Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society ’ s Annual Conference 2010 ESTIMATING PRODUCTION RESPONSE OF BROADACRE FARMS IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA : THE NEXUS OF EMPIRICS AND ECONOMICS REVISITED

Recently there has been a growing debate as to whether the empirical properties of production response derived from the multi-product framework are consistent with the behavioral assumption in the duality theory of production. This issue could in turn affect the reliable estimates of elasticities which are fundamental requirement to accurate economic forecasting and valid analyses of the impacts of changes in government policies or international events. The crux of the debate is particularly related to whether to estimate cost or profit function and which types of functional form should be used, as well as imposing restrictions on profit and cost functions when those properties are not satisfied by the estimation models. After reviewing the literature, we found that the duality theory may not always hold in empirical work. This depends on many factors such as risk, stochastic error or data quality, and selected functional forms. We also found that the normalized quadratic function has more advantage than other functional forms, although all of flexible functional forms often fail to pass the regularity condition in the duality theory. As such, there is a requirement to impose curvature restriction if normalized quadratic function is used and monotonicity condition needs to be checked if the cross price elasticities are more than unity. We examined the above-mentioned issues by estimating production response for broadacre farms in Western Australia. A normalized quadratic profit function is estimated using the ABARE’s quasi-micro farm level data for the period 1977/78 to 2005/06. The result reflects the imposition of curvature restrictions for a normalized profit function, and estimated elasticities are found to be less elastic in the short run. The estimated elasticities are also consistent with previous studies.
Explosive Welding of Aluminum to Aluminum: Analysis, Computations and Experiments

6061 T0 aluminum alloy was joined to 6061 T0 aluminum alloy by explosive welding. This is a process in which the controlled energy of a detonating explosive is used to create a metallic bond between two similar or dissimilar materials. The welding conditions were tailored to produce both wavy and straight interfaces. A three‐pronged study was used to establish the conditions for straight weld formation: (a) analytical calculation of the domain of weldability; (b) characterization of the explosive welding experiments carried out under different conditions, and (c) 2D finite differences simulation of these tests using the explicit Eulerian hydrocode Raven with a Johnson‐Cook constitutive equation for the Al alloy. The numerical simulation and the analytical calculations confirm the experimental results and explain the difficulties met for obtaining a continuous straight interface along the entire weld.
Observed Climate Change in East China during 1961–2007

Abstract By using in situ daily observations in East China during 1961–2007 and NCEP reanalysis data, the methods of statistical analyses, urban minus rural and observation minus reanalysis, it is revealed that the observed climate change and surface warming in East China were mainly induced by urbanization. The results show that East China has experienced two warmer periods of 1930s and 1980s in the past century; from 1951 to 2007, the regional mean temperature increased at a rate of 0.14°C per decade; heat waves happened in urban center more frequently, and local climate showed a warming and dry trend; there was no significant linear trend in regional mean precipitation in the past 50 years. Urbanization was a crucial element for the regional warming; about 44% of the warming was due to heat island effect in the mega city. Citation Hou, Y. -L. , B. -D. Chen, X. -C. Yang, et al., 2013: Observed climate change in East China during 1961–2007. Adv. Clim. Change Res., 4(2), doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1248.2013. 084.
Aquatic macroinvertebrates as water quality indicators from river Actopan (La Gloria, El Zapotito and Jareros), of Úrsulo Galván municipality, Veracruz

The study was made in three localities of Actopan River, Veracruz: La Gloria, El Zapotito and Jareros. From each study zone, macroinvertebrate organisms were collected in riparian vegetation, in the muddy ground and in the stones. In La Gloria zone 16 families were collected and most abundant was gastropod Lymnaeidae with 622 organisms. In Jareros zone 25 families were collected and the most abundant was gastropod Thiaridae with 381 organisms. In El Zapotito zone, only 10 families were collected and most abundant was the gastropod Lymnaeidae with 41 organisms. When BMWP index was applied, La Gloria and Jareros zones showed values up to 100 (water quality was acceptable or good); in El Zapotito zone was observed values of 46 (doubtful and polluted waters). It is important to show that more studies need to be done in Actopan river, Veracruz zone and observe benthic macroinvertebrates community changes during all seasonal stations.
Immunomodulatory and protective effects of a polyherbal formulation (Immon) against infectious anemia virus infection in broiler.

