Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bioeconomic feedbacks from large-scale adoption of transgenic pesticidal corn in the Philippines

Farmer control of agricultural pests raises the possibility of bioeconomic feedbacks and spillovers, whereby greater aggregate effort exerted on pest control lowers overall pest densities. This in turn decreases individual growers’ marginal incentives for pest control. While economists have written theoretically about such feedbacks or modeled it in simulations of bioinvasions, they rarely measure it econometrically. Here we adapt an instrumental variables methodology developed for discrete choice endogenous sorting models in the environmental and urban economics literatures to study bioeconomic feedbacks in pest control. As a methodological innovation, we introduce use of censored regression methods to handle 0% or 100% market shares in hedonic second-stage analysis of fixed effects in discrete choice models. We apply these methods to study area-level adoption and potential feedbacks from individuals’ decisions to adopt transgenic Bt corn, using a panel dataset from the Philippines. In a conceptual model, we generate the hypothesis that greater areawide deployment of Bt crops should reduce individual farmers’ incentives to use this technology, ceteris paribus. Our econometric estimation supports the hypothesis that greater areawide use of Bt attenuates individual incentives to use these varieties. In terms of economic significance, this feedback effect implies a mean long-run price elasticity for the Bt trait 67% lower than that implied by an econometric model ignoring it. Examining whether this estimated feedback relates to areawide pest suppression, we find farmers’ expectations about infestation from the main pest targeted by Bt crops are significantly reduced by higher areawide Bt deployment. We conclude by discussing the welfare and yield implications for these areawide bioeconomic feedbacks. JEL codes: C33, C35, C36, D24, Q12, Q57
Frequency variations of gravity waves interacting with a time-varying tide

Abstract. Using a nonlinear, 2-D time-dependent numerical model, we simulate the propagation of gravity waves (GWs) in a time-varying tide. Our simulations show that when a GW packet propagates in a time-varying tidal-wind environment, not only its intrinsic frequency but also its ground-based frequency would change significantly. The tidal horizontal-wind acceleration dominates the GW frequency variation. Positive (negative) accelerations induce frequency increases (decreases) with time. More interestingly, tidal-wind acceleration near the critical layers always causes the GW frequency to increase, which may partially explain the observations that high-frequency GW components are more dominant in the middle and upper atmosphere than in the lower atmosphere. The combination of the increased ground-based frequency of propagating GWs in a time-varying tidal-wind field and the transient nature of the critical layer induced by a time-varying tidal zonal wind creates favorable conditions for GWs to penetrate their originally expected critical layers. Consequently, GWs have an impact on the background atmosphere at much higher altitudes than expected, which indicates that the dynamical effects of tidal–GW interactions are more complicated than usually taken into account by GW parameterizations in global models.
Development of the Banking System in Kyrgyzstan: An Historical Review and Current Challenges

Banking in transition economies differs from developing and developed economies with market system. This study aims to review development of the banking system in Kyrgyzstan since independence. The period under consideration is divided into five stages, each of which has a main distinctive aspect. Despite considerable achievements in last fifteen years the banking system still remains vulnerable to external shocks. Moreover, insufficient institutional infrastructure is one of the fundamental factors retarding further development of the banking system.
Corrosion Inhibition of Aqueous Extract of Cocos nucifera - Coconut Palm - Petiole Extract from Destructive Distillation for the Corrosion of Mild Steel in Acidic Medium

The inhibitive effect and adsorption properties of petiole extract obtained from destructive distillation of cocos nucifera for the corrosion of mild steel in 0.5 M H 2SO 4 and 1 M HCl were investigated using mass loss, polarization and electrochemical impedance techniques of monitoring corrosion. The results obtained indicate that petiole extract of cocos nucifera behaves as good inhibitor for the corrosion of mild steel in 0.5 M H 2SO 4 and 1 M HCl. Activation energy of thermodynamic parameter was evaluated from temperature studies result. The adsorption of the inhibitor on mild steel surface was found to be spontaneous, endothermic and consistent with the assumptions of Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The electrochemical measurements reveal that the petiole extract behaved like mixed type inhibitor. Efforts are made to analyze the effectiveness of petiole extract of coconut palm in industrial processes.
Syvaoja. "Segregation of Replicative DNA Polymerases during S Phase: DNA POLYMERASE , BUT NOT DNA POLYMERASES /, ARE ASSOCIATED WITH LAMINS

