Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Analysis of Gender–Water Nexus in Rural Bangladesh

This article presents a comprehensive analysis of the gender–water nexus in rural Bangladesh based on extensive field survey, focus group discussion, and interview with key informants, all carried out at seven study locations across Bangladesh. It presents the findings in four key areas: household water management, health and well-being, irrigation water management, and water related vulnerability. It has been observed that water for household use is collected by women and children, who face an array of physical, psychological and social problems. How water is collected depends on income/social class, location of water source, time of the day, and religious/cultural factors. The time spent for water collection imposes significant opportunity costs as loss of income and education opportunities. Tube well water is widely used for drinking, but pond and river water is extensively used for other purposes.This, along with the lack of sanitation, causes frequent outbreak of water-borne diseases. Improper storage of water, poorly maintained tube wells, and arsenic in shallow wells pose additional threats to health. Women in arsenic affected areas face excommunication if detected with arsenicosis; in coastal areas women are forced to fry collection under very unhealthy and unsafe conditions.These difficulties are exacerbated during natural disasters such as floods and droughts. Presently, there is very little participation of women in agricultural water management as ‘right to water’ is perceived as linked with ‘right to land’, over which women have little control. These hardships and deprivations are fundamentally caused by the lack of a number of factors: awareness, education, access to resources, empowerment, and institutional support. This article suggests a range of policy interventions to address these issues.
EUCAST definitive document EDef 7.1: method for the determination of broth dilution MICs of antifungal agents for fermentative yeasts.

Antifungal susceptibility tests are performed on fungi that cause disease, especially if they belong to a species exhibiting resistance to commonly used antifungal agents. Antifungal susceptibility testing is also important for resistance surveillance, for epidemiological studies and for comparing the in-vitro activity of new and existing agents. Dilution methods are used to establish the MICs of antimicrobial agents. These are the reference methods for antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and are used mainly to establish the activity of a new antifungal agent, to confirm the susceptibility of organisms that give equivocal results in routine tests, and to determine the susceptibility of fungi where routine dilution tests may be unreliable. Fungi are tested for their ability to produce visible growth in microdilution plate wells containing broth culture media and serial dilutions of the antifungal agents (broth microdilution). The MIC is defined as the lowest concentration (in mg ⁄ L) of an antifungal agent that inhibits the growth of a fungus. The MIC provides information concerning the susceptibility or resistance of an organism to the antifungal agent and can help in making correct treatment decisions. The method described in this document is intended for testing the susceptibility of yeasts that cause clinically significant infections (primarily Candida spp.). The method encompasses only those yeasts that are able to ferment glucose. Thus, the susceptibility of non-fermentative yeasts, e.g., Cryptococcus neoformans, cannot be determined by the current procedure, and the method is not suitable for testing the yeast forms of dimorphic fungi.
Parametric amplification of metric fluctuations through a bouncing phase

We clarify the properties of the behavior of classical cosmological perturbations when the Universe experiences a bounce. This is done in the simplest possible case for which gravity is described by general relativity and the matter content has a single component, namely a scalar field in a closed geometry. We show in particular that the spectrum of scalar perturbations can be affected by the bounce in a way that may depend on the wave number, even in the large scale limit. This may have important implications for string motivated models of the early Universe.
How much is it? Price representation practices in retail markets

This article explores the notion of price representation, the various ways in which prices are made available to market participants, an important aspect of contemporary markets that has been relatively neglected in previous research. Specifically, the article uses the representation of prices in contemporary retail markets as a backdrop for theorizing about the role of price representations. We propose a number of conceptual relations between price representations, prices and the practices of producing them. We further elaborate on what price representations represent by relating their generation to the process of qualifying goods. We conclude by relating our conceptual discussion to existing research, drawing out implications for future research on prices and pricing, for theorizing about markets and for marketing strategy.
Agrobacterium-Mediated Transformation of Aspergillus awamori in the Absence of Full-Length VirD2, VirC2, or VirE2 Leads to Insertion of Aberrant T-DNA Structures

ABSTRACT Reductions to 2, 5, and 42% of the wild-type transformation efficiency were found when Agrobacterium mutants carrying transposon insertions in virD2, virC2, and virE2, respectively, were used to transform Aspergillus awamori. The structures of the T-DNAs integrated into the host genome by these mutants were analyzed by Southern and sequence analyses. The T-DNAs of transformants obtained with the virE2 mutant had left-border truncations, whereas those obtained with the virD2 mutant had truncated right ends. From this analysis, it was concluded that the virulence proteins VirD2 and VirE2 are required for full-length T-DNA integration and that these proteins play a role in protecting the right and left T-DNA borders, respectively. Multicopy and truncated T-DNA structures were detected in the majority of the transformants obtained with the virC2 mutant, indicating that VirC2 plays a role in correct T-DNA processing and is required for single-copy T-DNA integration.
Remittances, Foreign Direct Investment and Aid in Fragile States: Are They Complements or Substitutes?

