Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inter-relação entre caracteres de caupi de porte ereto e crescimento determinado

Ten characteristics were studied in 32 cowpea genotypes [Vigna unguiculata (L.)Walp. ] with the objective of evaluating the association among yield and yield components. The experiment was conduced at Embrapa-Centro de Pesquisa Agropecuaria do Meio-Norte in Teresina, PI, Brazil. Acomplete random blocks design with six replications was used. The data were collected from the two central rows subtracting two hills at the extremities. Initial flowering and 100-seed weight, that presented the highest direct effect and positive correlation with grain yield, were the most important characters in the process of indirect selection to obtain an efficient correlated response on grain yield. However, selection for the characters angle insertion of the secondary branches and number of grains per pod had no significant direct influence on grain yield.
On the relationship between the scattering phase function of cirrus and the atmospheric state

Abstract. This is the first paper to investigate the relationship between the shape of the scattering phase function of cirrus and the relative humidity with respect to ice (RHi, using space-based solar radiometric angle-dependent measurements. The relationship between RHi and the complexity of ice crystals has been previously studied using data from aircraft field campaigns and laboratory cloud chambers. However, to the best of our knowledge, there have been no studies to date that explore this relationship through the use of remotely sensed space-based angle-dependent solar radiometric measurements. In this paper, one case study of semi-transparent cirrus, which occurred on 25 January 2010 off the north-east coast of Scotland, is used to explore the possibility of such a relationship. Moreover, for the first time, RHi fields predicted by a high-resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) model are combined with satellite retrievals of ice crystal complexity. The NWP model was initialised at midnight, on 25 January 2010, and the mid-latitude RHi field was extracted from the NWP model at 13:00 UTC. At about the same time, there was a PARASOL (Polarization and Anisotropy of Reflectance for Atmospheric science coupled with Observations from a Lidar) overpass, and the PARASOL swath covered the NWP-model-predicted RHi field. The cirrus case was located over Scotland and the North Sea. From the satellite channel based at 0.865 μm, the directionally averaged and directional spherical albedos were retrieved between the scattering angles of about 80 and 130°. An ensemble model of cirrus ice crystals is used to predict phase functions that vary between phase functions that exhibit optical features (referred to as pristine) and featureless phase functions. For each of the PARASOL pixels, the phase function that best minimised differences between the spherical albedos was selected. This paper reports, for this one case study, an association between the most featureless phase function model and the highest values of NWP-predicted RHi (i.e. when RHi > 1.0). For pixels associated with NWP-model-predicted RHi
The Effect of the Availability of Student Credit on Tuition: Testing the Bennett Hypothesis Using Evidence from a Large-Scale Student Loan Program in Brazil

ABSTRACT:Exploring the expansion of FIES—a large student lending program in Brazil— we test whether eligibility for subsidized student lending causes tuition to rise, in accordance with the Bennett hypothesis. FIES rules created arguably exogenous variation in eligibility across different majors and higher education institutions, which we exploit in a difference-indifferences framework. Using unique information on tuition, we document that FIES eligibility caused tuition to rise. We then estimate a structural demand model to explore whether a reduction in the sensitivity of demand to price increases is one of the possible mechanisms behind this credit-driven tuition rise. Our results show that FIES expansion is associated with a reduction in the tuition elasticity of demand.
Friction Welding of Aluminium and Aluminium Alloys with Steel

The paper presents our actual knowledge and experience in joining dissimilar materials with the use of friction welding method. The joints of aluminium and aluminium alloys with the different types of steel were studied. The structural effects occurring during the welding process were described. The mechanical properties using, for example, (i) microhardness measurements, (ii) tensile tests, (iii) bending tests, and (iv) shearing tests were determined. In order to obtain high-quality joints the influence of different configurations of the process such as (i) changing the geometry of bonding surface, (ii) using the interlayer, or (iii) heat treatment was analyzed. Finally, the issues related to the selection of optimal parameters of friction welding process were also investigated.
Iontophoretic delivery of lignocaine in healthy volunteers: effect of concentration of epinephrine on local anesthesia

The current clinical study focuses on the effect of concentration of epinephrine on the anesthetic activity of Lignocaine delivered by iontophoresis. The combination of drugs is supposed to lower the intensity of pain with lowering in various physical stimuli. The patches for drug reservoir (Lignocaine and Epinephrine) and electrolyte were formulated by casting solvent and evaporation method. The controlled, randomized trial was conducted on 30 subjects (15 male and 15 females) with mean age 52 years and mean height 158 cm. The total population was divided into 3 random groups and treated with varying concentration of epinephrine as AT1 (2% Lignocaine + 1:80000), AT2 (2% Lignocaine + 1:160000), AC (2% Lignocaine). The Lignocaine epinephrine patches were formulated successfully by casting solvent and evaporation method. AT2 group gave significantly less pain intensity than AT1 and AC group. The cool and warm sensation observed for AT2 group was significantly lowered than AT1 and AC group. All the formulation showed no significant skin reaction. High epinephrine concentration combined with Lignocaine offers significant advantage for pain relief. As concentration of Epinephrine increases the pain relieving effect also increases.
INFLUENCE OF WORK MOTIVATION AND WORK ENVIRONMENT ON COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: STUDY OF INDONESIA AND CHINA TOURISM WORKERS

