Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Habitat type promotes rapid and extremely localised genetic differentiation in dolphins

The high potential for dispersal of many marine organisms often results in low population differentiation over large distances. Here, we report that dolphin communities living in very close geographic proximity (<16 km) but in two different environments – open coast and enclosed embayment – exhibit unexpected genetic differentiation at nine microsatellite loci. Results based on a fixation index and a Bayesian clustering approach suggested that gene flow between communities within an embayment is high, as is gene flow between coastal communities. However, lower gene flow between embayment and open coast communities translated into substantial genetic differentiation between dolphin communities from the two environments, and assignment of individuals into two populations. Along with patterns observed in 403 bp of the mitochondrial DNA control region, the results suggest that restriction of gene flow likely occurred in the last 6000 years, after coastal dolphins colonised the embayment. We hypothesise that factors such as fidelity to the local area and resource and behavioural specialisations may have played a major role in promoting and maintaining genetic subdivision between dolphins of the two environments. Importantly, our study shows that habitat type can rapidly promote extremely fine-scale genetic structure in a long-lived, highly mobile marine mammal.
A Feasibility Study of Applying “Double-output Hypothesis” into Task-based Teaching Approach in Second Language Acquisition

The “more input” and “less output” phenomenon is now very popular in college English teaching all over China. To increase the volume of the students’ output and accordingly promote that of their input, this essay proposes “double-output hypothesis” and applies it into task-based teaching approach, i.e. combines writing and speaking. Writing provides the students enough language material, gets them prepared, and promotes their self-confidence for speaking tasks. The author proves this method feasible by experiments.
RELATIVISTIC ELECTRONS PRODUCED BY RECONNECTING ELECTRIC FIELDS IN A LASER-DRIVEN BENCH-TOP SOLAR FLARE

Laboratory experiments have been carried out to model the magnetic reconnection process in a solar flare with powerful lasers. Relativistic electrons with energy up to megaelectronvolts are detected along the magnetic separatrices bounding the reconnection outflow, which exhibit a kappa-like distribution with an effective temperature of ∼109 K. The acceleration of non-thermal electrons is found to be more efficient in the case with a guide magnetic field (a component of a magnetic field along the reconnection-induced electric field) than in the case without a guide field. Hardening of the spectrum at energies ≥500 keV is observed in both cases, which remarkably resembles the hardening of hard X-ray and γ-ray spectra observed in many solar flares. This supports a recent proposal that the hardening in the hard X-ray and γ-ray emissions of solar flares is due to a hardening of the source-electron spectrum. We also performed numerical simulations that help examine behaviors of electrons in the reconnection process with the electromagnetic field configurations occurring in the experiments. The trajectories of non-thermal electrons observed in the experiments were well duplicated in the simulations. Our numerical simulations generally reproduce the electron energy spectrum as well, except for the hardening of the electron spectrum. This suggests that other mechanisms such as shock or turbulence may play an important role in the production of the observed energetic electrons.
Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis ) in the St. Lawrence River and Estuary, Canada: new records and risk of invasion

Recent reports of Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis) in the St. Lawrence River and Estuary were compiled to assess the possible sources of the species based on genetic analyses and data on shipping traffic. Between 2004 and 2007, nine specimens were captured in both the fresh and estuarine waters of the St. Lawrence; a number unprecedented in the 40 years since the mitten crab was first sighted in the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Basin. These sightings, added to those of the eastern United States, are indicative of a large-scale wave of introduction of the mitten crab to Eastern North America. Genetic analyses have suggested that the St. Lawrence specimens likely originated in Europe. No significant changes have been noted in maritime traffic to the St. Lawrence in recent years, but analyses have revealed that 42% of ships came from European countries where established populations of Chinese mitten crab have exhibited recent bursts in abundance. It is suggested that the recent wave of introduction of mitten crabs to Eastern North America is related more to changes in the abundance of European populations than to changes in shipping vector activity. These recent sightings are of major concern with regard to the establishment and spread of the species. It is therefore recommended that long-term monitoring programs be set up immediately to track the progress of the mitten crab invasion in the St. Lawrence River basin.
Does the POA–SOA split matter for global CCN formation?

