Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
When in Need of Empowerment : A Study of the Relationship between Leadership and Employees’ Empowerment

Empowerment has received much attention in the management literature over the last decades. How can leaders foster employees’ feelings of empowerment? This dissertation uses an integrative approach to empowerment – which includes both structural and psychological empowerment – in order to explore how leaders can promote empowerment. Furthermore, when examining the relationship between leadership and empowerment, it focuses on two leadership approaches: transactional leadership and transformational leadership. In terms of empowerment initiatives, these two approaches are argued to have different strengths, and should be viewed as complementary. When wanting to foster employees’ feelings of empowerment, leaders should focus on four aspects that combine structural and psychological empowerment: a clear vision and challenge, openness and teamwork, discipline and control, and support and a sense of security. These will be enhanced further if leaders also emphasis the following three factors: the flow of information, the leader’s empowerment and individual consideration. Furthermore, this dissertation emphasises that empowerment is more complex than commonly presumed, that different people will have different needs when it comes to empowerment, and that there is no quick fix when leaders want to empower their employees.
Ultra-fast time gated images of a high pressure spray

An ultra-fast time-gated shadowgraph technique applied to high pressure spray visualization is presented. The spatial resolution limitation of the technique is discussed and a two color ballistic imaging set-up is proposed to improve it, with respect to a single color set-up. An unexpected elongation of the time gate in this configuration is identified, explained and solved.
The Biasing Effects of Unmodeled ARMA Time Series Processes on Latent Growth Curve Model Estimates

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the robustness of estimated growth curve models when there is stationary autocorrelation among manifest variable errors. The results suggest that when, in practice, growth curve models are fitted to longitudinal data, alternative rival hypotheses to consider would include growth models that also specify autoregressive (AR), moving average (MA), and autoregressive moving average (ARMA) processes. AR (i.e., simplex) processes are commonly found in longitudinal data and may diminish the ability of a researcher to detect growth if not explicitly modeled. MA and ARMA processes do not affect the fit of growth models, but do notably bias some of the parameters.
The Role of IPO Underwriting Syndicates: Pricing, Information Production, and Underwriter Competition

We examine syndicates for 1,638 IPOs from January 1997 through June 2002. We find strong evidence of information production by syndicate members. Offer prices are more likely to be revised in response to information when the syndicate has more underwriters and especially more co-managers. More co-managers also result in more analyst coverage and additional market makers following the IPO. Relationships between underwriters are critical in determining the composition of syndicates, perhaps because they mitigate free-riding and moral hazard problems. While there appear to be benefits to larger syndicates, we discuss several factors that may limit syndicate size. Copyright 2005 by The American Finance Association.
Pharmacodynamic Identification of Antiseizure Effect of Ligustrosid glycoside (A CNS Active Substance) Isolated from Fraxinus Griffithii Clarke on Mice

A study was conducted to prove whether Ligustrosid (A CNS Active substance) isolated from bark of Fraxinus griffithii Clarke has antiseizure effects. Antiseizure test showed that Ligustrosid increased seizure treshold on epileptic animals injected by CD 90 Metrazol i.p. (ED 50 Anti Met 278.54 mg/kg BW), and prevented seizure spread (ED 50 Anti M.E.S 431.61 mg/kg BW). Furthermore, these experiment reported that Ligustrosid decreased Metrazol lethality test on animals. The capability of Ligustrosid to increase the seizure treshold against Anti Metrazol test meant that Ligustrosid clinically would be active against absence seizures and myoclonic seizures. It is strongly supposed that Ligustrosid may has antiseizure effects by increasing GABA- facilitated inhibition in CNS through interaction with Benzodiazepine receptor of GABA-BZD-BARB/PICRO-CL receptor complexes. The capability of Ligustrosid to prevent seizure spread against Anti M.E. S test meant that Ligustrosid clinically would be active against generalized tonic clonic seizures and partial seizures. It is strongly supposed that ligustrosid may has antiseizure effects by stabilizing membrane through interaction with Sodium channel receptors. Further research will be needed to explore antiseizure mechanisms of Ligustrosid
The Determinants of Customer Loyalty for Telecommunication Provider