The present investigation was undertaken to assess the role of a polyherbal immunomodulator with additional elements (Immon) against the Chicken infectious anemia virus (CIAV) infection. A total of 60 broiler chicks (day old age) were divided into three groups (n = 20) and vaccinated against Newcastle Disease (ND). The group I chicks were kept as healthy control while group II and III chicks were infected with 1 mL CIAV (10 TCID50/0.1 mL) per chicken intramuscularly. Group III chicks were supplemented with Immon (1 mL/10 birds in the drinking water) for 21 days. Subsequently, chicks of all three groups were monitored for hematological (Hb, PCV, TEC, TLC and DLC) and biochemical parameters (AST, ALT, ALP and uric acid) along with ND antibody titers, organ: body weight ratios, and mean live body weight at 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th and 35th day of the experiment. At 7-24 days of CIAV infection, the group II birds showed a significantly lower count of erythroid and myeloid cells; increase in enzyme activities and uric acid; decline in mean live body weight and organ: body weight ratios of lymphoid organs and decline in ND antibody titers. However, at these day intervals the CIAV immunosuppression was less severe in Immon supplemented chicks which showed significantly (p<0.05) higher values of all the test parameters as compared to virus control group II chicks. Thus, the present findings support that Immon is an effective immunomodulating agent in CIAV affected birds, reduces pathogenicity of the virus, ameliorate the depressed immune responses and protects the virus induced adverse effects on growth performances.
Learning to read

Born Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925, Malcolm X was one of the most articulate and powerful leaders of black America during the 1960s. A street hustler convicted of robbery in 1946, he spent seven years in prison, where he educated himself and became a disciple of Elijah Muhammad, founder of the Nation of Islam. In the days of the civil rights movement, Malcolm X emerged as the leading spokesman for black separatism, a philosophy that urged black Americans to cut political, social, and economic ties with the white community. After a pilgrimage to Mecca, the capital of the Muslim world, in 1964, he became an orthodox Muslim, adopted the Muslim name El Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, and distanced himself from the teachings of the black Muslims. He was assassinated in 1965. In the following excerpt from his autobiography (1965), coauthored with Alex Haley and published the year of his death, Malcolm X describes his self-education.
Does Pronunciation Instruction Make Any Sense? EFL Learners and Teachers’ Beliefs

Pronunciation has been regarded as a neglected language skill and there is a lack of research on the nature of pronunciation instruction in the literature. Thus, this paper presents the findings of a survey which investigates a) EFL learners and teachers’ beliefs about the significance of correct pronunciation and its relation to other language skills, b) their preferences for explicit or implicit pronunciation instruction and whether background variables such as age or language level have an effect on these stakeholders’ views about pronunciation instruction. The study also examines whether beliefs about pronunciation instruction influence learners’ communicative competency and performance. In order to collect data, a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire consisting of 54 items about related areas was administered to EFL learners (N=642) and teachers (N=42) following its reliability analyses. The findings revealed that EFL learners and teachers have a tendency towards implicit pronunciation instruction whereas their preferences are not totally in the similar vein. The study provides further data and evidence from the perspective of English language teachers and learners for the discussion of the effective way of pronunciation instruction.
Modelling tuberculosis in South Africa