The idea according to which capital flow may be complements and/or substitutes is nowadays a recurrent theme both within academia and among international donors. However, little attention has been devoted to this issue in the specific case of fragile states. The main contribution of this paper is to fulfill this gap while testing whether remittances, foreign direct investment (FDI) and foreign aid are complements or substitutes in fragile states. We then use a cross-country panel data of 33 fragile states and an instrumental variable methodology, namely three stages least square. The results indicate that, foreign aid is complement for both remittances and foreign direct investment. However this effect partially vanishes after a certain level of GDP per capita. In our case, the threshold effect arise when the level of GDP per capita equal 305 USD for the whole sample of fragile states and 260 USD for Sub-Saharan fragile states. These results suggest that as far as foreign aid is complement for both remittances and foreign direct investment, an optimal policy in the case of fragile states should rely on the increase of foreign aid which can lead to the increase of remittances and foreign direct investments. Besides, the obtained results also show that economic growth can not be the end of AID.
ARE KENYAN SMALL-HOLDERS ALLOCATIVELY EFFICIENT? EVIDENCE FROM POTATO PRODUCERS IN NYANDARUA NORTH DISTRICT

Irish potato production in Kenya has been on the decline, yet this crop is a major staple and a source of cash from sales. Using a random sample of 127 smallholder farmers in Nyandarua North district this paper applied a dual stochastic efficiency decomposition technique and a two - limit Tobit model, after disaggregating economic efficiency components using a dual stochastic frontier function, to analyze resource allocative efficiency in Irish potato production. This is in view of the unclear determinants of declining potato production trends in Kenya and considering that the Irish potato is a major staple and cash crop. The paper establishes that Irish potato production in Nyandarua North district is characterized by decreasing returns to scale with a mean allocative efficiency of 0.57. It was further established that farming experience, access to extension and credit, and membership in a farmers’ association positively and significantly influenced allocative efficiency. Implications of the study results are drawn. Key words:
Views of the Village: Parents' Perceptions of their Neighbourhoods

Parental views of their neighbourhoods can influence many decisions they make, including their choice of where to live and the extent to which children play outside. An understanding of the factors that are associated with parents' perceptions of neighbourhood facilities and a sense of belonging is important to create better policies to promote better child and family functioning. This article addresses the following questions of relevance to policymakers: Do parental perceptions of neighbourhood facilities and their sense of belonging differ according to the ages of the children? How similar are the perceptions of neighbourhood facilities and sense of belonging of parents living in the same neighbourhood? What features of the neighbourhood are associated with parental perceptions of neighbourhood facilities and belonging?
Socioeconomic factors influencing customary marine tenure in the Indo-Pacific

For generations communities in the Western Pacific have employed a range of resource management techniques (including periodic reef closures, gear restrictions, entry limitations, and the protection of spawning aggregations) to limit marine resource use. Localized control over marine resources, commonly known as customary marine tenure (CMT), is the legal and cultural foundation for many of these practices. Because of their perceived potential to meet both conservation and community goals, these traditional resource management techniques are being revitalized by communities, governments, and NGOs as an integral part of national and regional marine conservation plans in the Pacific. However, the viability of conservation strategies built on a foundation of marine tenure may be in question, as it remains unclear whether marine tenure systems will be able to withstand the profound social and economic changes sweeping the Pacific region. Numerous studies have suggested that changes in marine tenure are attributed to social and economic factors, however, specific relationships between socioeconomic conditions and marine tenure are still not well understood. This paper examines the social and economic characteristics of 21 coastal communities in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, and explores the characteristics of the communities that employ exclusive marine tenure to answer the following questions: Which socioeconomic factors are related to the presence of CMT regimes? How might socioeconomic factors influence the ability of communities to employ or maintain CMT regimes? Distance to market, immigration, dependence on fishing, and conflicts were found to be related to the presence of highly exclusive marine tenure systems. Exploring these relationships will help conservation practitioners better understand how future social changes may influence the foundation of conservation and development projects.
WE-E-18A-01: Large Area Avalanche Amorphous Selenium Sensors for Low Dose X-Ray Imaging.