Telecommunication has become an inseparable element in human life. As the advancement of technology, the numbers of service provider have risen in order to support a better telecommunication. To retain its customers, certainly the telecommunication provider should have loyal customers. Three variables have been chosen to determine the customer loyalty, namely service quality, customer satisfaction, and switching costs. This study proves that service quality has a positive influence on loyalty through intermediary from customer satisfaction. It is also found that switching cost also has a positive influence on loyalty. Telkomsel suggested to create attractive programs to maintaining service quality, customer satisfaction and switching cost for its customers. These efforts are attempts to build customer loyalty.
Approaches to bioremediation of fossil fuel contaminated soil: An overview

A reliance on fossil fuels as a source of energy has resulted in the generation of pollutants which have entered the environment. Health of humans, animals, plants and microorganisms has been compromised due to activities linked to fossil fuel extraction, processing and use. Coal conversion to value added products has been investigated in an effort to reduce the cumulative effects of waste generated during mining. Clean coal technology, developed to convert coal into value added products with reduced pollution, has been a major source of liquid petroleum in South Africa. Although the conversion process, neither generates waste nor pollutes the soil environment, the final products either through accidental or deliberate spillage can have a severe and protracted impact. Biological methods for combating pollutants generated within the fossil fuels sector are preferred to mechanical or physicochemical practices. This is due to the production of non- or less toxic by-products, cost effectiveness and safety. In this manuscript, an overview of the approaches adopted and factors influencing microbial metabolism of fossil fuel contaminants in soil and water bodies is presented. In particular, emphasis is placed on bacteria as biocatalysts of choice and their ability to degrade waste coal and liquid petroleum hydrocarbons. Keywords: Fossil fuels, coal, petroleum hydrocarbons, biodegradation, pollutants African Journal of Biotechnology , Vol 13(26) 2593-2607
Comovement after Joining an Index: Spillovers of Nonfundamental Effects

This study considers the case of two overlapping categories in the context of recent category models. Specifically, we examine whether investor sentiment and market frictions specific to one category can affect the returns on assets belonging to the other category. With recent additions of several real estate investment trusts (REITs) into general stock market indices as a natural experiment, we find support for spillovers of such nonfundamental effects, as evidenced by the increased return correlation between REITs that remain outside the index and the index stocks. Further analysis reveals that market frictions play a greater role than investor sentiment.
Influence of surface crust on water infiltration rates measured by a rotating-boom rainfall simulator and a double-cylinder device

Soil water infiltration rate, together with rainfall rates determine runoff rates, being an important parameter for erosion estimation and soil conservation studies. Measurement of infiltration rates can be performed using a double-cylinder device (CD) or a rotating-boom rainfall simulator (RS). The use of CD is less laborious in comparison with RS instruments, but results often do not agree with rates occurring in real rainfall situations, possibly due to surface crust formation. Crust formation depends both on factors that do not depend on soil management, such as rainfall intensity and soil texture and on factors that do depend on soil management, mainly soil strength and crop residue cover. In situations where crust formation is likely to occur, infiltration rates measured by CD will probably overestimate real infiltration rates occurring during rainfall events. To verify if there is a correlation between soil management and the ratio between infiltration rates determined using RS and CD, infiltration rates were measured by both methods on two Ultisols in southern Brazil. Plot treatments differed in crop residue cover and removal or not of preexisting crust. RS measurements were made using a rotating-boom rainfall simulator with a Veejet 80100 nozzle over 3.5 x 11.0 m plots, generating a rainfall intensity of 64.2 mm h-1 during 100 to 150 minutes. Plots were bordered by steel plates and runoff was collected at the lower border for 3 seconds every 3 minutes. The CD was composed of an inner and an outer cylinder (diameter 0.30 m and 0.60 m, respectively), driven into the soil to a depth of 0.10 m, shortly before RS determinations. The area inside the cylinders was flooded and infiltration rates within the inner cylinder were registered at regular time intervals, making three replicates per plot. Results showed CD measured final infiltration rates to be five to tenfold greater than RS. CD measurements are closer to RS measurements when soil cover is present. Instant infiltration rates are more similar when no preexisting surface crust exists. These results show that infiltration rates determined by CD and RS cannot be used in soil conservation studies without correction and that correction factors should consider management conditions, especially those related to soil crust existence and formation, and presence of residue cover.
Waterbird population estimates for a key staging site in Kazakhstan: a contribution to wetland conservation on the Central Asian flyway