Tuberculosis ranks alongside HIV/AIDS as one of the deadliest infectious diseases in the world, killing 1.4 million people in 2015. The World Health Organization and the Stop TB Partnership set targets to achieve a 90% reduction in incidence and a 95% reduction in mortality from the 2015 values by 2035. We investigate the global dynamics of a compartmental system of ordinary differential equations that models tuberculosis. A more detailed model is then calibrated to the HIV negative TB endemic in South Africa and used to evaluate the 2035 reduction targets. Optimal care and control strategies for fixed budgets are also identified. Model projections for South Africa show the mortality targets can be met through combined interventions, however due to relapse and latent progression the incidence targets are unrealistic. To minimize incidence in 20 years, funding should be prioritized into linking drug susceptible cases (over multi-drug resistant cases) onto care.
Two-stage reconstruction of a circular anomaly in electrical impedance tomography

In the electrical impedance tomography inverse problem, an unknown conductivity distribution in a given object is to be reconstructed from a set of noisy voltage measurements made on the boundary. This paper focuses on the development of effective reconstruction techniques for detection of a circular anomaly from an otherwise constant background. The goal is to investigate applicability of a two-stage reconstruction process in which a region of interest (ROI) containing the anomaly (e.g. a tumour) is determined in the first stage, and the actual reconstruction is found in the second stage by exploring the ROI. Bayesian inversion methods are applied. The conductivity distribution is modelled as a random variable that follows a posterior probability density proportional to the product of a prior density and a likelihood function. The investigated two-stage reconstruction strategy is, however, not fully Bayesian. In the first stage, the ROI is determined using a quasi-Newton optimization algorithm and a smoothness prior, and in the second stage, the reconstruction is found using Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling and an anomaly prior. Performances of white noise and enhanced noise models as well as performances of standard and linearized finite element forward simulations are compared.
Production and comprehension of reference of time in Swahili–English bilingual agrammatic speakers

Background: Several studies on time reference show that monolingual agrammatic speakers have difficulty producing and/or comprehending verb forms referring to past events or actions. The PAst Discourse LInking Hypothesis (PADILIH) has been formulated to account for this phenomenon (Bastiaanse et al., 2011). In the current study on bilingual aphasia we examine whether time reference problems, especially reference to the past, extend to both languages of bilinguals with agrammatic aphasia. The two languages, Swahili and English, have different verb morphology for expressing reference of time. Aims: The current study tested the production and comprehension of reference of time through verb morphology in two languages of Swahili–English bilingual agrammatic speakers. Methods & Procedures: A total of 13 agrammatic speakers and 13 non-brain-damaged individuals were tested using an adaptation of the Test for Assessing Reference of Time (TART; Bastiaanse, Jonkers, & Thompson, 2008; Swahili version: Abuom & Bastiaanse, 2010). Reference to the past, present, and future conditions were examined through a sentence-completion and a picture–sentence-matching task. Outcomes & Results: While the non-brain-damaged participants performed at ceiling in both languages, the agrammatic individuals' performance showed a selective deficit of reference to the past on both comprehension and production tasks. A similar pattern was observed in the two languages in spite of the structural differences. Conclusions: The PAst Discourse LInking Hypothesis (PADILIH) was supported by these results. Furthermore it has been revealed that time reference deficits extend to both tested languages of bilingual speakers with agrammatic aphasia regardless of the structure of languages mastered pre-morbidly. The implications of these findings for the theories of bilingual agrammatism are discussed.
Corporate Governance and Market Microstructure: Evidence on Institutional Investors in the Tunisian Stock Exchange

This paper investigates the relationship between market microstructure and corporate governance in the Tunisian Stock Market. We examine in particular, the relationship between stock liquidity and institutional ownership by the type of institutions (e.g. banks, insurance companies, investment companies, pension funds). We consider eight liquidity measures: absolute quoted bid-ask spread, relative quoted bid-ask spread, absolute effective bid-ask spread, relative effective bid-ask spread, depth, lambda, turnover ratio and Amihud (2002) illiquidity ratio. For our sample, institutional ownership was found to have a significant negative impact on the stock liquidity as measured by Amihud (2002) illiquidity ratio. Our findings support the contention that the relationship between stock liquidity and institutional ownership varies significantly across institution. The ownership of insurance companies increases the bid-ask spreads. The investment companies have a significant and negative effect on the liquidity more than the other types of institutions.
Degraded recruitment synchrony in Northwest Atlantic cod stocks

