight goals is to identify trends, the paper takes attempt to verify trends that occurred in Poland after 1989 and if they have now and will have in the near future influence on Polish tourism. Detailed objective is to characterize the systemic transformation and its impact on the tourism economy. Design/methodology/approach Paper is the review, which used literature, legislation and strategic documents query. It also includes comparative analysis. Findings The analysis of the political and economic changes that have taken place in Poland over the last 25 years shows that they were positive for the development of tourism base. The impact of globalization and global trends is now clearly noticeable also in Poland. Political and economic changes allow the use of foresight methodology in studies on the future of tourism while maintaining its main attributes: anticipation, participation, action, networking, vision. Research limitations/implications The analysis included the impact of political changes and social trends on the tourist economy. Proposals that show the positive aspects of these changes relate to tourism and present extensive opportunities to create scenarios, both at the national and regional levels. Practical implications The analysis forms the basis for the activities of tourism entities in Poland. It shows the characteristics for the future of the tourism market particularly the demand side. Social implications The analysis of changes in systemic and social trends enables anticipation of changes in tourism as a social phenomenon. Originality/value The paper presents the historical basis for the development of tourism in Poland after political changes in relation to the planning of tourism by using the methodology of foresight. It also presents these phenomena and social trends that have an impact on the development of tourism.
The effects of intercontinental emission sources on European air pollution levels

Abstract. This study is based on model results from TF HTAP (Task Force on Hemispheric Transport of Air Pollution) phase II, in which a set of source receptor model experiments have been defined, reducing global (and regional) anthropogenic emissions by 20 % in different source regions throughout the globe, with the main focus on the year 2010. All the participating models use the same set of anthropogenic emissions. Comparisons of model results to measurements are shown for selected European surface sites and for ozone sondes, but the main focus here is on the contributions to European ozone levels from different world regions, and how and why these contributions differ depending on the model. We investigate the origins by use of a novel stepwise approach, combining simple tracer calculations and calculations of CO and O3. To highlight the differences, we analyse the vertical transects of the midlatitude effects from the 20 % emission reductions.The spread in the model results increases from the simple CO tracer to CO and then to ozone as the complexity of the physical and chemical processes involved increase. As a result of non-linear ozone chemistry, the contributions from non-European relative to European sources are larger for ozone compared to the CO and the CO tracer. For annually averaged ozone the contributions from the rest of the world is larger than the effects from European emissions alone, with the largest contributions from North America and eastern Asia. There are also considerable contributions from other nearby regions to the east and from international shipping. The calculated contributions to European annual average ozone from other major source regions relative to all contributions from all major sources (RAIR – Relative Annual Intercontinental Response) have increased from 43 % in HTAP1 to 82 % in HTAP2. This increase is mainly caused by a better definition of Europe, with increased emissions outside of Europe relative to those in Europe, and by including a nearby non-European source for external-to-Europe regions. European contributions to ozone metrics reflecting human health and ecosystem damage, which mostly accumulated in the summer months, are larger than for annual ozone. Whereas ozone from European sources peaks in the summer months, the largest contributions from non-European sources are mostly calculated for the spring months, when ozone production over the polluted continents starts to increase, while at the same time the lifetime of ozone in the free troposphere is relatively long. At the surface, contributions from non-European sources are of similar magnitude for all European subregions considered, defined as TF HTAP receptor regions (north-western, south-western, eastern and south-eastern Europe).
Full-wave analysis of nonplanar transmission lines on layered medium by means of MPIE and complex image theory

In this paper, a multiconductor transmission line consisting of arbitrary cross-sectional perfect conductors printed on a layered isotropic or uniaxial anisotropic dielectric medium is analyzed by solving the mixed-potential integral equation for the free-surface currents. Closed-form expressions of the two-dimensional space-domain Green's functions for the electrodynamic potentials are used. These expressions are obtained by applying the complex image technique to the spectral functions remaining after removing the asymptotic and pole contributions from the original Green's functions. A single set of complex images is obtained for any guess value of the unknown propagation constant and for any pair of source/field points. In addition, the reaction integrals involved in the application of the method of moments are worked out in a quasi-analytical way. The final result is an accurate and highly efficient computation code for analyzing multiconductor structures printed on a layered medium.
Agricultural Climate Information Use: An Application of the Planned Behaviour Theory

Despite considerable effort in developing climate information and demonstrating the potential benefits available to farmers, use of the climate information by farmers in farming decisions has not changed. The present research employed the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as a theoretical framework to analyze the antecedents of agricultural climate information use behaviour. Fars Province wheat growers (n= 314) were administered a questionnaire survey that measured standard TPB constructs. The data and hypotheses were examined using structural equation modeling (SEM) by AMOS 7. Results from the maximum likelihood estimation showed that attitude was positively related to farmers’ climate information use in farming decisions. Thus, greater attitude (instrumental and affective) toward use of information in farming decisions was associated with stronger intention to engage in behaviour. Chi-square tests and fit indices indicated good fit for the final structural models. The results of this study demonstrated that the modified theory of planned behaviour provided a significant improvement on the model fit by adding a direct causal path linking attitude to behaviour. Applicability of the theory of planned behavior for measuring levels of wheat growers’ climate forecast use and the implications for future research are discussed.
Patient satisfaction and early geriatric follow-up after discharge in older acute medical patients

