Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impacts of Climate Change on the Precipitation and Streamflow Regimes in Equatorial Regions: Guayas River Basin

The effects of climate change projected for 2050 to 2079 relative to the 1968–2014 reference period were evaluated using 39 CMIP5 models under the RCP8.5 emissions scenario in the Guayas River basin. The monthly normalized precipitation index (SPI) was used in this study to assess the impact of climate change for wet events and droughts from a meteorological perspective. The GR2M model was used to project changes in the streamflow of the Daule River. The climate projection was based on the four rigorously selected models to represent the climate of the study area. On average, an increase in temperature (~2 °C) and precipitation (~6%) is expected. A 7% increase in precipitation would result in a 10% increase in streamflow for flood periods, while an 8% decrease in precipitation could result in approximately a 60% reduction in flow for dry periods. The analysis of droughts shows that they will be more frequent and prolonged in the highlands (Andes) and the middle part of the basin. In the future, wet periods will be less frequent but of greater duration and intensity on the Ecuadorian coast. These results point to future problems such as water deficit in the dry season but also increased streamflow for floods during the wet season. This information should be taken into account in designing strategies for adaptation to climate change.
Studying the Moderating Role of Audit Committee Independence in the Relationship between CEO Narcissism and Real Earnings Management

A manager’s personality and psychological attributes may influence his or her performance, thereby affecting the quality of financial reporting by companies. On the one hand, today there is an increasing requirement for protecting the interests of investors as providers of investment and the most important group of accounting information and financial report users. The development of audit committees is among the mechanisms expected to be effective in protecting the interests of different groups of accounting information and financial report 59 Studying the Moderating Role of Audit Committee Independence. users. In order to act effectively, an audit committee must be independent. Therefore, the present study aims to examine the role played by the independence of audit committee members as a quality of an audit committee to identify how it may moderate the relationship between managers' narcissism and real earnings management in the firms listed in the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) using a statistical sample consisting of 642 observations (year-firm) over the period 2013-2018. The findings obtained through hypothesis testing using statistical analysis of panel data suggest that independence of audit committee members does not moderate the relationship between CEO's narcissism and real earnings management through abnormal cash flow, real earnings management through abnormal production, and real earnings management through abnormal discretionary expenses. Thus, the independence of audit committee members as a moderator cannot moderate the relationship between CEO's narcissism and real earnings management.
DDX3 depletion selectively represses translation of structured mRNAs

Abstract DDX3 is an RNA chaperone of the DEAD-box family that regulates translation. Its yeast ortholog Ded1 controls the translation of nearly all mRNAs, whereas DDX3 is thought to regulate only a subset of mRNAs. However, the set of mRNAs that are regulated by DDX3 are unknown, along with the relationship between DDX3 binding and activity. Here, we use ribosome profiling, RNA-seq, and PAR-CLIP to define the set of mRNAs that are regulated by DDX3 in human cells. We find that while DDX3 binds most expressed mRNAs, depletion of DDX3 affects the translation level of only a small subset of the transcriptome. We further find that DDX3 binds a site on helix 16 of the human ribosome, placing it immediately adjacent to the mRNA entry channel and translation factor eIF4B. Translation changes caused by depleting DDX3 levels or through chemical inhibition mimicking a dominant negative allele are different. Taken together, our data defines the subset of the transcriptome that is responsive to DDX3 inhibition, with relevance for basic biology and disease states where DDX3 expression is altered.
Driver perception of steering feel

Abstract Steering feel is optimized at a late stage of vehicle development, using prototype vehicles and expert opinion. An understanding of human perception may assist the development of a good ‘feel’ earlier in the design process. Three psychophysical experiments have been conducted to advance understanding of factors contributing to the feel of steering systems. The first experiment, which investigated the frames of reference for describing the feel (i.e. haptic properties) of a steering wheel, indicated that subjects focused on the steady state force that they applied to the wheel rather than the steady state torque, and on the angle that they turned the wheel rather than the displacement of their hands. In a second experiment, thresholds for detecting changes in both steady state steering-wheel force and steady state steering-wheel angle were determined as about 15 per cent. The rate of growth in the perception of steady state steering-wheel force and steady state steering-wheel angle were determined using magnitude estimation and magnitude production. It was found that, according to Stevens’ power law, the sensation of steady state steering-wheel force increases with a power of 1.39 with increased force, whereas the perception of steady state steering-wheel angle increases with a power of 0.93 with increased steering-wheel angle. The implications for steering systems are discussed.
Pengaruh Uang Saku Dan Gaya Hidup Terhadap Perilaku Konsumtif Mahasiswa