Abstract. A model of carbonaceous aerosols has been implemented in the TwO-Moment Aerosol Sectional (TOMAS) microphysics module in the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model (CTM), a model driven by assimilated meteorology. Inclusion of carbonaceous emissions alongside pre-existing treatments of sulfate and sea-salt aerosols increases the number of emitted primary aerosol particles by a factor of 2.5 and raises annual-average global cloud condensation nuclei at 0.2% supersaturation (CCN(0.2%)) concentrations by a factor of two. Compared to the prior model without carbonaceous aerosols, this development improves the model prediction of condensation nuclei with dry diameter larger than 10 nm (CN10) number concentrations significantly from −45% to −7% bias when compared to long-term observations. Inclusion of carbonaceous particles also largely eliminates a tendency for the model to underpredict higher cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) concentrations. Similar to other carbonaceous models, the model underpredicts organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) mass concentrations by a factor of 2 when compared to EMEP and IMPROVE observations. Because primary organic aerosol (POA) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) affect aerosol number size distributions via different microphysical processes, we assess the sensitivity of CCN production, for a fixed source of organic aerosol (OA) mass, to the assumed POA–SOA split in the model. For a fixed OA budget, we found that CCN(0.2%) decreases nearly everywhere as the model changes from a world dominated by POA emissions to one dominated by SOA condensation. POA is about twice as effective per unit mass at CCN production compared to SOA. Changing from a 100% POA scenario to a 100% SOA scenario, CCN(0.2%) concentrations in the lowest model layer decrease by about 20%. In any scenario, carbonaceous aerosols contribute significantly to global CCN. The SOA–POA split has a significant effect on global CCN, and the microphysical implications of POA emissions versus SOA condensation appear to be at least as important as differences in chemical composition as expressed by the hygroscopicity of OA. These findings stress the need to better understand carbonaceous aerosols loadings, the global SOA budget, microphysical pathways of OA formation (emissions versus condensation) as well as chemical composition to improve climate modeling.
Does plant richness influence animal richness?: the mammals of Catalonia (NE Spain)

Although it has long been held that plant diversity must influence animal diversity, the nature of this relationship remains poorly understood at large spatial scales. We compare the species richness patterns of vascular plants and mammals in north‐eastern Spain using a 100‐km2 grain size to examine patterns of covariation. We found that the total mammal richness pattern, as well as those of herbivores and carnivores considered separately, only weakly corresponded to the pattern of plants. Rather, mammal richness was best described by climatic variables incorporating water inputs, and after adding these variables to multiple regression models, plant and mammal richness were virtually independent. We conclude that the observed association, although weak, is explained by shared responses of both groups to climate, and thus, plant richness has no influence on the richness pattern of Catalan mammals.
How rivers react to large earthquakes: Evidence from central Taiwan

Earthquakes and bedrock river incision are fundamental processes in the evolution of tectonically active landscapes, yet little work has focused on understanding how a bedrock river responds to a single large earthquake. Data from the 1999 M w = 7.6 Chi-Chi earthquake in central Taiwan show dramatic differences in river response that depend on the proximity to the rupture zone. Near the fault scarp, vertical ground deformation intensifi es river incision on a time scale of years to decades, while distal to the fault, landslides induced by the earthquake mantle bedrock on the river bed with sediment, impeding incision for decades to centuries as the material is evacuated. This surprising spatial and temporal variability in bedrock incision caused by earthquakes has implications for the paleoseismic interpretation of bedrock terraces and for the evolution of tectonically active landscapes.
Changes of Physico–Chemical Properties of Pig Slurry During Storage

This study was aimed to determine changes of the characteristics of raw pig slurry as liquid organic fertilizer at various storage times. A completely randomized design was used in this research. The treatments were storage times, i.e.: 0, 15, 30, 45, and 60 days. Variables observed were loss of the slurry, degree of acidity (pH), electrical conductivity (EC), total solid (TS), volatile solid (VS), total chemical oxygen demand (tCOD), soluble chemical oxygen demand (sCOD), total nitrogen (TN), ammonia-nitrogen (NH3-N), nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N), total phosphate (TP), and dissolve reactive phosphate (DRP). The results showed that storage time significantly affected all the observed variables, except the concentration of NO3-N and total phosphate content. The pH, TS, VS, DRP, and losses of slurry lost during storage times increased, while EC, TN, NH3-N, tCOD, and sCOD decreased. Physico-chemical properties of slurry during storage times changed, as a result of organic matter breakdown.
The Effect of Alternative Seismotectonic Models on PSHA Results – a Sensitivity Study for the Case of Israel

We present a full PSHA sensitivity analysis for two sites in southern Israel – one in the near-field of a major fault system 10 and one farther away. The PSHA analysis is conducted for alternative source representations, using alternative model parameters for the main seismic sources, such as slip-rate and Mmax, among others. The analysis also considers the effect of the GroundMotion Prediction Equation (GMPE) on the hazard results. In this way, the two types of epistemic uncertainty – modelling uncertainty and parametric uncertainty are treated and addressed. We quantify the uncertainty propagation by testing its influence on the final calculated hazard, such that the controlling knowledge gaps are identified and can be treated in future 15 studies. We find that current practice in Israel, as represented by the most current version of the building code, grossly underestimates the hazard, by approximately 40% at short exceedance intervals (10% in 50 yrs) and by as much as 150% at long exceedance intervals (10E-5). The analysis shows that this underestimation is most probably due to a combination of factors, including source definitions as well as the GMPE used for analysis.
Biodiesel from Thevetia peruviana seed oil with dimethyl carbonate using as an active catalyst potassium-methoxide