Summary Realistic population size estimates for waterbirds are crucial for the application of wetland conservation strategies, since the identification of internationally important wetlands is based on local numbers relative to the population size of the respective species. Central Asia is a poorly surveyed region that is situated at the intersection of migration routes that lead waterbirds from Western Siberia to the south-west (South-West Asia, East Africa) and to the south-east (South Asia, India). We calculated waterbird population estimates for the Tengiz–Korgalzhyn region, a large wetland complex in the steppe zone of Central Kazakhstan, based on waterbird surveys conducted between 1999 and 2004. For 20 of 43 species analysed the region supported more than 5% of the relevant flyway populations. Five species occurred with more than 40% of the flyway totals, including the Endangered White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala and the Vulnerable Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus. Peak numbers were recorded in summer and autumn and for most species numbers were more than an order of magnitude lower on spring migration compared with autumn migration. We identified 72 individual sites that held more than 20,000 waterbirds or more than 1% of a particular flyway population at least once. These sites are likely to constitute priorities for conservation. The general conservation status of the region is favourable, since many of the important sites are located within a strict nature reserve. However, outside the reserve hunting, fishing and powerline casualties represent conservation issues that should be monitored more carefully in the future.
Ownership Concentration, Dividend Payout and Firm Performance: The Case of Malaysia

This study examines how ownership concentration affects dividend payout, and ultimately firm performance. Regression analyses are performed on a dataset spanning 11 years (2005-2015) among Malaysian publicly listed firms. The results show that shareholders with concentrated ownership play an important role in determining dividend payout and driving firm performance. Specifically, ownership concentration is associated with low dividend payout, but it improves firm performance. Overall, this study suggests that ownership concentration may also be an effective monitoring mechanism.
Nasal tip ptosis and some of its causes in patients who referred for rhinoplasty

Introduction:Nasal tip ptosis or droopy nose tip is a fairly common nasal deformity. Given the importance of correcting nose tip in rhinoplasty and the need to diagnose the causes of tip ptosis.Aims:The current study was performed aimed to investigate the frequency of the causes of this deformity in rhinoplasty candidates.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, 257 patients (205 women and 52 men; mean age: 26.6 ± 1.7 years old) who came to Amiralmomenin Teaching Hospital of Rasht for rhinoplasty in 2011- 2012 were selected by simple sampling method. The contributing factors that led to tip ptosis were diagnosed and recorded based on the results of preoperative and the intraoperative clinical observations.Results:In this study, 44% (113 patients) of the patients had tip ptosis. Statistically, no significant difference was observed between the incidence of tip ptosis in men and women (p=0.504). The prevalence of tip ptosis among patients older than 40 years old was significantly greater (p=0.039). Based on the results of preoperative and intraoperative observations, long caudal septum was the most important cause of tip ptosis. The most common coordination between the causes of tip ptosis in preoperative and intraoperative observations was the thick skin of nose lobules.Conclusion:It seems that nasal tip ptosis is common in our rhinoplasty subjects, and there is only a partial correlation between the mentioned causes of tip ptosis in preoperative and intraoperative assessments, hence more consideration is required for a precise diagnosis of tip ptosis.
Do BVAR Models Forecast Turkish GDP Better Than UVAR Models

