Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sign Language Recognition Using Two-Stream Convolutional Neural Networks with Wi-Fi Signals

Sign language is an important way for deaf people to understand and communicate with others. Many researchers use Wi-Fi signals to recognize hand and finger gestures in a non-invasive manner. However, Wi-Fi signals usually contain signal interference, background noise, and mixed multipath noise. In this study, Wi-Fi Channel State Information (CSI) is preprocessed by singular value decomposition (SVD) to obtain the essential signals. Sign language includes the positional relationship of gestures in space and the changes of actions over time. We propose a novel dual-output two-stream convolutional neural network. It not only combines the spatial-stream network and the motion-stream network, but also effectively alleviates the backpropagation problem of the two-stream convolutional neural network (CNN) and improves its recognition accuracy. After the two stream networks are fused, an attention mechanism is applied to select the important features learned by the two-stream networks. Our method has been validated by the public dataset SignFi and adopted five-fold cross-validation. Experimental results show that SVD preprocessing can improve the performance of our dual-output two-stream network. For home, lab, and lab + home environment, the average recognition accuracy rates are 99.13%, 96.79%, and 97.08%, respectively. Compared with other methods, our method has good performance and better generalization capability.
The Causality Relationship between Energy Prices and Developed Countries Indices

The aim of this study is to determine the causality relationship between energy prices, which are among the most important inputs of the economy, and selected stock market indices of developed countries. Crude oil and natural gas are used as energy variables. G7 countries were selected to represent developed countries. Stock indices used in the study are Dow&Jones (USA), DAX (Germany), CAC40 (France), FTSE250 (England), FTSE Italia All-Share (Italy), NIKKEI225 (Japan), and S&P/TSX (Canada). In the study, Johansen (1988) cointegration test and Granger (1969) causality test were used to analyze the causality relationship between energy prices and selected stock market indices. The research could not find a long-term balance relationship between energy prices and developed country indices. Also, while the causality relationship was determined between crude oil prices and NIKKEI225, DAX, and CAC40 indices, a causal relationship between natural gas prices and Dow&Jones and FTSE250 indices was determined. In the study, it was found that energy prices can be used for diversification in investments to be made with stock market indices of developed countries. This study is one of the most comprehensive studies in the literature that examines the relationship between energy prices and the stock market indices of G7 countries. It is expected to contribute to the literature in this way.
Financial Stress Index and Economic Activity in South Africa: New Evidence

The importance of a sound and stable financial system and by extension economic stability was brought to the fore by the global financial crisis (GFC). The economic and social costs of the GFC have renewed the commitment of stakeholders in the financial sector including central banks to develop instruments and methodologies that will be useful in monitoring financial stress within the financial system and the real economy. This study contributes to the growing literature by developing a financial stress indicator for the South African financial market. The financial stress indicator (FSI) is a single aggregate indicator that is constructed to reflect the systemic nature of financial instability and also to measure the vulnerability of the financial system to both internal and external shocks. Using the principal component analysis (PCA), the results show that financial stress can be identified by the financial stress indicator. Furthermore, using a recursive Vector Autoregression (VAR) model to estimate the impact of financial stress on output and investment, the result shows that financial stress has a negative impact on economic growth and investment, though not immediately. FSI is very useful for gauging the effectiveness of government measures to mitigate the impact of financial stress. Concerted effort to stimulate investment and domestic production by relevant stakeholders is necessary to mitigate the impact of financial stress. This will go a long way to alleviating the impact of the financial stress on industrial production, employment and the economy at large.
Details : Title : Lateral variations in lower crustal strength control the temporal evolution of mountain ranges : examples from south-east Tibet

This manuscript has now been peer reviewed and published in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems following peer review, doi: https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009092. Citation: Penney, C. , Copley, A. (2021). Lateral variations in lower crustal strength control the temporal evolution of mountain ranges: Examples from south-east Tibet. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 22, e2020GC009092. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009092
The management of LGBTQ+ identities on social media: A student perspective