Correlated recruitment between North Atlantic cod stocks, separated by hundreds of kilometers, has consistently been interpreted as indicative that a proportion of pre-recruit mortality is forced by large-scaled abiotic conditions. This large-scale pattern was based on analyses that pre- dated the overexploitation-driven stock abundance declines and collapses of the 1990s. We used a sliding window analysis to examine the temporal trajectories of the e-folding decorrelation scales of synchrony of both bottom temperature and de-trended cod recruitment for the Northwest Atlantic from 1950 to 2006. The characteristic scale of temperature synchrony rose from roughly 400 km to 800 km in the 1990s. Rather than mirror changes in temperature as expected, the scale of cod recruit- ment synchrony declined in the 1990s from roughly 500 km to 250 km, coincident with the severe declines in abundance. Dispersal between populations, another mechanism that generates synchro- nous population dynamics, may have been an overlooked contributor to recruitment synchrony documented in earlier analyses. Cod are highly mobile, and it has been suggested that they are struc- tured as metapopulations. Over-exploitation may have interrupted these dispersal patterns and the associated metapopulation structure, thereby reducing synchrony. If so, dispersal from the most productive of the remaining populations may be an avenue for future recovery.
OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE AND CORPORATE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE IN BAHRAIN BOURSE

The study aimed at investigating the relation between different types of ownership structures and corporate financial performance. The study sample was 42 companies from all sectors listed in Bahrain Bourse in the period of 2007-2011. Different dimensions of ownership structure were put under scope and two different measurements of financial performance were used (Tobin’s Q and ROA) evaluate the different results from using each one of them, which will help in justifying the conflicting results found by previous studies. Another objective of this study was to explore the patterns of ownership structure found in Bahraini market. It was found that institutional ownership is the most common type of ownership in Bahrain Bourse. The study’s results were conflicting regarding the effect of ownership structure on financial performance using both measurements of performance. It was also found that ROA represents financial performance more that T’Q.
Methodological aspects of the validation of decadal predictions

Validation techniques based on past performance are well-established in seasonal forecasting. So far there is no consensus on the degree to which these are applicable to decadal predictions. We contribute to this discussion by assessing the effects of drift-correction, cross-val- idation and de-trending. The study employs decadal hindcasts of 2 m temperature from the EU FP6 ENSEMBLES project database and a synthetic toy model. Decadal predictions can be subject to substantial lead-time dependent model drifts. The conventional drift-correction method has a considerable sampling uncertainty, amounting to up to 40% of the potentially predictable signal. Introducing a smooth drift curve allows this uncertainty to be reduced by about 30% for annual values. For drift-corrected decadal predictions the leave-one-out cross-validation procedure may lead to biased skill estimates for decadal prediction due to the small number of hindcasts avail- able. We identify this effect and show that 'jackknifing' represents a suitable technique for esti- mating potential skill without bias and to estimate sampling uncertainty. Results indicate signifi- cant correlation skill on the order of 0.7 to 0.9 for predicting global annual mean temperature on all lead-times. If linear trends are removed prior to verification, skill is still clearly above 0 in the first year for global mean temperature. On a local scale, some specific regions exhibit skill addi- tional to the trend even at longer lead times. With the limited dataset analyzed here, the strong sampling uncertainty still prohibits drawing a final conclusion, by means of verification, on whether or not decadal predictions have skill in predicting climate variability beyond the trend.
Effect of Nanocapsule Level on Broiler Performance and Fat Deposition