This research is a study of the relationship between work motivation and work environment on the competitive advantage that is developed by creativity and innovation. The objective of this research is to analyze the influence of work motivation and work environment on creativity and innovation in creating competitive advantage. This research conducted at tourism location in Indonesia and China. The sample determined by purposive sampling. The total respondent from this research is 368 respondents consist of 181 from Indonesian and 187 from China. Employing Partial Least Square (PLS) analysis, the results from outer models, inner models, and hypotheses testing by t-test are as follows: Work motivation has positive significant influence toward creativity. Work environment has a significant influence on creativity. Creativity has positive significant influence toward innovative. The implication from the conclusion below, suggest that tourism workers should increase work motivation because it could give positive feedback to an organization. Increasing work motivation also can increase creativity on an individual in facing dynamic environment to create competitive advantage and win over competitors.
The Psychodynamics of the Client-Consultant Relationship

This paper reveals the lack of discovery of the unwritten or unspoken expectations of clients in a client-consultant relationship. Successful management of these expectations on the part of the consultant could lead to fruitful outcomes for both clients and consultants. In addition, consultants who are adept at managing these expectations could gain a competitive advantage in a highly competitive profession. This paper reviews both academic and practitioner literature in relation to factors that are seen as significantly affecting consulting assignment outcomes for both client and consultant. It also highlights the dearth of research on investigation of the interplay, connectedness, and relationship among the various factors identified in isolation in the existing literature. In addressing this gap, the author proposes a conceptual framework with a broad research agenda with research questions to establish the linkages among the significant success factors identified in the literature. This paper makes a valuable contribution toward future research in this respect by providing a clear conceptual framework and robust research agenda.
Establishment of dry-down hypoxic stress treatment protocol for snakehead freshwater fish, Channa striatus

The air-breathing fish, Channa striatus can survive in muddy and marshy water. It is a hypoxia tolerant species. Hypoxia tolerance linked investigations for large-bodied fishes are limited in the absence of suitable laboratory-protocol. Here, a dry-down approach for hypoxia treatment in FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastics) tanks containing pond-mud and freshwater was investigated for 61 days. This facilitated lowering of dissolved oxygen (~0.15 mg/L from 39 days) in hypoxic tanks compared to ≥3.5 mg/L normoxic tanks. Hypoxia exposed fishes preferred benthic habitat with reduced locomotives and hibernated under soft-mud, whereas normoxic fishes remained active with normal air-gulping. Lactate dehydrogenase, an anaerobic glycolytic enzyme, levels were elevated in serum, liver, muscle and brain of hypoxic fishes. The heightened hsp90β gene, a stress marker, expression in hypoxic fishes was also documented. Such striking differences on the behavioral and metabolic levels were indicative of successful hypoxia stress treatment. Thus, a laboratory-based rearing protocol for investigating long-term hypoxia stress tolerance in C. striatus was established. This will also have future implications in extending this protocol in other fish species.
Oxidative metabolism and muscle biochemical profile of polo horses supplemented with an ADE vitamin complex

Horses used for the game of polo experience abrupt and frequent changes in exercise intensity. To meet this variable energy demand, the horses use both aerobic and anaerobic pathways in varying proportions and intensities. In this context, there must be a balance between the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the action of antioxidants to prevent oxidative stress and its consequences. The effect of supplementation with an ADE vitamin complex on oxidative metabolism was evaluated in 18 crossbred horses randomly divided between a treated group (TG) and a control group (CG). The TG animals received the ADE vitamin complex (1mL/50 kg of body weight) by deep intramuscular injection at 30 and 15 days before the game. The CG horses received 10ml of saline by the same administration route and schedule. During the polo match, the animals played for a total of 7.5 min. Blood samples were collected on the same days as the treatments were administered, and immediately before and at 15, 90 and 180 minutes after the game. The concentrations of creatine phosphokinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), lactate, glucose, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were measured in the blood samples. After the game, the TG demonstrated higher levels of AST, lactate and glucose than the CG, suggesting more efficient energy use by the treated animals. The higher GSH and lower lactate levels in the TG before the game suggest the presence of a greater antioxidant supply in the treated animals. The maintenance of the MDA levels indicates that neither of the groups exhibited oxidative stress.
On the level of computational model of a human skull: A comparative study