Social media can be used to both enhance and diminish students’ experiences of university and its influence is strong for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other non-heterosexual and gender-diverse (LGBTQ+) people facing stigma and discrimination. Students may feel exposed when identifying as LGBTQ+, particularly while transitioning to university life. In this study, we used theories of performance and digital personhood to explore how LGBTQ+ students use social media for identity management. We report a thematic analysis of 16 interviews. Four themes were generated from the data, showing that students use social media to explore, conceal, protect and express their identities. We found that different social media provide stages where LGBTQ+ identities are constrained by different and distinctive social factors. Thus, LGBTQ+ students’ online identities are multiple, situated and bound to specific platforms, with some alternatives to Facebook offering a space where students may feel more comfortable performing their authentic selves.
Facile hydrothermal synthesis and photocatalytic activity of rod-like nanosized silver tungstate

Rod-like nanosized silver tungstate (Ag2WO4) was synthesised via a facile hydrothermal method and characterised by field emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and electron spin resonance spectroscopy. Under ultraviolet (UV) light, nearly complete degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) was observed in Ag2WO4 suspension after irradiation for 60 min, around 15% RhB was absorbed in the dark. However, more than 60% of methyl blue was absorbed in the dark and the rest was observed to be completely degraded upon UV light irradiation for 10 min. The formed superoxide (O2−.) and hydroxyl (·OH) radicals, as well as photoinduced holes were considered to be the dominant active species in the photocatalytic process.
Long-Term Effects of Organic Amendments on Soil Organic Matter Quantity and Quality in Conventional Cropping Systems in Switzerland

Increasing soil organic carbon (SOC) in agroecosystems is a promising solution to simultaneously address climate change mitigation, adaptation, and food security. Yet, the best management practices that could achieve these goals remain to be identified. Here, we analyze the long-term effects of application of green manure, cereal straw, farmyard manure, and cattle slurry on SOC in a 37 year long field experiment in Switzerland. The treatment effects were compared against control conditions that received only optimal mineral fertilization. More specifically, this study aimed at evaluating the effect of organic amendments on SOC accumulation and distribution in different soil particle-size fractions by means of a set of indicators about organic matter quality (biological reactivity, humification index) and microbial activity (extracellular enzyme activities). In the absence of organic matter input, application of mineral fertilizers alone resulted in the lowest SOC content and the highest humification index of the bulk soil organic matter. Among the organic amendments, cereal straw, farmyard manure, and cattle slurry promoted a higher SOC content and a lower humification index due to an increase of SOC in the clay-size fraction. The annual C accrual reached 4.4‰ per year over 37 years with farmyard manure. The higher biological reactivity measured for the green manure and cereal straw amendments was associated with higher soil enzymatic activities, while C retention coefficients decreased by at least 2.5 times compared to animal-derived amendments. The low availability of nutrients in green manure and straw amendments as suggested by the high phosphatase and N-acetylglucosaminidase activities may indicate a reduction in C retention of organic matter inputs due to nutrient microbial mining with plant-derived amendments.
Municipal reliance on fine and fee revenues: How local courts contribute to extractive revenue practices in US cities

By altering the distribution of ﬁ ne and fee revenues, municipal courts provide a mechanism through which cash ‐ strapped city governments can increase revenues ﬂ owing into city budgets. Using a unique municipal court dataset combined with city ‐ level ﬁ nancial information, this paper exploits state ‐ level differences in laws enabling municipal courts and differences in property tax effort across states to explore the relationship between local courts, ﬁ ne and fee revenues, and municipal ﬁ nances. I ﬁ nd that cities with municipal courts raise more ﬁ ne and fee revenue than cities without a court; in cities with a court, reliance on these revenues decreases as per capita property tax yields increase; and these effects are more pronounced in cities in the bottom quartile of the population distribution. Taken together, results suggest that cities use municipal courts to fund the general operations of government and smaller cities and those with low property tax collections are more likely to do so.
Innate pathogenic traits in oral yeasts