The transesterification of Thevetia peruviana seed oil with dimethyl carbonate (DMC) for preparing biodiesel has been studied using as an active catalyst potassium-methoxide (KOCH3). The effects of reaction conditions: Molar ratio of dimethyl carbonate to Thevetia peruviana seed oil, catalyst concentration, reaction time and agitation speed on dimethyl esters (DMC-Tp-BioDs) yield were investigated. The highest DMC-Tp-BioDs yield could reach 97.1% at refluxing temperature for 90 min with molar ratio of DMC-to-oil 5:1 and 2.0% w/w KOCH3 (based on oil weight). The fuel properties of the produced DMC-Tp-BioDs were compared with the ASTM D6751-02 biodiesel standard.
Credit Expansion and Neglected Crash Risk

In this paper I examine the effects credit expansion has on bank equity and whether bank shareholders recognise the increased crash risk that comes with credit expansion. This is done through five regressions, each of which answers a specific element of this question. First I found that credit expansion actually increased the crash risk of bank equity. The second regression showed that bank shareholders do not demand higher returns given the increased crash risk when credit expansion was high, but rather receive lower returns. A third regression aimed to distinguish whether these lower returns were the result of elevated risk appetite or actually neglected crash risk and proved the latter to be the case. A fourth regression gave insight on the particular sentiment associated with credit expansion, yielding that it is different from the sentiment associated with the market. Lastly I analysed the effect of credit expansion on volatility, which yielded no significant results.
Long term leachate evolution during flow-through leaching of a vault backfill (NRVB)

Abstract Some of the illustrative concepts for the disposal of intermediate-level waste in a geological disposal facility in the UK employ a cementitious backfill around the waste packages. The concept for higher strength rocks would use a highly alkaline backfill composed of Portland cement (now known as CEM I), hydrated lime and limestone flour, referred to as Nirex reference vault backfill (NRVB). This paper reports a study of the extensive leaching of cured NRVB in a range of generic leachant compositions (deionized water, 0.1 м and 1 м NaCl solutions) under flow-through conditions using a flexible wall permeameter. The experiments were designed to run for up to two years and to pass at least 1000 volumes of leachant (defined as the cumulative leachate volume produced/NRVB solid specimen volume) through the NRVB samples. Results for the pH evolution profiles of the leachates and the microstructural analysis of the unleached and leached samples are presented.
The Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosures on Share Prices in Japan and the UK

This paper investigates whether corporate social responsibility disclosure (CSRD) is associated with firms’ market values in order to assess whether CSRD provides incremental value relevant information to investors. A modified Ohlson (1995) model is used, which is a widely accepted equity valuation model in accounting research. The findings suggest that investors in the UK consider CSRD information in the total information set they use for their investment decision-making, whereas Japanese investors do not appear to find that CSRD provides incremental information over and above financial information to assist in their valuations of firms. These findings have implications for investors and regulators, specifically around the control and governance of firms.
Relative food limitation drives geographical clutch size variation in South African passerines: a large‐scale test of Ashmole's seasonality hypothesis

Aim To separate the effect of overall resource level from the effect of seasonality on avian clutch size to test Ashmole's hypothesis that birds have larger clutch sizes in seasonal environments due to high per capita food availability during the breeding season. Location South Africa and Lesotho. Methods We used a large-scale environmental gradient to test the effects of maximum resource availability and resource seasonality (estimated by the normalized difference vegetation index) on clutch size variation among local passerine assemblages (25 km × 25 km grid cells). The importance of maximum resource availability was distinguished from the importance of resource seasonality by using multivariate general additive models and by subsetting the data so that variation in one of these parameters was minimized. Spatial autocorrelation was controlled for by using spatial generalized least squares. Results Assemblage mean clutch size showed a hump-shaped relationship with maximum resource availability but an increase with resource seasonality. When the variation in maximum resource availability was fixed, clutch size increased with increasing seasonality, but it decreased with increasing maximum resource availability when we fixed the variation in seasonality. These results hold for all feeding guilds except granivores, for which we found opposite patterns. The patterns were much less pronounced when family membership was controlled for, indicating that the overall trends are mostly driven by variation between families. Main conclusions Although clutch size can be affected by many factors related to environmental productivity and its variation, Ashmole's hypothesis provides the most parsimonious explanation of the observed patterns: geographical patterns in mean clutch size across bird assemblages seem to be driven by variation of per capita food availability determined by seasonal variation of population density.
Verification of the model of predisposition in triathlon – structural model of confirmative factor analysis