Title þÿ S e g r e g a t i o n o f R e p l i c a t i v e D N A P o l y m e r a s e s d u r i n g S P h a s e : D N A P O L Y M E R A S E μ , B U T þÿ N O T D N A P O L Y M E R A S E S ± / ́ , A R E A S S O C I A T E D W I T H L A M I N S T H R O U G H O U T S PHASE IN HUMAN CELLS Authors(s) Vaara, M. ; Itkonen, H. ; Hillukkala, T. ; et al. Publication date 2012-08-10 Publication information Journal of Biological Chemistry, 287 (40): 33327-33338 Publisher American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Item record/more information http://hdl.handle. net/10197/4998 Publisher's statement This research was originally published in Journal of Biological Chemistry. M. Vaara, H. Itkonen, T. Hillukkala, Z. Liu, H. -P. Nasheuer, D. Schaarschmidt, H. Pospiech, & J. E. Syvaoja. "Segregation of Replicative DNA Polymerases during S Phase: DNA POLYMERASE , BUT NOT DNA POLYMERASES /, ARE ASSOCIATED WITH LAMINS THROUGHOUT S PHASE IN HUMAN CELLS" . Journal of Biological Chemistry 2012 287: 33327-33338. the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Publisher's version (DOI) 10.1074/jbc.M112. 357996
Impact of Stability Ball Sitting on Stroke Volume, Oxygen Content Difference, and Heart Rate During Arm Ergometry

The purpose of this study was to determine the contributions that heart rate (HR), stroke volume (SV), and oxygen content difference (CdO 2 ) make to the elevated oxygen consumption (VO 2 ) due to stability ball (SB) sitting when compared to chair (C) sitting during arm ergometry. Methods: Rest and two stages of exercise were conducted twice, once on a stability ball and once on a chair (order randomized) during aerobic arm cranking. VO 2 , cardiac output, and HR, were measured at the end of rest and each stage of exercise. SV and CdO 2 were calculated from measured parameters. Results: Repeated Measures ANOVA demonstrated that SB was significantly higher than C by 4% to 12% for VO 2 (P 2 (P =.014). It was concluded that oxygen content differences make a larger contribution to the difference between SB and C at the higher intensity. The patterns of change with exercise for heart rate, stroke volume, and oxygen content difference were similar between SB and C.
Title Essential Role of NK Cells in IgG Therapy for ExperimentalAutoimmune Encephalomyelitis

Intravenous immunoglobulin has long been used in treating autoimmune diseases, although mechanisms remain uncertain. Activating Fcc receptors are receptors of IgG and reported to be essential in intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) therapy. Therefore, we hypothesized natural killer (NK) cells, which express abundant activating Fcc receptors, are the potential cellular target. In experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), we demonstrated that IgG suppressed disease development in intact, but not in NK cell depleted mice. Adoptive transfer of IgG-treated NK cell could protect mice against EAE, and suppressed interferon c and interleukin 17 production. The percentage of CD4Foxp3 regulatory T cells was significantly increased. The increase of regulatory T cells was also observed in IgG-treated EAE mice but not in NK cell depleted mice. In vitro experiments confirmed that IgG-treated NK cells enhanced regulatory T cell induction from naı̈ve CD4 T cells. Interestingly, cells from draining lymph nodes produced more interleukin 2 after the adoptive transfer of IgGtreated NK cells. We neutralized interleukin 2 and the induction of CD4Foxp3 T cells by IgG-treated NK cells was significantly reduced. To our knowledge, we identified for the first time the critical role of NK cells in the mechanism of IgGinduced induction of Treg cells in treatment of autoimmunity. Citation: Chong WP, Ling MT, Liu Y, Caspi RR, Wong WM, et al. (2013) Essential Role of NK Cells in IgG Therapy for Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis. PLoS ONE 8(4): e60862. doi:10.1371/journal.pone. 0060862 Editor: Michael Platten, University Hospital of Heidelberg, Germany Received July 13, 2012; Accepted March 4, 2013; Published April 5, 2013 Copyright: 2013 Chong et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Funding: The study was partially supported by the Area of Excellence Scheme of the University Grants Committee, Hong Kong SAR, China (Grant A0E/M-12/06; YLL and WT), Edward Sai-Kim Hotung Paediatric Education and Research Fund (WPC and YLL), Chung Ko Lee and Cheung Yuen Kan Education and Research Fund in Paediatric Immunology (YLL), The Shun Tak District Min Yuen Tong (YLL), Wong Ching Yee Memorial Postgraduate Scholarship (WPC) and Mary Sun Medical Scholarship (WPC). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. * E-mail: lauylung@hkucc.hku. hk . These authors contributed equally to this work.
On the Dimensionality of Word Embedding