The normal flora community plays a significant role in both healthy and patient individual’s bodies. It has improved its ability to change from beneficial to opportunistic organisms causing crucial infections in immunocompromised patients. This study was conducted to identify the community of yeast species, and to investigate potential virulence factors. Saliva samples were collected from healthy individuals, yeast species were isolated and identified using both traditional and advance molecular genetics technique. The results revealed that Candida albicans was the dominant isolate, while Meyerozyma caribbica was the least. The phylogenetic tree was constructed for 13 species using the NeighbourJoining method, which revealed six separated clades. The significant virulence factors, biofilm formation, phospholipase and proteinase activities, were accomplished. The results showed that 95.8% of the isolates formed a biofilm, about 82.6% of them were shown strong biofilm activity. The enzymatic activity revealed that 56.25% of the tested isolates were positive for phospholipase, while 43.75% were positive for proteinase activity. The results showed that C. albicans and non-albicans were organisms that coexist in the oral cavity, however they possess virulence factors. C. albicans was the most popular species, while C. dubliniensis, C. parapsilosis, P. kudriavzevii, P. kluyveri, K. marxianus, M. guilliermondii and M. caribbica were showed smaller percentages respectively.
FİRMA PİYASA DEĞERİ İÇİN MUHASEBE VE EKONOMİK VERİLERİN ANALİZİ: HOLDİNG FİRMA UYGULAMASI

Anahtar Kelimeler: Holding Firmalar, Piyasa Değeri, Muhasebe Verileri JEL Kodları: E44, G32, M41 Çalışmada firmaların piyasa değeri ile muhasebe ve makro ekonomik veriler arasındaki ilişki araştırılmaktadır. Bu ilişki tespiti için Borsa İstanbul’da işlem gören holding firmalar arasından Koç Holding A. Ş. , Hacı Ömer Sabancı Holding A. Ş. , TAV Havalimanları Holding, Tekfen Holding A. Ş. ve Petkim Petrokimya Holding A. Ş seçilmektedir. Holding firmaların 2009Q1-2018Q4 dönem aralığı verileri toplanıp durağanlıkları belirlenmekte ve sonrasında eş bütünleşme testi yapılmaktadır. Çalışma sonucunda, holding firmaların piyasa değeri ile holdinglerin defter değeri ve net kârı ve hatta gayri safi yurtiçi hasıla (GSYİH), faiz oranı, üretim endeksi, döviz kuru ve BİST100 endeksi arasında uzun dönemli ilişki belirlenmektedir. DOLS yöntemi sonuçlarına göre de, holding firmaların piyasa değerini defter değeri ve net kâr arttırmaktadır. Ayrıca GSYİH, faiz oranı ve BIST100 endeksinin genel olarak holding şirketlerinin piyasa değerini artırdığı, üretim endeksi ve döviz kurlarının düşürdüğü tespit edilmiştir.
Numerical analysis of axial load effects on RC bridge columns under blast loading

Blast load and its effects on transportation infrastructure especially bridge structures have received considerable attention in recent years. The RC bridge columns are considered as the most critical structural members because their failure leads to collapse of the bridge. Although RC bridge columns are typical axial load-carrying components, the studies on blast-resistant capacity of RC bridge columns usually neglect the axial load effect since it is commonly assumed that neglecting the axial load leads to conservative predictions of column responses. This assumption is true when column failure is governed by flexural response since axial compressive load generates a prestress in column which compensates concrete tensile stress induced by bending response. When subjected to blast loads, column response however could be governed by shear response. In this case neglecting axial loading effect does not necessarily lead to conservative predictions of column responses. In this study, high-fidelity finite element (FE) models for both non-contact explosion and contact explosion were developed in LS-DYNA. The FE models were validated with field blast test data. Subsequently, intensive simulations of the RC bridge columns with and without axial load subjected to a wider range of blast loading scenarios, including far-field, near-field and contact explosion were conducted. The influence of axial load on the dynamic performance of RC bridge columns corresponding to different blast loading scenarios was discussed.
Nickel oxide nanoparticles: biosynthesized, characterization and photocatalytic application in degradation of methylene blue dye