In this study, different patient-specific computational models of the skull, which are often used in literature, were investigated, analysed and compared. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the differences in computational model creation and results in case different computational models based on same computed tomography (CT) dataset are used. The selection of computational model directly influences the values of investigated parameters. The effort is to demonstrate, how the selection of the computational model influences the results of biomechanically relevant parameters. The comparison was based on total displacement of the skull and von Mises strain investigated around predefined paths around the skull. The strain values were evaluated according to criterion from literature. The results were obtained using finite element method. The values of the displacement of the skull were higher in case of considering cancellous bone tissue due to its poor material properties or heterogeneous material properties. The same situation occurred during the evaluation of strain. The values were higher in models which include cancellous bone tissue in the structure.
Alcohol Hangover Symptoms are More Common among Smokers

Alcohol hangover is a common phenomenon, experienced by numerous people amongst alcohol consuming societies. Recent research has demonstrated the impact of this phenomenon on various aspects such as quality of life, cognitive functioning and affect, work effectiveness and economy [1]. Nevertheless, so far, no measure was found to be effective in reducing the burden of hangover, besides alcohol abstinence. While several strategies and products were systematically evaluated, none of them was found efficient [2].
Glacial refugia influence plant diversity patterns in the Mediterranean Basin

Aim The aims of this study were to assess the distribution of putative Mediterranean refugia of plants, to compare the locations of refugia and those of regional hotspots of plant biodiversity, and to provide a critical analysis of the Mediterranean refugium paradigm. Furthermore, we consider how biogeographical and genetic results can be combined to guide global conservation strategies.
The Nature and Determinants of Pyramid Structure: A Theoretical and Empirical Exposition

There is high incidence of pyramid structure issue which leads to severe agency problem in Malaysia. Prior research have documented that in many East Asian firms, there is divergence in actual ownership and control leading to expropriation of minority shareholders’ interest. We examine this issue to answer the normative questions in terms of the nature and determinants of firm affiliation to pyramid structure of public listed firms in Malaysia. Using Attig Model on Malaysian pyramid firms during 1990 to 2010, we show that the determinants of firm affiliation to pyramid structure are more observable for firms with low CFR ratio resulting from large differences between cash flow rights and control rights. Mean comparative statistics depicts that low CFR ratio firms are associated with higher risk, larger cash, bigger size, higher firm performance, higher debt ratio and lower dividend payout ratio. While the regression analysis result reveals that all variables are statistically significant at 1% and 10% level except for cash and dividend payout ratio.
Germany's Poor Economic Performance in the Last Decade: It's the Macroeconomy, not Institutional Sclerosis

This paper challenges the institutional sclerosis explanation of the German crisis according to which rigid labour markets and generous welfare state institutions have driven Germany into its position as "Europe's sick man". In general, the explanation is not convincing, because the underlying hypotheses about the effects of labour market regulation and welfare state institutions on employment and growth cannot unambiguously be derived from modern labour market theory and are at least partially at odds with accepted empirical findings. In particular, the explanation is unconvincing, because in international comparison Germany's labour market and welfare state institutions are simply not as sclerotic as often supposed. In most of the aggregate indicators for structural rigidities Germany is not worse than the average OECD or EU country. Moreover, there is a macroeconomic explanation focusing on the combined effects of restrictive and procyclical monetary, fiscal and wage policy in Germany that is broadly consistent with mainstream macroeconomics and is well backed by empirical data.
A Study of Error Variance Estimation in Lasso Regression

Variance estimation in the linear model when $p > n$ is a difficult problem. Standard least squares estimation techniques do not apply. Several variance estimators have been proposed in the literature, all with accompanying asymptotic results proving consistency and asymptotic normality under a variety of assumptions. It is found, however, that most of these estimators suffer large biases in finite samples when true underlying signals become less sparse with larger per element signal strength. One estimator seems to be largely neglected in the literature: a residual sum of squares based estimator using Lasso coefficients with regularisation parameter selected adaptively (via cross-validation). In this paper, we review several variance estimators and perform a reasonably extensive simulation study in an attempt to compare their finite sample performance. It would seem from the results that variance estimators with adaptively chosen regularisation parameters perform admirably over a broad range of sparsity and signal strength settings. Finally, some intial theoretical analyses pertaining to these types of estimators are proposed and developed.
Alpha‐tocopherol and β‐carotene in legume–grass mixtures as influenced by wilting, ensiling and type of silage additive