In this paper, we provide a theoretical understanding of word embedding and its dimensionality. Motivated by the unitary-invariance of word embedding, we propose the Pairwise Inner Product (PIP) loss, a novel metric on the dissimilarity between word embeddings. Using techniques from matrix perturbation theory, we reveal a fundamental bias-variance trade-off in dimensionality selection for word embeddings. This bias-variance trade-off sheds light on many empirical observations which were previously unexplained, for example the existence of an optimal dimensionality. Moreover, new insights and discoveries, like when and how word embeddings are robust to over-fitting, are revealed. By optimizing over the bias-variance trade-off of the PIP loss, we can explicitly answer the open question of dimensionality selection for word embedding.
Large‐scale, dynamic transformations in fuel moisture drive wildfire activity across southeastern Australia

The occurrence of large, high‐intensity wildfires requires plant biomass, or fuel, that is sufficiently dry to burn. This poses the question, what is “sufficiently dry”? Until recently, the ability to address this question has been constrained by the spatiotemporal scale of available methods to monitor the moisture contents of both dead and live fuels. Here we take advantage of recent developments in macroscale monitoring of fuel moisture through a combination of remote sensing and climatic modeling. We show there are clear thresholds of fuel moisture content associated with the occurrence of wildfires in forests and woodlands. Furthermore, we show that transformations in fuel moisture conditions across these thresholds can occur rapidly, within a month. Both the approach presented here, and our findings, can be immediately applied and may greatly improve fire risk assessments in forests and woodlands globally.
Ichthyophoniasis: An Emerging Disease of Chinook Salmon in the Yukon River

Abstract Before 1985, Ichthyophonus was unreported among Pacific salmon Oncorhynchus spp. from the Yukon River; now it infects more than 40% of returning adult Chinook salmon O. tshawytscha. Overall infection prevalence reached about 45% in the Yukon River and about 30% in the Tanana River between 1999 and 2003. Mean infection prevalence was greater in females than males in the main-stem Yukon River during each of the 5 years of the study, but the infection prevalence in males increased each year until the difference was no longer significant. Clinical signs of ichthyophoniasis (presence of visible punctate white lesions in internal organs) were least at the mouth of the Yukon River (∼10%) but increased to 29% when fish reached the middle Yukon River and was 22% at the upper Tanana River. However, clinical signs increased each year from 7% in 1999 to 27% in 2003 at the mouth of the river. As fish approached the upper reaches of the Yukon River (Canada) and the spawning areas of the Chena and Salcha rivers.
EXPLOITING INFINITE VARIANCE THROUGH DUMMY VARIABLES IN NONSTATIONARY AUTOREGRESSIONS

We consider estimation and testing in finite-order autoregressive models with a (near) unit root and infinite-variance innovations. We study the asymptotic properties of estimators obtained by dummying out “large” innovations, i.e., those exceeding a given threshold. These estimators reflect the common practice of dealing with large residuals by including impulse dummies in the estimated regression. Iterative versions of the dummy-variable estimator are also discussed. We provide conditions on the preliminary parameter estimator and on the threshold that ensure that (i) the dummy-based estimator is consistent at higher rates than the ordinary least squares estimator, (ii) an asymptotically normal test statistic for the unit root hypothesis can be derived, and (iii) order of magnitude gains of local power are obtained.
Preferences for sunflower oil produced conventionally, produced with nanotechnology or genetically modified in the Araucanía Region of Chile