Abstract In the present study, nickel oxide nanoparticles were prepared using the aqueous extract of Zizyphus jujuba. The temperature and time calcination was studied on size and morphology of synthesized nanoparticles. In addition, the obtained nanoparticles were identified through PXRD, UV-Vis, Raman, FESEM, and EDX methods. The results of PXRD, which were surveyed through Debye-Scherrer and Rietveld refinement, confirmed the face centered cubic (FCC) structure of synthesized nanoparticles. The formation of synthesized NiO NPs was indicated by peak that was revealed at 295 nm through UV-Vis spectrum. According to the FESEM results, the obtained nanoparticles (at 350 to 600 ˚C temperatures) were uniformed in shape and contained a size range of about 5–30 nm. Subsequent to investigating their photocatalytic activity against methylene blue (MB) dye in the role of a cationic dye, we estimated the degradation coefficient of methylene blue to be 65.5% throughout 180 min of treatment time.
Peace Journalism in Theory and Practice: Kenyan and Foreign Correspondent Perspectives

ABSTRACT Peace journalism (PJ) is a framework intended to improve conflict coverage by challenging traditional news values. Our study aimed to compare the use of PJ in the local and foreign coverage of two key violent events in Kenyan history—the 2017 election violence and the 2019 Dusit attack—as well as collecting reporters’ views and understandings of the concept. A content analysis of 257 articles across 10 legacy newspapers from Kenya, the United States, the United Kingdom and South Africa was supplemented with 14 semi-structued interviews with local and foreign reporters. We found war journalism (WJ) to be the prevailing frame, with no significant difference in the use of PJ between Kenyan and international newspapers apart from a few variations across individual indicators. The interviews exposed a lack of awareness of PJ in the case of foreign correspondents, and an interpretation that fundamentally differs from traditional understandings of the concept in the case of Kenyan reporters. We conclude that PJ is not a one-size-fits-all approach and needs to be embraced and transformed in cooperation between journalists and academics before it can become a reality in mainstream newsrooms.
Aplicação da metodologia de superfície de resposta para o estudo do efeito da temperatura sobre o comportamento reológico de misturas ternárias de polpa de manga e sucos de laranja e cenoura

In this work was studied the rheological behaviour of ternaries mixtures of pulp mango, orange and carrot juices, in temperatures of 10 and 60oC. The juice proportion were defined by response surface methodology to mixture. Rheological data were obtained in a Haake Rotovisco model RV 20 and rheograms were fitted with Ostwlad- De Waele. The rheological parameters were used as response for the experimental designs. It was observed that the parameters consistency index and flow behaviour index, in the two temperatures, were better described with the linear and quadratic model, respectively.
Off-target pesticide movement: a review of our current understanding of drift due to inversions and secondary movement

Abstract Pesticide drift has been a concern since the introduction of pesticides. Historical incidences with off-target movement of 2,4-D and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) have increased our understanding of pesticide fate in the atmosphere following aerial application. More recent incidences with dicamba have brought to light gaps in our current understanding of aerial pesticide movement following ground application. In this paper, we review the current understanding of inversions and other weather and environmental factors that contribute to secondary pesticide movement and raise questions that need to be addressed. Factors that influence volatility and terminology associated with the atmosphere, such as cool air drainage, temperature inversions, and radiation cooling will be discussed. We also present literature that highlights the need to consider the role(s) of wind in secondary drift in addition to the role in physical drift. With increased awareness of pesticide movement and more herbicide-resistant traits available than ever before, it has become even more essential that we understand secondary movement of pesticides, recognize our gaps in understanding, and advance from what is currently unknown. Nomenclature: dicamba; 2, 4-D; dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane
Does an MBA degree advance business management skill or in fact create horizontal and vertical mismatches?