Objective: “Early geriatric follow-up after discharge” is a care model designed to create a safe transition from hospital to home by adding a follow-up visit in the patient’s home within 24 hours after discharge. Patient satisfaction is of major importance to evaluate health care services. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare patient satisfaction after early geriatric follow-up with that of usual follow-up after discharge. Materials and methods: The study is a cross-sectorial quantitative questionnaire survey. The target population was 75+ years’ medical patients acutely admitted to an emergency department (ED) and enrolled in a quasi-randomized controlled trial. A 14-item satisfaction questionnaire, based on semi-structured interviews, was mailed to all cognitively well-functioning patients in both groups 2-4 weeks after discharge during three defined time periods. The themes of importance were: feeling safe, receiving sufficient information, experiencing good communication between health care professionals, involvement in care decisions, and relatives’ involvement. Each question was evaluated by a 5-point Likert scale. The patients, who did not respond within 14 days, were reminded by phone and offered assistance to fill out the questionnaire. Results: In total, 173 out of 272 patients (64%) returned their questionnaire. Baseline characteristics of the groups were similar. More patients in the intervention group (receiving early geriatric follow-up after discharge) were “satisfied with treatment and care after discharge” and were “satisfied with the continuity of care at home” compared to the patients in the control group (receiving usual follow-up). More women were non-responders than men. Conclusions: Older medical patients acutely admitted to hospital were more satisfied with early geriatric follow-up than usual follow-up after discharge.
Good Democratic Governance Based on a New Model

The paper contains an analysis of good and democratic governance within the central and local administration of Romania. The analysis of the results contributed to the identification of key pillars of good governance. Based on these main elements a model of good governance was set-up. The final part of the paper contains several strategic recommendations needed to improve good governance within the Romanian public administration.
Determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Pakistan's agricultural sector.

Pakistan is an agricultural based economy, therefore, agricultural sector is one of the most important sectors of Pakistan as it provides employment opportunities to millions of people, contributes significantly in GDP, fulfills local demand for food items, export variety of commodities to foreign countries, boosts foreign exchange reserves and eventually enhances economic growth rate of Pakistan’s economy. This study has investigated the determinants of FDI in agricultural sector of Pakistan. The results have shown that GDP and trade openness have positive and significant relationship with FDI inflows in Pakistan agricultural sector whereas government debt has negative and significant relationship. The results have further revealed that inflation has positive whereas exchange rate has negative relationship with FDI inflows in Pakistan’s agricultural sector but both of these variables have insignificant relationship with FDI.
Connecting Cognitive-Experiential Self-Theory’s information-processing styles with organizational influencing tactics: Rational thinkers are rational persuaders

Several recent studies have connected information-processing styles, as described by Cognitive-Experiential Self-Theory (CEST), with important workplace behaviours, including leadership and conflict-handling styles. This article extends such research by examining the connection between CEST information-processing styles and organisational-influencing tactics. In Study 1 (N = 119), the CEST information-processing styles of behavioural coping and rational thinking were positively correlated with the use of rationality as an influencing tactic, as measured by the Profile of Organizational Influence Strategies. In Study 2 (N = 142), a broader self-report measure of influencing tactics was used; behavioural coping and rational thinking were positively correlated with effective influencing tactics such as rational persuasion. Together, behavioural coping and rational thinking accounted for more than 31% of the variance in preference for rational persuasion as an influencing tactic. Additionally, the apprising tactic was positively correlated with both behavioural coping and rational thinking. These findings emphasise the importance of examining individual differences in information processing preferences to understand key elements of organisational behaviour.
HD 209458b in new light: evidence of nitrogen chemistry, patchy clouds and sub-solar water