PURPOSE A large area indirect flat panel imager (FPI) with avalanche gain is being developed to achieve x-ray quantum noise limited low dose imaging. It uses a thin optical sensing layer of amorphous selenium (a-Se), known as High-Gain Avalanche Rushing Photoconductor (HARP), to detect optical photons generated from a high resolution x-ray scintillator. We will report initial results in the fabrication of a solid-state HARP structure suitable for a large area FPI. Our objective is to establish the blocking layer structures and defect suppression mechanisms that provide stable and uniform avalanche gain. METHODS Samples were fabricated as follows: (1) ITO signal electrode. (2) Electron blocking layer. (3) A 15 micron layer of intrinsic a-Se. (4) Transparent hole blocking layer. (5) Multiple semitransparent bias electrodes to investigate avalanche gain uniformity over a large area. The sample was exposed to 50ps optical excitation pulses through the bias electrode. Transient time of flight (TOF) and integrated charge was measured. A charge transport simulation was developed to investigate the effects of varying blocking layer charge carrier mobility on defect suppression, avalanche gain and temporal performance. RESULTS Avalanche gain of ∼200 was achieved experimentally with our multi-layer HARP samples. Simulations using the experimental sensor structure produced the same magnitude of gain as a function of electric field. The simulation predicted that the high dark current at a point defect can be reduced by two orders of magnitude by blocking layer optimization which can prevent irreversible damage while normal operation remained unaffected. CONCLUSION We presented the first solid state HARP structure directly scalable to a large area FPI. We have shown reproducible and uniform avalanche gain of 200. By reducing mobility of the blocking layers we can suppress defects and maintain stable avalanche. Future work will optimize the blocking layers to prevent lag and ghosting.
The effect of continuing education participation on outcomes of male and female agricultural workers in the USA

Job training and employment assistance programs aim to assist migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their dependents locate steady employment and develop job skills. This study investigates effects of educational programs on wages, annual time allocations, and poverty of male and female farmworkers and their families using regression analysis in comparison to propensity score matching. Continuing education participation is found to be associated with higher wages, though variation across program types is large and magnitudes across genders matter. Program participation is positively related to work weeks, and negatively related to weeks abroad and to poverty incidence.
Evaluation of the impacts of climate change on disease vectors through ecological niche modelling

Abstract Vector-borne diseases are exceptionally sensitive to climate change. Predicting vector occurrence in specific regions is a challenge that disease control programs must meet in order to plan and execute control interventions and climate change adaptation measures. Recently, an increasing number of scientific articles have applied ecological niche modelling (ENM) to study medically important insects and ticks. With a myriad of available methods, it is challenging to interpret their results. Here we review the future projections of disease vectors produced by ENM, and assess their trends and limitations. Tropical regions are currently occupied by many vector species; but future projections indicate poleward expansions of suitable climates for their occurrence and, therefore, entomological surveillance must be continuously done in areas projected to become suitable. The most commonly applied methods were the maximum entropy algorithm, generalized linear models, the genetic algorithm for rule set prediction, and discriminant analysis. Lack of consideration of the full-known current distribution of the target species on models with future projections has led to questionable predictions. We conclude that there is no ideal ‘gold standard’ method to model vector distributions; researchers are encouraged to test different methods for the same data. Such practice is becoming common in the field of ENM, but still lags behind in studies of disease vectors.
The Australian Business Cycle: A Coincident Indicator Approach

This paper constructs coincident indices of Australian economic activity using techniques for estimating approximate factor models with many series, using data that begin in the early 1960s. The resulting monthly and quarterly indices both provide plausible measures of the Australian business cycle. The indices are quite robust to the selection of variables used in their construction, the sample period used in estimation, and the number of factors included. Notably, only a small number of factors is needed to adequately capture the business cycle. The coincident indices provide a much smoother representation of the cycle in economic activity than do standard national accounts measures, especially in the period prior to the early 1980s. Accordingly, they suggest that the marked decline in volatility evident in quarterly Australian GDP growth that occurred up to the 1980s may overstate the reduction in the volatility of economic activity and may at least partially reflect improvements in the measurement of GDP. Because the coincident indices present a smoother perspective of the business cycle in the 1960s and 1970s, they identify fewer recessions in this period than does GDP. Over the past 45 years, the coincident indices locate three recessions – periods when there was a widespread downturn in economic activity; in 1974–1975, 1982–1983 and 1990–1991.
Decreased fecundity among male lead workers