PurposeAn old saying –“Jack of all trades, master of none”– deliberately asserts that the purpose of a master’s degree program is to generate high level job skills in order to improve a nation's economy, while a bachelor degree produces economically productive graduates. Employment of such graduates is fundamentally important for personal and economic development. There is a link between a bachelor’s and master's degree and how these qualifications are linked to the job market. Both horizontal and vertical mismatches are developed which is the central focus of this research.Design/methodology/approachGiven the differentiated nature of research questions, multiple techniques are used to collect the data. However, this research bears the norms of the qualitative method. Both secondary and primary data are used, and meanwhile secondary data are collected by the banks, Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics (BANBEIS), University Grants Commission (UGC) and by the institutions sampled. Primary data are gathered from interviews with key people. Data were collected from three institutions of higher education and from six commercial banks and from the Central Bank. The academic results of 21,325 MBA graduates and education backgrounds of 750 executives working in banks served as the basis for establishing our arguments.FindingsThis study discovers that MBA graduates who have studied science subjects achieved much better grades in the MBA compared to their counterparts who studied business from secondary provision to first degree. The market-driven MBA programme has become a “business product”. The major revenue of higher education institutions comes from enrolment in MBA courses. For this reason, a science-friendly MBA program is developed to generate more business. If this continues, the philosophy of the master's program would either be lost or will have to be redefined in the 21st century.Originality/valueWhile a few studies have investigated the area of HE in Bangladesh, none covers the impact of MBA degrees on the job market and its contribution to enhancing job skills.
The effect of hedgerows on soil organic carbon storage in hillslopes

Abstract. The Bocage in the western part of Europe is an ancient rural landscape characterized by a network of hedgerows. The system studied here consists of hedges growing on earth and stone banks, which are found in the Armorican Massif (western France). Seven sites were analysed, which represented a large, but not complete, set of situations. We investigated the influence of hedges parallel to contour lines on soil characteristics, soil profile morphology and carbon storage at the hillslope scale. The analysis is based on a morphological description of the soil catena from the top of the hill to downslope of the hedge, and on measurements of bulk density and organic carbon in different soil profiles on the slopes. The results show that thickness of the organic horizon increases slowly from the top of the hill as far as the hedge, whereas under the hedge the bulk density is low and the soil organic carbon (SOC) storage large. Two effects of the hedges on SOC storage are apparent, namely, a local effect under the hedge, due to tree activity, and an anti‐erosive effect at the hillslope scale. A rough approximation based on these data assessed the fraction of SOC storage attributed to the hedge network of between 13 and 38% of the total carbon stock.
Aquatic disease in New Zealand: synthesis and future directions

ABSTRACT Dedicated studies on aquatic disease in New Zealand began in 1974, inspired by a developing aquaculture industry. Since then, two main aquatic disease study areas have emerged: (1) aquatic disease ecology and (2) diseases of commercial species. Progress over the past 20-years has been made by only a small number of researchers and aquatic disease in New Zealand has not received much attention from the wider marine science community. In 2020, the aquaculture industry continues to grow, and disease remains a threat to the industry’s viability. However, additional factors such as climate change, invasive species, and pollution, have emerged as future threats for aquatic disease in wild and farmed populations, which are currently understudied. Here, we provide a review of studies on aquatic disease ecology and commercial species carried out in New Zealand. We also present how climate change, pollution and invasive species could influence future aquatic disease dynamics and identify where future research effort is required to address knowledge gaps. The emergence of consequential aquatic diseases overseas highlights wider attention across marine science disciplines is needed to progress and diversify aquatic disease studies in New Zealand.