AbstractB. Schnettler, G. Crisostomo, N. Mills, H. Miranda, M. Mora, G. Lobos and K.G. Grunert. 2013. Preferences for oil produced conventionally, produced with nanotechnology or genetically modified in the Araucania Region of Chile. Cien. Inv. Agr. 40(1):17-29. In light of the increasing use of nanotechnology in food production, consumer acceptance of sunflower oil produced with nanotechnology or from genetically modified (GM) plants and the conventionally produced raw materials available in Temuco (Araucania Region, Chile), market segments were differentiated with respect to their acceptance of nanotechnology and characterized according to their sociodemographic characteristics and food neophobia level. To achieve this aim, a survey was administered to 400 people. Using a conjoint analysis, the brand (33.6%) and production system (32.6%) were determined to be more important than the price (19.2%) and health certification (14.6%); national brands, produced conventionally with a health certification seal and sold at the lowest price, were preferred. A hierarchical cluster analysis identified three main segments. The largest (45.5%) preferred oil made with nanotechnology. The second (29.75%) preferred conventional oil and oil made with nanotechnology. The third (20.75%) preferred conventional oil and rejected oils made with nanotechnology and GM. The segments differed significantly according to marital status and according to the score on the food neophobia scale. Approximately 75% of the sample had a positive response to the oil produced with nanotechnology, and this positive response was related to the food neophobia score.Key words: sunflower oil, transgenic food, nanotechnology.
A comparative evaluation of the impact of UK Trade & Investment's R&D programme and other UKTI support that impacts R&D

The evaluation study used econometric techniques and evidence on both users and non-users of UKTI trade services to investigate the impact of UKTI support on business investment in Research and Development (R&D). It found evidence that trade support generates additional R&D of around £65k per firm, with key UKTI services such as the Tradeshow Access Programme, Export Marketing Research Scheme, Website business opportunities alerts, and Passport to Export scheme tending to generate the strongest R&D impact. The research also confirmed that innovative and growing firms were most likely to show positive R&D impact and there was clear evidence of UKTI service complementarity, with the R&D impact stronger for multiple service use.
Diversity Through N-Version Programming: Current State, Challenges and Recommendations

N-version programming is a software development paradigm that draws upon the concept of diversity to increase the reliability of software. The central idea is to independently produce multiple functionally equivalent versions of a program, and execute them in parallel. If the versions fail independently, then the probability of multiple versions producing a faulty output on any given input is very small; much lower than the failure probability of any single version. In this paper, we examine and contrast various experiments that have been performed to evaluate the benefits of this approach and draw some conclusions. We find that for diversity to be effective, it must be introduced in a targeted and informed manner and encompass several phases of the software’s development.
Near-limit propagation of gaseous detonations in thin annular channels

New results on the near-limit behaviors of gaseous detonations in thin annular channels are reported in this paper. The annular channels of thicknesses 3.2 mm and 5.9 mm are made by inserting smaller diameter tubes of 44.4 mm and 39.0 mm into a larger 50.8-mm diameter outer tube. The length of each annular channel is 2.0 m. Detonations are initiated in a steel driver tube where a small volume of a sensitive C2H2 + 2.5O2 mixture is used to facilitate detonation initiation. A 2-m length of circular tube with 50.8-mm diameter precedes the annular channel so that a steady Chapman-Jouguet (CJ) detonation is established prior to entering the annular channel. Four detonable mixtures of C2H2 + 2.5O2 + 85%Ar, C2H2 + 2.5O2 + 70%Ar, C3H8 + 5O2 and CH4 + 2O2 are used in the present study. Photodiodes spaced at 10 cm throughout the length of both annular channel and circular tube are used to measure the detonation velocity. In addition, smoked foils are inserted into the annular channel to monitor the cellular structure of the detonation wave. The results show that well within the limits the detonation wave propagates along the channel with a small local velocity fluctuation and an averaged global velocity can be deduced. The averaged detonation velocity has a small deficit of 5 15% far from the limits and rapidly drops to 0.7VCJ 0.8VCJ when the onset of limit occurs. Subsequently, the fluctuation of local velocity also increases with decreasing initial pressure approaching the limit. No galloping detonations are observed for both stable and unstable mixtures in annular channels. The present study also confirms that single-headed spinning detonation occurs at the limit as in circular tube rather than the up and down “zig zag” mode in a two-dimensional rectangular channel. Keyword: Annular channels; Local velocity fluctuation; Detonation limits; Single-headed spinning detonation; Cellular structure
In vitro Protoplast Isolation and Regeneration of Solanumtuberosumcv. Binella and Burren

The present study aims to develop simple reliable method for protoplast isolation, culture and regeneration from the leaves of potato cvs. Binella and Burren. Optimal conditions for protoplast culture, callus initiation and regeneration were determined. Moreover, genetic diversity between regenerated and mother plants, was evaluated by Inter Simple Sequence Repeats (ISSR) technique. Protoplasts were isolated fromin vitroexplants after four weeks multiplication medium containing 50 μM of Silver Thiousulfate (STS). Protoplast division was started after 4 days in the cv. Binella, and after 5 days in the cv. Burren, on medium B containing (Murashig and Skoog, 1962) with 1 or 1.5 mg/L of Zeatin (Z). Maximum rate of cell colonies was recorded when 1.0 mg/L Z was used, with significant differences between the two cvs. Binella and Burren (1.58 ± 0.1%, 1.27 ± 0.09%), respectively. Maximum percentage of shoot regenerated from Potato callus came out, on medium with of 0.1 mg/L naphthalene acetic acid (NAA), with significant differences between cvs. Binella and Burren (51.12 ± 8.77%, 18.96 ± 2.81%), respectively. Maximum shoots regenerated from cv. Binella callus was (50±17.68%), on regeneration medium containing 1.5 mg/L of Z, while in cv. Burren callus did not form shoots. Two months later 92% of plantlets were successfully acclimatized, in green house. Average plant length reached 26.6 cm. Also, tubers were produced with a diameter mean of 13.17 mm and average weight of 2.06g. ISSR technique showed that regenerated plants from cv. Binellacallus, were identical to the mother plants by 100%.
Identification of Sri Lankan rice varieties having osmotic and ionic stress tolerance during the first phase of salinity stress

Salt tolerance of plants during the first phase of salt stress requires a combination of physiological traits conferring tolerance to both osmotic stress and ionic stress. Accordingly, the objectives of the present study were: (a) to screen a substantial number of varieties (102) from the Sri Lankan rice ( Oryza sativa ) germplasm and thereby identify varieties with osmotic and ionic tolerance during Phase I of salt stress development; and (b) to identify the physiological mechanisms that are responsible for osmotic and ionic tolerance. The 102 varieties tested included 51 traditional, 4 old-improved and 47 new-improved varieties, which were screened in nutrient solutions at 100 mM NaCl. Whole plant salt tolerance was quantified using relative leaf area (RL) and relative total dry weight (RW), i.e. leaf area and total dry weight at 100 mM Na+ as ratios of their respective values at 1 mM Na+, the unstressed control. Cluster analysis based on RL and RW enabled classification of Phase I salt tolerance of the screened varieties into five groups as, ‘highly tolerant’ (6 varieties), ‘tolerant’ (25), ‘moderately tolerant’ (32), ‘susceptible’ (30) and ‘highly susceptible’ (9). Capacity to maintain relatively high tissue water content, capacity for Na+ exclusion at the root surface and root xylem and tissue tolerance to excess shoot Na+ were identified as tolerance mechanisms of rice for salinity at Phase I. High shoot tolerance to Na+ contributed to tolerance in 40 out of the 63 varieties identified as Phase I-tolerant to varying degrees. In comparison, high or medium capacity to maintain either whole plant or shoot relative water content contributed to tolerance in 48 varieties, while Na+ exclusion at either of the two control points contributed to tolerance in 33 varieties. Based on the varietal phenotyping of the present study, suitable varieties can be selected: (a) for direct recommendation to areas of mild to transient salinity; (b) as parents in conventional breeding programmes to develop salt tolerant rice varieties; (c) for molecular biological studies to identify genes responsible for Phase I salt tolerance. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.4038/jnsfsr.v40i3. 4699 J.Natn. Sci.Foundation Sri Lanka 2012 40 (3):251-280