Effects of wilting, ensiling and type of additive on atocopherol and b-carotene contents in legume–grass mixtures were examined. Swards of birdsfoot trefoil + timothy (Bft + Ti), red clover + timothy (Rc + Ti) and red clover + meadow fescue (Rc + Mf) were harvested as a first regrowth in August 2005. Forage was wilted to a dry-matter (DM) content of 273 g kg)1 and ensiled without additive or with an inoculant or acid. Wilting decreased a-tocopherol concentration by 30% in the Bft + Ti mixture (P = 0x015). Untreated Bft + Ti silage had higher a-tocopherol content than red clover silages (56x9 vs. 34x2 mg kg)1 DM; P = 0x015). The a-tocopherol concentration of Bft + Ti silages increased during ensiling from 41x1 mg kg)1 DM in wilted herbage to 56x9, 65x2 and 56x8 mg kg)1 DM in untreated, inoculated and acid-treated silage respectively (P = 0x015). The inoculant increased a-tocopherol content in the red clover silages (50x1 vs. 34x21 mg kg)1 DM; P = 0x015) compared with untreated red clover silages. Red clover mixtures had lower b-carotene content than Bft + Ti (32AE3 vs. 46x2 mg kg)1 DM; P = 0x016), averaged over treatments. In conclusion, wilting had small effects but the use of bacterial inoculant as an additive and a Bft + Ti mixture increased a-tocopherol concentration in the silage.
From local monitoring to a broad-scale viability assessment: a case study for the Bonelli’s Eagle in western Europe

Population viability analysis (PVA) has become a basic tool of current conservation practice. However, if not accounted for properly, the uncertainties inherent to PVA predictions can decrease the reliability of this type of analysis. In the present study, we performed a PVA of the whole western European population (France, Portugal, and Spain) of the endangered Bonelli's Eagle (Aquila fasciata), in which we thoroughly explored the consequences of uncertainty in population processes and parameters on PVA predictions. First, we estimated key vital rates (survival, fertility, recruitment, and dispersal rates) using monitoring, ringing, and bibliographic data from the period 1990-2009 from 12 populations found throughout the studied geographic range. Second, we evaluated the uncertainty about model structure (i.e., the assumed processes that govern individual fates and population dynamics) by comparing the observed growth rates of the studied populations with model predictions for the same period. Third, using the model structures suggested in the previous step, we assessed the viability of both the local populations and the overall population. Finally, we analyzed the effects of model and parameter uncertainty on PVA predictions. Our results strongly support the idea that all local populations in western Europe belong to a single, spatially structured population operating as a source- sink system, whereby the populations in the south of the Iberian Peninsula act as sources and, thanks to dispersal, sustain all other local populations, which would otherwise decline. Predictions regarding population dynamics varied considerably, and models assuming more constrained dispersal predicted more pessimistic population trends than models assuming greater dispersal. Model predictions accounting for parameter uncertainty revealed a marked increase in the risk of population declines over the next 50 years. Sensitivity analyses indicated that adult and pre-adult survival are the chief vital rates regulating these populations, and thus, the conservation efforts aimed at improving these survival rates should be strengthened in order to guarantee the long-term viability of the European populations of this endangered species. Overall, the study provides a framework for the implementation of multi-site PVAs and highlights the importance of dispersal processes in shaping the population dynamics of long-lived birds distributed across heterogeneous landscapes.
Affective and Instrumental Commitment: A Special Reference to Self-Service Technologies in Domestic and Foreign Banks

Mar. 25 2016 The current research investigates the effects of consumers’ perception (i.e. perceived usefulness, perceived convenience, and perceived security and privacy) of self-service banking technologies (SSBTs) on customer satisfaction, which in turn affects their affective and instrumental commitment toward banks. Based on the data collected from 176 domestic bank customers and 130 foreign bank customers in Vietnam, the current research examines and compares the proposed relationships across domestic and foreign banks. Its results indicate that, for the overall sample, perceived usefulness, perceived convenience, and perceived security and privacy of SSBTs positively affect customer satisfaction, which incidentally significantly increases customers’ affective and instrumental commitment. However, perceived usefulness of SSBTs is not an important driver of customer satisfaction with domestic banks. Also, in the case of foreign banks, perceived convenience of SSBTs does not influence customers’ satisfaction, and customers’ instrumental commitment toward foreign banks is not affected by customers’ satisfaction. Based on the research findings, this study provides some suggestions and recommendation for both domestic and foreign banking practitioners and policy makers in Vietnam.
Impact of magnetite nanoparticles supplementation on the anaerobic digestion of food wastes: batch and continuous-flow investigations

Impact of Magnetite Nanoparticles Supplementation on the Anaerobic Digestion of Food Wastes: Batch and ContinuousFlow Investigations Claudia Dalla Vecchia, Andrea Mattioli, David Bolzonella, Enza Palma, Carolina Cruz Viggi, Federico Aulenta . a Department of Biotechnology, University of Verona, Strada Le Grazie 15, 37134 Verona, Italy b Water Research Institute (IRSA), National Research Council (CNR), via Salaria km 29.300, 00015 Monterotondo (RM), david.bolzonella@univr.it