This research investigated the effects of levels turmeric extract nanocapsule or nanoparticle (NP) in ration on broiler performance and fat deposition. Seventy-two Lohmann broilers chicks were randomly divided into 6 treatments with 3 replications, each complied 4 broilers. Six treatments were Basal ration+bacitracin 50 ppm (T0), Basal-Ration/BR (T1), BR+nanocapsule 0.2% (T2), BR+nanocapsule 0.4% (T3), BR+nanocapsule 0.6% (T4), BR+nanocapsule 0.8% (T5). The analyzed variables covered production performances (feed consumption, weight gain, feed conversion ratio (FCR), carcass weight), fats deposition (abdominal fat, subcutaneous fat, EPA, DHA, total cholesterol). The data were subject to one way ANOVA analysis followed by Duncan test in case of significant effect. Results showed that the nanocapsule levels significantly (p 0.05) effects on feed consumption, FCR and carcass weight. Accordingly, 0.4% turmeric extract nanocapsule, equal to 50 ppm bacitracin, was a compatible feed additive for broiler chicken ration to improve the meat quality of DHAenriched and least-subcutaneous fat without negatively affecting performance.
AdvAnces in signAl Processing for globAl nAvigAtion sAtellite systems

Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) technology is nowadays ubiquitous in many transversal infrastructures and is of paramount importance in all applications where precise position, navigation, and timing (PNT) of user equipment is required. GNSS is the pervasive PNT technology in outdoor environments, where its performance, coverage, and reliability exceed other technical solutions. Nevertheless, challenges and vulnerabilities exist in the use of GNSS, particularly in challenging scenarios where signal propagation is either naturally impaired (for instance, due to multipath-rich channels, ionospheric scintillation, or urban canyons) or intentionally degraded (for instance, when jamming devices are in place or in case of spoofing attacks, where a malicious user tries to deceive the receiver by forging legitimate-like signals). In these situations, signal processing techniques appear extremely useful.
TEACHER INDUCTION IN CATHOLIC SCHOOLS

The purpose of this study was to examine the induction process for beginning teachers in Catholic schools. Data were collected from 100 teachers using a survey that addressed teachers’ level of confidence in the pedagogical, religious, and managerial dimensions of teaching. The results of the study indicated that the induction experiences of beginning teachers in Catholic schools were similar to those of beginning teachers elsewhere. However, there is a need for the development and implementation of a systematic process of teacher induction that consciously meets the needs in the religious dimension for beginning teachers.
The efficacies of trance-possession ritual performances in contemporary Thai Theravada Buddhism

2 Lists of illustrations 10 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 13 Introduction 15 Structure of the thesis . 16 Chapter 1: Research and its contexts. 18 An overview of the rituals of Parn Yak and sak yant . 18 Research objectives . 19 The objectives of the study are: . 21 The key research questions are: . 21 A Theoretical context . 21 Constructing the definition of ‘ritual’ . 23 Ritual and performance . 25 The term ‘ritual’ in Thai worldview and in this research . 29 On the issue of efficacy . 31 Previous studies on Thai rituals . 38 The problematic nature of research: Controversies over rituals and research into them . 43 The fieldwork . 45 Notes on the fieldwork . 48 My position in the field study . 49 4 Challenges of conducting the fieldwork and limitations of the findings . 52 The examples of ethnographic experiences of Parn Yak and sak yant . 56 Wat Noinai Temple, Nonthaburi . 56 The tradition and practices of sak yant . 61 Wat Bang Phra Temple . 61 The notion of ‘tradition’ and ‘authenticity’ in Thai contemporary ritual . 64 Formulation, modification and change. 65 Tradition and authenticity . 67 Relevant terms . 76 Trance-possession . 76 Therapeutic . 84 A Theoretical Framework . 85 Bodymind . 88 Body as an active experiential site for transformation . 90 Body as ‘being-in-the-world’ . 92 The interpretation of the world . 94 Experiencing is believing . 96 Now is the knowing: being and becoming here and now. 98 ‘In-betweeness’ of performance . 103 The uses of the term ‘liminality’ . 104 Bewilderment: an in-between state in applied drama . 107 Applied drama’s notion of a facilitator. 111