Aims: To investigate time to pregnancy (TTP) in male lead workers in order to determine the dose-response relation between blood lead and decreased fecundity. Methods: A total of 163 currently employed married male lead battery workers were classified into five categories of exposure based on questionnaire information and annual individual blood lead measurement. Information pertaining to the TTP was collected using personal interviews with 133 men and their spouses, with 280 valid pregnancies. The fecundability ratios (FRs) were calculated with the Cox discrete proportional hazard regression technique to evaluate the effects of lead exposure. Results: After other factors associated with TTP were controlled for, there was a dose-response relation between blood lead level and TTP. The measured FRs were 0.90 (95% CI 0.61 to 1.34), 0.72 (0.46 to 1.11), 0.52 (0.35 to 0.77), and 0.40 (0.27 to 0.59) for concurrent blood lead levels of <20, 20–29, 30–39, and ⩾40 μg/dl, respectively. Paired self comparison was also performed for 41 couples that had pregnancies prior to lead exposure and pregnancies with male occupational lead exposure. The TTP was prolonged for 0.15 cycles by a 1 μg/dl increase in blood lead. Conclusions: These results corroborate the hypothesis that a raised blood lead level affects fecundity. A blood lead level of less than 40 μg/dl may still significantly prolong TTP.
Democratization and Changes in the Pattern of Association in Brazil

This article aims to introduce the societal variable into the debate between delegative democracy and democratic consolidation in Latin America. It presents the results of empirical research on voluntary associations in Brazil showing that there has been a significant process of renewal at the civic level in the country. Also that the potential of this movement has not been adequately incorporated by either of the two major theories of Latin American democratization. In addition the article considers existing literature on the relationship between associations and democracy that suggests that Latin America lacks a propensity for association. This is followed by a discussion of the associative drive in Brazil showing that it has not been adequately subsumed either by theories of democratization or by theories which emphasize the Iberian cultural tradition. Brazilian society has an emerging strong drive for autonomy at the civic level and democratic practices at the societal level thus proposing an alternative to the existing debate between the supporters of consolidation and delegation.
The impact of entrepreneurs' oral ‘pitch’ presentation skills on business angels' initial screening investment decisions

This study adds new insights to the growing body of research showing that entrepreneurs' communication skills and personal attributes influence investor decision making. Twenty-four business angels attending a UK investor forum completed questionnaires evaluating 32 ‘presentational’ and ‘non-presentational’ aspects of three entrepreneurs' oral pitch presentations. The business angels' level of investor interest was significantly related to their evaluations of the quality and content of the entrepreneurs' presentations: the higher an entrepreneur's overall presentation score, the greater the likelihood that the business angels would be interested in pursuing that investment opportunity. Presentational factors (relating to the entrepreneurs' style of delivery, etc.) tended to have the highest influence on the overall score an entrepreneur received as well as on business angels' level of investment interest. However, the business angels appeared to be unaware of (or were reluctant to acknowledge) the influence presentational factors had on their investment-related decisions: the stated reasons for their post-presentation intentions were focused firmly on substance-oriented non-presentational criteria (company, market, product, funding/finance issues, etc.). More generally, comments about the entrepreneurs' presentations centred on presentational issues relating to clarity/understandability and structure, the level of information provided, the entrepreneurs' personal characteristics, and their ability to sell themselves and their investment opportunity.
Recent advances in understanding norovirus pathogenesis

Noroviruses constitute a family of ubiquitous and highly efficient human pathogens. In spite of decades of dedicated research, human noroviruses remain a major cause of gastroenteritis and severe diarrheal disease around the world. Recent findings have begun to unravel the complex mechanisms that regulate norovirus pathogenesis and persistent infection, including the important interplay between the virus, the host immune system, and commensal bacteria. Herein, we will summarize recent research developments regarding norovirus cell tropism, the use of M cells, and commensal bacteria to facilitate norovirus infection, and virus, host, and bacterial determinants of persistent norovirus infections. J. Med. Virol. 88:1837–1843, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Preservice Teachers' Knowledge of Effective Classroom Management Strategies: Underachieving Students.

The present study is part of a systematic program evaluation effort. Student teachers at a southern rural public university were asked to generate classroom management strategies in response to hypothetical vignettes depicting underachieving/alienated behavior. The extended responses were coded to identify strategies that student teachers would and would not use to manage students' underachieving/alienated behavior in the classroom. A majority of student teachers' responses focused on talking to the students, involving parents, reinforcing appropriate behavior, and rearranging the classroom. Strategies considered ineffective included confronting the student in front of the class, yelling at the student, lecturing the student, or punishing the student. (Contains 21 references.) (Author/SM) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Preservice 1 co Running head: PRESERVICE Preservice Teachers' Knowledge of Effective Classroom Management Strategies: Underachieving Students Lorna J. Lacina-Gifford Neelam Kher, and Kyesha Besant Northwestern State University (LA) Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago, Illinois, April 21-25, 2003. 1 PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY