Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PROSPECTIVE PRESCHOOL TEACHERS’ BELIEFS ABOUT MATHEMATICS BEFORE AND AFTER A MATHEMATICS TEACHING COURSE

In this study we reveal the beliefs about mathematics held by 42 prospective preschool teachers prior to and after a one semester course devoted to the teaching of mathematics in the early childhood years. Results suggest that many of the prospective teachers explicitly expressed negative beliefs about mathematics as well as implicitly via the ‘animal metaphor’. The course made a small change in teachers’ beliefs, suggesting that much more has to be done for a meaningful change, so that prospective preschool teachers can engage in mathematics with young children positively.
Sum-Rate Upper Bounds for the Two-User Gaussian X Channel with Limited Receiver Cooperation

In this paper, we propose sum-rate upper bounds in terms of the sum of 3 rates and the sum of 4 rates for the two-user Gaussian X channel with limited receiver cooperation. These upper bounds are derived by using the Fano's inequality, the data processing inequality and Genie-aided techniques. Then, we explore the generalized degrees of freedom (GDoF) of the proposed upper bounds with a symmetric channel setting. By setting a certain set of parameters, the received results show that our results are identical to the existing results for both non-cooperation and limited receiver cooperation cases. Moreover, we obtain that the GDoF computed from our proposed upper bounds are greater than the GDoF of those in the non-cooperation case.
Ionic and carbonaceous compositions of PM10, PM2.5 and PM1.0 at Gosan ABC Superstation and their ratios as source signature

PM1.0, PM2.5, and PM10 were sampled at Gosan ABC Superstation on Jeju Island from August 2007 to September 2008. The carbonaceous aerosols were quantified with the thermal/optical reflectance (TOR) method, which produced five organic carbon (OC) fractions, OC1, OC2, OC3, OC4, and pyrolyzed organic carbon (OP), and three elemental carbon (EC) fractions, EC1, EC2, and EC3. The mean mass concentrations of PM 1.0, PM2.5, and PM10 were 13.7 μg m−3, 17.2 μg m−3, and 28.4 μg m−3, respectively. The averaged mass fractions of OC and EC were 23.0 % and 10.4 % for PM1.0, 22.9 % and 9.8 % for PM2.5, and 16.4 % and 6.0 % for PM 10. Among the OC and EC sub-components, OC2 and EC2+3 were enriched in the fine mode, but OC3 and OC4 in the coarse mode. The filterbased PM1.0 EC agreed well with black carbon (BC) measured by an Aethalometer, and PM 10 EC was higher than BC, implying less light absorption by larger particles. EC was well correlated with sulfate, resulting in good relationships of sulfate with both aerosol scattering coefficient measured by Nephelometer and BC concentration. Our measurements of EC confirmed the definition of EC1 as char-EC emitted from smoldering combustion and EC2+3 as soot-EC generated from higher-temperature combustion such as motor vehicle exhaust and coal combustion (Han et al., 2010). In particular, EC1 was strongly correlated with potassium, a traditional biomass burning indicator, except during the summer, when the ratio of EC1 to EC2+3 was the lowest. We also found the ratios of major chemical species to be a useful tool to constrain the main sources of aerosols, by which the five air masses were well distinguished: Siberia, Beijing, Shanghai, Yellow Sea, and East Sea types. Except Siberian air, the continental background of the study region, Beijing plumes showed the highest EC1 (and OP) to sulfate ratio, which implies that this air mass had the highest net warming by aerosols of the four air masses. Shanghai-type air, which was heavily influenced by southern China, showed the highest sulfate enhancement. The highest EC2+3/EC1 ratio was found in aged East Sea air, demonstrating a significant influence of motor vehicle emissions from South Korea and Japan and less influence from industrial regions of China. The high ratio results from the longer residence time and less sensitivity to wet scavenging of EC2+3 compared to EC1, indicating that soot-EC could have greater consequence in regionalscale warming.
Returns to basic skills in Central & Eastern Europe : a semi parametric approach

This paper uses semi-parametric econometric techniques to investigate the relationship between basic skills and earning in three post-communist countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia using the IALS dataset. While the large increases in the returns to education in the new market economies has been well documented in the literature, no study to date has examined the impact of basic skills and schooling on income. Estimating a Mincer human capital model we find that including a measure of basic skills reduces the returns to education. In addition, using a partial linear model in which log earnings is linear in schooling, but is an arbitrary function of basic skills, we find that this relationship is not well described by the common assumption of linearity at the tails of the distribution.
Performance, Diversification, Ownership, Managerial Qualification, and Firm Value of Banking Companies Listed in Indonesia Stock Exchange