Interpretations of exoplanetary transmission spectra have been undermined by apparent obscuration due to clouds/hazes. Debate rages on whether weak H$_2$O features seen in exoplanet spectra are due to clouds or inherently depleted oxygen. Assertions of solar H$_2$O abundances have relied on making a priori model assumptions, e.g. chemical/radiative equilibrium. In this work, we attempt to address this problem with a new retrieval paradigm for transmission spectra. We introduce POSEIDON, a two-dimensional atmospheric retrieval algorithm including generalised inhomogeneous clouds. We demonstrate that this prescription allows one to break vital degeneracies between clouds and prominent molecular abundances. We apply POSEIDON to the best transmission spectrum presently available, for the hot Jupiter HD 209458b, uncovering new insights into its atmosphere at the day-night terminator. We extensively explore the parameter space with an unprecedented 10$^8$ models, spanning the continuum from fully cloudy to cloud-free atmospheres, in a fully Bayesian retrieval framework. We report the first detection of nitrogen chemistry (NH$_3$ and/or HCN) in an exoplanet atmosphere at 3.7-7.7$\sigma$ confidence, non-uniform cloud coverage at 4.5-5.4$\sigma$, high-altitude hazes at $>$3$\sigma$, and sub-solar H$_2$O at $\gtrsim$3-5$\sigma$, depending on the assumed cloud distribution. We detect NH$_3$ at 3.3$\sigma$ and 4.9$\sigma$ for fully cloudy and cloud-free scenarios, respectively. For the model with the highest Bayesian evidence, we constrain H$_2$O at 5-15 ppm (0.01-0.03$\times$ solar) and NH$_3$ at 0.01-2.7 ppm, strongly suggesting disequilibrium chemistry and cautioning against equilibrium assumptions. Our results herald new promise for retrieving cloudy atmospheres using high-precision HST and JWST spectra.
BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY OF NEMATODE COMMUNITIES IN CONVENTIONAL AND ORGANIC OLIVE FARMING

The main objective of managing agricultural soil is maintaining soil fertility, in order to stimulate biological activity in the soil. The aim of this study was to determine variability in the presence and number of genera of nematodes, trophic structure and indices of biodiversity in the soil under conventional and organic olive farming. Research was conducted in the area of Porec in Istria, Croatia, through 5 years (from 2007 to 2011) in conventional and organic olive farming system. Total of 49 nematode genera were established in this study, 42 genera in conventional and 44 in organic farming system. Average number of genera over the investigated period in 100 g of soil were 14 in conventional and 17.10 in organic farming system and differ significantly in between. Trophic group analyses showed the dominance of plant parasitic nematodes in the conventional olive farming, and bacterivorous feeding nematodes in organic olive farming. Biological diversity indexes (H', N1 and λ) didn't differ significantly between conventional and organic farming.
The horizontal resolution of MIPAS

Abstract. Limb remote sensing from space provides atmospheric composition measurements at high vertical resolution while the information is smeared in the horizontal domain. The horizontal components of two-dimensional (altitude and along-track coordinate) averaging kernels of a limb retrieval constrained to horizontal homogeneity can be used to estimate the horizontal resolution of limb retrievals. This is useful for comparisons of measured data with modeled data, to construct horizontal observation operators in data assimilation applications or when measurements of different horizontal resolution are intercompared. We present these averaging kernels for retrievals of temperature, H2O, O3, CH4, N2O, HNO3 and NO2 from MIPAS (Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding) high-resolution limb emission spectra. The horizontal smearing of a MIPAS retrieval in terms of full width at half maximum of the rows of the horizontal averaging kernel matrix varies typically between about 200 and 350 km for most species, altitudes and atmospheric conditions. The range where 95% of the information originates from varies from about 260 to 440 km for these cases. This information spread is smaller than the MIPAS horizontal sampling, i.e. MIPAS data are horizontally undersampled, and the effective horizontal resolution is driven by the sampling rather than the smearing. The point where the majority of the information originates from is displaced from the tangent point towards the satellite by typically less than 10 km for trace gas profiles and about 50 to 100 km for temperature, with a few exceptions for uppermost altitudes. The geolocation of a MIPAS profile is defined as the tangent point of the middle line of sight in a MIPAS limb scan. The majority of the information displacement with respect to this nominal geolocation of the measurement is caused by the satellite movement and the geometrical displacement of the actual tangent point as a function of the elevation angle.
White-tailed deer harvest pressure & within-bone nutrient exploitation during the mid- to late Holocene in southeast Texas

Human population size and density increased in many areas of eastern North America after the mid-Holocene. As predators, human foragers relied heavily on ungulate prey for food in many areas of the world during prehistory. In southeast Texas, changes in foraging adaptations relate to broader subsistence and population trends. Analysis of a large, well-preserved archaeological faunal assemblage that spans much of the second half of the Holocene from the Eagle’s Ridge site (41CH252) indicates that harvest pressure and carcass exploitation of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) intensified through time following predictions framed under two theoretical models. The first model summarises effects of changes in harvest pressure and/or habitat productivity on prey population age structure and body size. Under harvest pressure age structures should become juvenile dominated expressing relatively steep survivorship, and ontogenetic growth rate of prey should increase. Habitat productivity affects ontogenetic growth rate but not proportional age structure in a prey population. The second model uses proxy measures of fragmentation to study exploitation of within-bone nutrients from white-tailed deer bones. Extent of fragmentation increases as marrow exploitation increases and intensity of fragmentation increases as grease exploitation intensifies. At Eagle’s Ridge multiple lines of evidence related to the two models indicate that as human population density increased through time white-tailed deer were harvested at a higher rate.