Forecasting gross domestic product (GDP) is crucial for developing macroeconomic policies and managements. Vector autoregression models are one of the commonly used multivariate time series models for forecasting. The Bayesian vector autoregression models are used to avoid problems of multicollinearity and over parameterization that occur in general with the use of vector autoregression models. The aim of this paper is to forecast Turkish GDP using Bayesian vector autoregression models with quarterly data from 2005q4 to 2013q3 and compare the results with unrestricted vector auto regression models. The out-of-sample forecasting accuracy of these models are compared with unrestricted vector autoregression models. The results confirm the accuracy of Bayesian vector auto regression models for forecasting GDP. On the other hand unrestricted vector autoregressionmodels are most accurate for exchange rates except the first quarter and for interest rate in the first two quarter forecasts.
A thermal logic device based on fluid-solid interfaces

Thermal rectification requires that thermal conductivity not be a separable function of position and temperature. Investigators have considered inhomogeneous solids to design thermal rectifiers but manipulations of solid lattices are energy intensive. We propose a thermal logic device based on asymmetric solid-fluid resistances that couples two fluid reservoirs separated by solid-fluid interfaces. It is the thermal analog of a three terminal transistor, the hot reservoir being the emitter, the cold reservoir the output, and smaller input reservoirs as the base. Changing the input temperature alters the transport factor and the flux gain as does the base current in a transistor.
Behavioural mechanisms underlying functional response of sea stars Asterias vulgaris preying on juvenile sea scallops Placopecten magellanicus

The functional response characterises the relationship between prey density and the consumption rate of individual predators. Typically, it is studied by fitting a model to observations of predation rate at different prey densities. The behavioural mechanisms underlying a functional response are not well understood, and estimates of model parameters seldom conform to observations of behaviour. We have developed a mechanistic approach that directly incorporates behavioural observations into characterisation of the functional response. Laboratory experiments were used to record predation rates and observe foraging behaviour of sea stars Asterias vulgaris preying on juve- nile sea scallops Placopecten magellanicus at different densities. Experiments were conducted in tanks with no sediment and tanks with sediment. Behavioural data from the experiments were used to calculate parameters of functional response models Th (handling time per prey) and a (rate of suc- cessful search). On both substrates, Th remained constant across prey density, while a was density- dependent. An inverse quadratic was used to describe a and was incorporated into a functional response model. Estimates of a were also obtained by fitting the functional response model to the pre- dation rate data using regression analysis. These estimates of a were highly consistent with the esti- mates calculated from behavioural data. On both substrates, sea stars preying on scallops had a Type III sigmoid-shaped functional response; on sediment, predation rate decreased at high prey densities. Sea star ability to capture attacked prey was probably the mechanism underlying the observed responses. In general, behavioural information can lead to better understanding of observed func- tional responses.
Intention to Use Social Networking Sites: Impact of Personal Innovativeness

Este estudo investiga empiricamente o impacto da inovacao pessoal na intencao de usar ( IU ) sites de redes sociais (SNS ). A perspectiva teorica do Modelo de Aceitacao Tecnologica (TAM) e a vontade pessoal de utilizar Tecnologia de Informacao Inovadora (PIIT) foram utilizadas para explicar as relacoes desenvolvidas no estudo. A pesquisa e de natureza descritiva e baseia-se em dados primarios coletados atraves de um questionario auto-administrado, utilizando uma amostra de 216 estudantes de graduacao no Sri Lanka. Os resultados confirmaram as relacoes no TAM original, permitindo usar a TAM no contexto SNS. Alem disso, mostrou que o PIIT e significativo na previsao IU SNS. As implicacoes teoricas e praticas destes achados e orientacoes para futuras pesquisas foram tamabem avaliadas.
Changes in Alcohol-Related Behavior Following an Incident of Traumatic Brain Injury