This research aims to analyze financial ratios influencing Firm value, namely: Tobin Q value. The financial ratios include Return on Assets (RoA), Debt to Total Asset (DTA), Diversification, Managerial Ownership, Institutional Ownership, and Managerial Qualification and Firm Risk (Non-Performing Loan / NPL). The samples used in this research were seventeen Private Banking Companies and four Government Banking Companies observed by using cross-section method in the research period of 2009 – 2014. Data analysis techniques used in this research were the double linier regressions, namely: F test, T test, and Independent T Test (Compare Mean Test). The result of this research is adjusted with R Square = 42.2 %, meaning that the independence variable influences or describes the effect of 42.2% on the Firm value (Tobin Q), and 57.8% was influenced by other variables. The simultaneous test indicates that the independent variable has an effect on the Firm value as indicated by the signifance value = 0000. The partial test result shows that the debt variable to total asset (DTA), diversification, and the managerial qualification have an effect on the Firm value. Meanwhile, the Return on Asset (RoA), the Managerial Ownership, the Institutional Ownership, and the NPL do not have any effect on the Firm value related to the Tobin Q value. There is a difference between state-owned banks and private banks listed in the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX). Keywords: Return on Asset, debt to total asset, diversification, managerial ownership, institution ownership, managerial qualification, NPL and the Firm value.
Golden ratio beauty as scientific function

Normally when one is considering the golden ratio in the history of ideas, one is often looking at it as an aesthetic principle – usually associated with Greek art, sculpture and mathematics. However, in recent years the prevalence of the golden ratio within a broad range of scientific disciplines has brought its role in the perfection of science to the forefront. I would like to collapse these two areas by proposing a somewhat novel way of looking at the aesthetics of the golden ratio: its pervasive expression in scientific form and function is the basis of the aesthetics in the world. Therefore, science contains the same mathematical beauty as found in artistic expression. The golden ratio guides the Chaos Border of Kolmogorov, Arnold, and Moser (KAM theorem) and it can be found hidden in all elementary particles, and even in the proportions of dark matter and energy relative to visible matter and energy. It is evident in the structure and growth functions of plants and animals and it can be found in the physiological functions of humans. It now appears that without the golden ratio, we would not have the form or function of the proton, cell, athlete, horse, species, planet, solar system or galaxy.
Sell-Side Analyst Research and Stock Comovement

We document that a stock's price around a recommendation or forecast covaries with prices of other stocks the issuing analyst covers. The effect of shared analyst coverage on stock price comovement extends beyond analyst activity days. A stock's daily returns covary with the returns of other stocks with which it shares analyst coverage. These links between stock price comovement and shared analyst coverage are consistent with the coverage-specific information we find in earnings forecasts; analysts who cover both stocks in a pair expect future earnings of the stocks to be more highly correlated than do analysts who cover only one stock from the pair. Collectively, our evidence indicates that analyst research produces coverage-specific spillovers that raise price comovement among stocks that share analyst coverage. The strength of these spillovers is comparable to spillovers from broad industry and market information in analyst research.
A comprehensive evaluation of seasonal simulations of ozone in the northeastern US during summers of 2001–2005

Abstract. Regional air quality simulations were conducted for summers 2001–2005 in the eastern US and subjected to extensive evaluation using various ground and airborne measurements. A brief climate evaluation focused on transport by comparing modeled dominant map types with ones from reanalysis. Reasonable agreement was found for their frequency of occurrence and distinctness of circulation patterns. The two most frequent map types from reanalysis were the Bermuda High (22%) and passage of a Canadian cold frontal over the northeastern US (20%). The model captured their frequency of occurrence at 25% and 18% respectively. The simulated five average distributions of 1-h ozone (O3) daily maxima using the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system reproduced salient features in observations. This suggests that the ability of the regional climate model to depict transport processes accurately is critical for reasonable simulations of surface O3. Comparison of mean bias, root mean square error, and index of agreement for CMAQ summer surface 8-h O3 daily maxima and observations showed –0.6±14 nmol/mol, 14 nmol/mol, and 71% respectively. CMAQ performed best in moderately polluted conditions and less satisfactorily in highly polluted ones. This highlights the common problem of overestimating/underestimating lower/higher modeled O3 levels. Diagnostic analysis suggested that significant overestimation of inland nighttime low O3 mixing ratios may be attributed to underestimates of nitric oxide (NO) emissions at night. The absence of the second daily peak in simulations for the Appledore Island marine site possibly resulted from coarse grid resolution misrepresentation of land surface type. Comparison with shipboard measurements suggested that CMAQ has an inherent problem of underpredicting O3 levels in continental outflow. Modeled O3 vertical profiles exhibited a lack of structure indicating that key processes missing from CMAQ, such as lightning produced NO and stratospheric intrusions, are important for accurate upper tropospheric representations.
The Dendrochronology of Pinus elliottii in the Lower Florida Keys: Chronology Development and Climate Response

Abstract South Florida slash pine (Pinus elliottii var. densa) is the southernmost pine species in the United States and the foundation species of the globally endangered pine rockland communities in south Florida. To test if slash pine produces annual growth rings in the Lower Florida Keys, we counted the number of rings on samples collected from the North Big Pine Key site (NBP), which contained a fire scar from a known wildfire and a known date for hurricane-induced tree mortality (2006 or 2007). In addition, a crossdated tree-ring chronology (1871–2009) was developed from living trees and remnant wood found at the site and compared to divisional climate data to determine how the regional climate regime influences radial growth. Our analyses demonstrated that slash pine forms anatomically distinct, annual growth rings with the consistent year-to-year variability necessary for rigorous dendrochronological studies. Response-function and correlation analysis showed that annual growth of slash pine at NBP is primarily influenced by water availability during the growing season. However, no significant correlations were found between tree growth and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation or the El Niño-Southern Oscillation. Our study reveals the potential of producing high-quality dendrochronological data in southern Florida from slash pine, which should prove useful in further studies on fire history and tree phenology and for assessing the projected impacts of impending climate change on the fragile pine rockland community.
Disclosure of HIV Status among Clients Accessing Care at A Tertiary Health Facility in Sagamu, Southwestern Nigeria

HIV/AIDS remains an important health and development issue in sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria inclusive. A major driver of its spread is the secrecy, associated with a positive test result. We therefore assessed the pattern of HIV status disclosure among people living with HIV attending care and treatment centre at a tertiary health facility in Sagamu, Ogun State, Nigeria. A cross-sectional, descriptive study was carried out among adult clients at the AntiRetroviral Treatment and Care centre, Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu, Ogun State, Nigeria. Data was collected with the aid of semi-structured, interviewer-administered questionnaires. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 18. Relevant descriptive statistics were calculated and presented as frequencies and proportions. Participants’ informed consent was obtained prior to commencement of the study. A total of 500 PLWHA were recruited into the study. The mean age of respondents was 32±5.5 years. Males were 355 (71%) of respondents, while females were 145 (29%); 73.7% were married and 48.1% were traders. Disclosure rate among respondents was 76%; of these 51.3% disclosed their HIV status to sexual partners. Some reasons for non-disclosure included: fear of discrimination and stigmatization; fear of divorce; domestic violence and perception of HIV infectivity. Disclosure was high among respondents. Counselling and support of clients should be sought by healthcare providers, in order to improve the rate and promptness of status disclosure among people living with HIV.
Clustering of galaxies with f(R) gravity

Based on thermodynamics, we discuss the galactic clustering of expanding Universe by assuming the gravitational interaction through the modified Newton's potential given by $f(R)$ gravity. We compute the corrected $N$-particle partition function analytically. The corrected partition function leads to more exact equations of states of the system. By assuming that system follows quasi-equilibrium, we derive the exact distribution function which exhibits the $f(R)$ correction. Moreover, we evaluate the critical temperature and discuss the stability of the system. We observe the effects of correction of $f(R)$ gravity on the power law behavior of particle-particle correlation function also. In order to check feasibility of an $f(R)$ gravity approach to the clustering of galaxies, we compare our results with an observational galaxy cluster catalog.
An evaluation of waste control measures in construction industry in Nigeria

Improper control of materials during different stages of construction has caused waste and associated environmental problems. Hence, this research assesses the forms, causes and factors incidental to waste and measures to effectively control construction waste. It is shown that among the factors incidental to waste, last minute client requirement was ranked highest as the factor that leads to design variation with relative importance index value of 3.97; cost of construction materials was ranked highest as a factor that affects selection of construction materials with relative importance index value of 4.05, and construction cost was ranked highest as the factor that leads to construction method with relative importance index value of 3.86. The research also showed that most of the firms do not calculate waste indices which could assist them to determine the amount of waste that could be generated on sites. Sorting exercise that could help firms to identify economy advantage associated with the waste streams is not adequately carried out. It was also discovered that most firms do not incorporate “waste management plan” into the collection of documents that are required of contracting firms during tendering process. To control waste, designers should be able to co-ordinate dimensions between materials specified during design and those procured for use at sites. There is need to allow proper control in the handling, storage and use of materials on site. Also, “waste management plan” should be incorporated as one of the documents dearly expected to be submitted by contracting firms during tendering process. Key words: Construction processes, waste, factors, effects, control measures.
Does difference in secondary and tertiary literacy influence life insurance consumption in the selected ASEAN countries

Life insurance as financial tool has played essential roles to both individual and economy with the functions of promoting long term saving, reinvestment of funds, risk management, development of capital markets support on economic growth.The determinants of life insurance consumption in the perspective of economics and demographic are to be examined in the ASEAN context.The study on the difference of secondary and tertiary education towards demand for life insurance is investigated to highlight the importance of introducing insurance knowledge in the education syllabus to improve future economics with better income and social return with the support of life insurance in the market.This will ensure a well risk management among individuals, firms and countries as a whole and it align with the AEC blueprint with the purpose to rise up the living of the community.
Where oh where are the specific ingredients? A meta-analysis of component studies in counseling and psychotherapy.

Component studies, which involve comparisons between a treatment package and the treatment package without a theoretically important component or the treatment package with an added component, use experimental designs to test whether the component is necessary to produce therapeutic benefit. A meta-analysis was conducted on 27 component studies culled from the literature. It was found that the effect size for the difference between a package with and without the critical components was not significantly different from zero, indicating that theoretically purported important components are not responsible for therapeutic benefits. Moreover, the effect sizes were homogeneous, which suggests that there were no important variables moderating effect sizes. The results cast doubt on the specificity of psychological treatments.
Obituary announcements in Jordanian and British newspapers: A cross-cultural overview

This paper examines the socio-cultural practices surrounding the use of obituary announcements in two different cultures. Specifically, it investigates the structural and linguistic features as well as the euphemistic expressions related to death in obituaries placed in Jordanian and British newspapers. It aims at exploration of the impact of some sociological factors on the form and content of the obituaries as well as finding out the communicative functions conveyed by this particular means of communication. The data comprise three hundred (300) death announcements evenly distributed by the two societies under investigation. The data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The paper reveals clear-cut differences between the two sets of obituaries in terms of structure, language and function. It has also been observed that most of these differences are mainly attributable to socio-cultural distinctions between the two societies. This study elicited a number of significant results which are full of insights to sociolinguistic theory and which lead to a better understanding of the interrelated relationship between language and culture.
First confirmed record of the genus Insulodrilus (Benham, 1903) (Annelida: Clitellata: Phreodrilidae) in Europe.

Eight specimens of phreodrilid oligochaetes belonging to the genus Insulodrilus were found in intertidal sediment in the upper Thames estuary (Wandsworth, London) in November 2012. This is the first confirmed record of Insulodrilus in the northern hemisphere, although immature specimens previously collected in Northern Ireland may belong in this genus.
Personalized drug dosing through modeling and feedback

The research work presented in this thesis discusses innovative strategies for the delivery of personalized pharmacologic therapy through modeling and feedback control. The objective is to enable medical practitioners to deliver drug therapies with a higher standard of care, better outcomes and improved patient well being. Individualizing dosing to the specific needs of each patient allows to adequately fulfil the therapeutic requirements of the individual and prevent the risks and inefficacy associated with overand under-dosing. In Chapter 1, the topic of personalized drug dosing is introduced in relation to two clinical problems that are addressed in this thesis: the delivery of sedation and the administration of antiplatelet therapy. Also, the structure of this document is outlined. Chapter 2 discusses the terminology and basic pharmacology concepts that are extensively used throughout the thesis. The goal is to acquaint the reader with the phenomena involved with drug disposition and action on the human body and the mathematical models that have been proposed to describe them. In Chapter 3, the problem of anesthetic dosing for the delivery of sedation and analgesia is addressed. The pronounced interindividual variability in drug sensitivity and the changing surgical stimulus require to continuously evaluate the pharmacologic effects and personalize anesthetic delivery. Titration to effect is used in the clinical practice to optimize the desired effects (analgesia, sedation and anxiolisys) and minimize the extent of the adverse effects (cardiorespiratory depression). In this thesis, a novel dosing paradigm for the safe and effective delivery of personalized sedation is proposed. A respiratory model is used as a patient simulator for the design of the feedback control dosing strategy and to test the feasibility of the proposed anesthetic paradigm. Chapter 4 is focused on antiplatelet therapy and the modeling of anticoagulant effects. Optimal platelet inhibition is based on maximizing antithrombotic properties while minimizing bleeding risk, and it is critically dependent on the assessment of the individual sensitivity to the drugs. The objective of the work is to provide a quantitative description of anticoagulant effects and to formulate dosing recommendations in the individual. The study also yields experimental validation for