Background: The triathlon is a combination of three different types of sport - swimming, cycling, and running. Each of these requires different top level predispositions and complex approach to talent selection is a rather difficult process. Attempts to identify assumptions in the triathlon have so far been specific and focused only on some groups of predispositions (physiology, motor tests, and psychology). The latest studies missed the structural approach and were based on determinants of sport performance, theory of sports training and expert assessment. Objective: The aim of our study was to verify the model of predisposition in the short triathlon for talent assessment of young male athletes age 17-20 years. Methods: The research sample consisted of 55 top level triathletes - men, who were included in the Government supported sports talent programme in the Czech Republic at the age of 17-20 years. We used a confirmative factor analysis (FA) and Path diagram to verify the model, which allow us to explain mutual relationships among observed variables. For statistical data processing we used a structure equating modeling (SEM) by software Lisrel L88. Results: The study confirms best structural model for talent selection in triathlon at the age of 17-20 years old men, which composed seventeen indicators (tests) and explained 91% of all cross-correlations (Goodness of Fit Index /GFI/ 0.91, Root Mean Square Residual /RMSR/ 0.13). Tests for predispositions in triathlons were grouped into five items, three motor predispositions (swimming, cycling and running skills), aerobic and psychological predispositions. Aerobic predispositions showed the highest importance to the assumptions to the general factor (1.00; 0). Running predispositions were measured as a very significant factor (-0.85; 0.28) which confirms importance of this critical stage of the race. Lower factor weight showed clusters of swimming (-0.61; 0.63) and cycling (0.53; 0.72) predispositions. The psychological predispositions were found in the lowest effect (0.36; 0.87). Conclusions: We confirm predispositions and tests for measurement of its level for top level male triathletes in the junior category. The model is in practice today in the Czech Republic, where we used the test standards for dividing Government support of athletic talent.
Largest blockholding and firm performance: evidence from an emerging economy

This study aims at examining the relationship between largest blockholding and firm economic performance in Bangladesh, an emerging economy. It is found that there is a significant positive relationship between the largest blockholding and firm performance under both the accounting and market based performance measures. This study reveals that, largest blockholding, by narrowing the gap between ownership and control, allows the blockholder to add value to the firm.
An empirical productivity analysis of ASEAN economies intransition towards knowledge-based economy

Over the past few decades, countries in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) have achieved varying levels of economic development. In this paper, the nature and extent of productivity changes in Cobb-Douglas production function components and the growth of the knowledge economy of selected ASEAN countries, namely, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore plus South Korea are analyzed over the period 2005 to 2010. Utilising non-parametric Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and the Malmquist total factor productivity (TFP) index, individual country's efficiency and productivity changes which took place within this period are estimated. Although there are vast numbers of studies conducted on firm-level and industry-level efficiencies, there is scant literature on inter-country productivity comparisons using the Malmquist productivity index (MPI). The Malmquist TFP index, calculated within the framework of DEA, is broken down into three constituent elements accounting for different sources of productivity growth, namely technological progress, efficiency change, and the effects of economies of scale. Our results indicate that the Philippines and Singapore reported the highest increase in TFP within the referred years, and this growth in productivity is derived from both technical efficiency gains and technological progress. On the other hand, for the knowledge economy model, there is a remarkable growth in TFP for Thailand and Philippines. A comparison with better performing countries helps to identify policies for further improvement in ASEAN member countries.
Response of Enteromorpha sp. (Chlorophyceae) to a nitrate pulse: nitrate uptake, inorganic nitrogen storage and nitrate reductase activity

The uptake, storage and reduction of nitrate (NO3 - ) by Enteromorpha sp. during a NO3 - pulse was studied in the laboratory using algae collected from the Mobile Bay estuary, Alabama, USA. Peak uptake occurred when Enteromorpha sp. was initially exposed to NO3 - . As the internal NO3 - pool filled, NO3 - uptake declined. After 6 h of exposure to a 30 µM NO3 - pulse, the tissue NO3 - pool was filled and NO3 - uptake decreased to 1.64 ± 2.63 µmol NO3 - g -1 fresh wt h -1 . While tissue NO3 - increased when NO3 - became available, the size of the internal nitrite (NO2 - ), ammonium (NH4 + ), and free amino acid (FAA) pools remained roughly constant, suggesting that reduction of NO3 - to nitrite (NO2 - ) by nitrate reductase (NR) was the rate-limiting step in NO3 - assimilation. Meanwhile, there was a lag time (2 to 3 h) between exposure to NO3 - and peak NR activity (0.80 ± 0.23 µmol NO2 - g -1 fresh wt h -1 ). These characteristics, combined with a peak NR activity that was 11-fold less than the peak NO3 - uptake rate, suggest that during a NO3 - pulse the internal NO3 - pool quickly fills and uptake becomes limited by the rate at which the internal NO3 - pool is reduced by NR. Predicted levels of tissue NO3 - calculated from initial tissue NO3 - , NO3 - uptake and NR activity agreed with the measured tissue NO3 - .