Pre-existing alcohol related complications are a common occurrence amongst individuals admitted for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and is estimated to be about 44% to 66% in TBI patients. In fact, alcohol intoxication is a major cause of TBI. The contribution of alcohol abuse as a cause of TBI and its influence over the pathophysiology of TBI is well studied and well known. However, the influence of TBI on alcohol consumption is still in its preliminary stages. The underlying reasons for it may be the complex interaction between the pathological changes induced by TBI itself and changes in environmental factors following an episode of TBI. The resulting alteration in alcohol-related behaviors post-TBI can affect cognitive and neurological functions and thus can influence the overall recovery of the patient. Hence, understanding changes in alcohol behavior after TBI, with respect to the timing and causes responsible for the change, is important from the perspective of long-term outcome in these patients. In this review article, we discuss a number of studies to determine changes in alcohol drinking behavior following TBI and summarize the findings with respect to the timing of significant change in behavior, as well as the factors influencing this change. Overall it can provide an important piece of information regarding the preventive measures in a major subset of the population at risk of alcohol-use disorders and utilizing them at a time when the prevention can have a maximal impact.
Investigation of sample-size effects on in-plane tensile testing of paperboard

Abstract The impact of sample size on in-plane strain behavior in paperboard was investigated, with the aim to explore the differences between local and global properties in paperboard, and try to pinpoint the mechanisms behind such differences. The local properties are of interest in converting as well as for future 3D forming of paperboard. It is important to identify differences in behavior between local and global properties since most paperboards are evaluated against the latter. The methods used for evaluation were tensile tests in controlled environment and speckle photography. The results show that there is a difference in strain behavior that is dependent of the length to width ratio of the sample, that this behavior cannot be predicted by standard tensile tests and that it depends on the board composition. The speckle analysis revealed that the behavior is a result of the activation of strain zones in the sample. These zones are relatively constant in size and therefore contribute differently to total strain in samples of different size.
An Inquiry into Retention and Achievement Differences in Campus Based and Web Based AP Courses

A decade ago the Advanced Placement (AP) program was introduced into the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Initially, schools embraced this opportunity to provide their students with opportunities that were previously unavailable. However, within a few years the AP program was relegated to urban and large regional high schools. Few smaller, and particularly rural schools, were able to offer AP courses only to the brightest one or two students taking it as an independent study. In 1997-98, schools began to delivery AP courses in a web-based method. The purpose of the study is to examine the retention rates and student achievement in AP courses in the province between different delivery models.
Chenia Ruigtevleia (Pottiaceae), a New Moss Species from The Western Cape Province of South Africa

Abstract Chenia ruigtevleia is described from two localities in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. It is most readily distinguished from congeners by the presence of laminal papillae. Further points of distinction from the apparently closely related C. leptophyllum are the smaller laminal cells and generally short-ovate leaves. We provide a key for the four species recognized in Chenia.
Ferroelectric Domain Controlled Pb[(Zn 1/3 Nb 2/3 ) 0.91 Ti 0.09 ]O 3 Single Crystal with Giant Electromechanical Coupling Factor of k 31 Mode and Piezoelectric d 31 Constant

Temperature and poling field dependences of the properties of large high-quality piezoelectric single crystals of Pb[(Zn 1/3 Nb 2/3 ) 0.91 Ti 0.09 ]O 3 (PZNT91/09) grown by the Bridgman method were measured. The single crystals poled along [001] of the original cubic direction possess giant electromechanical coupling factor k 31 over 80% and piezoelectric d 31 constant nearly m 1700 pC/N. These giant k 31 and d 31 constants results from the control of ferroelectric domain configuration. PZNT91/09 multi-domain single crystal became single-domain in the directions parallel and perpendicular to the poling field resulting in the appearance of giant k 31 and d 31 .