Human needs always change according to the demands of the times, college students consume goods and services to meet their daily needs. College student income can come from pocket money given by family, scholarships and wages (while working). The action of college students consuming goods and services excessively (wasteful) is consumptive behavior. Factors supporting consumptive behavior include pocket money and lifestyle is defined as how a person does activities, has opinions and has interests. This study aims to determine the effect of pocket money and lifestyle on consumptive behavior in college students of the Faculty of Economics, Padang State of University. This study uses Path Analysis, the results of this study are the factor of pocket money and lifestyle proving that there is a positive and significant influence on the consumer behavior of college students of the Faculty of Economics, Padang State of University. Keywords : consumptive behavior, pocket money, life style.
Size Distribution of Indoor Particulate Matter in 60 Homes in Hong Kong

A detailed size distribution study of particulate matter was performed in 60 homes: 37 homes were studied in the winter and 23 in the summer. Levels of particulate matter were measured using several cascade impactors covering 8 size ranges. In the winter measurements, the mean 24-hour indoor PM2.1 (particle mass 2.1 μm or smaller) and PM10 concentrations were found to be 43.7 and 64.1 μg. m -3, respectively, and the corresponding outdoor levels were 43.0 and 70.1 μg. m-3. In the summer measurement, the mean 24-hour indoor PM2.1 and PM10 concentrations were found to be 27.2 and 43.7 μg. m-3, respectively, and the corresponding outdoor levels were 23.6 and 39.6 μg. m-3. It can be seen that the concentra tion of particulates in summer was appreciably lower than in the winter. The highest peak of concentration (over 20% by mass) was observed in the particulate size range of <0.4 μm both in the indoor and in the outdoor samples. The indoor/outdoor ratio of the particulate level in summer was higher than that in winter over all size ranges implying that indoor generation sources play an important role in keeping the indoor level high. Higher particulate levels were observed in homes with indoor activities such as smoking and incense burning, while lower particulate levels in both the indoor and the out door environments were measured during rain.
Examining the Nexus between Internal Factors and Profitability of Insurance Companies Listed at Kuwait Stock Exchange

Insurance is a form of risk management where it is used to transfer risk from one entity to another for a premium to hedge against any risk of unexpected loss. As a result, the insurance sector is becoming an important part of the financial sector in the world, and Kuwait is no exception. The aim of this study is to investigate the internal factors that mostly affect the profitability of insurance companies listed at the Kuwait stock exchange for the period spanning from 2010 to 2017. The study examines the effect of leverage, liquidity, tangibility, growth, management efficiency, and the size of the company on the most commonly used parameter of measuring the profitability of any company and that is the return on assets (ROA). A panel data collected from the financial statements of the seven companies listed at the stock market were used to examine the effect of the factors on the profitability of these companies. Using ordinary least squares (OLS) regression method, the results showed a statistically significant inverse relation between leverage and the age of the company with profitability while there was a statistically significant direct relation with tangibility and the size of the company. The results also showed that liquidity, growth, and management efficiency did not have a significant effect on the profitability of the insurance companies in Kuwait.
A connectivity signature for glioblastoma

Tumor cell extensions called tumor microtubes (TMs) in glioma resemble neurites during neurodevelopment and connect glioma cells to a network that has considerable relevance for tumor progression and therapy resistance. The determination of interconnectivity in individual tumors has been challenging and the impact of tumor cell connectivity on patient survival remained unresolved so far. Here, a connectivity signature from single-cell RNA-sequenced (scRNA-Seq) xenografted primary glioblastoma (GB) cells was established and clinically validated. Thirty-four of 40 connectivity genes were related to neurogenesis, neural tube development or glioma progression, including the TM-network-relevant GAP43 gene. Astrocytic-like and mesenchymal-like GB cells had the highest connectivity signature scores in scRNA-Seq data of patient-derived xenografts and patient samples. In 230 human GBs, high connectivity correlated with the mesenchymal expression subtype, TP53 wildtype, and with dismal patient survival. CHI3L1 was identified as a robust molecular marker of connectivity. Thus, the connectivity signature allows novel insights into brain tumor biology, provides a proof-of-principle that tumor cell connectivity is relevant for patients’ prognosis, and serves as a robust biomarker that can be used for future clinical trials. Statement of significance Integration of GB cells into functional networks drives tumor progression and resistance. Here, we established and validated a novel connectivity gene expression signature of single GB cells and whole tumors that can be easily applied to clinical and preclinical samples. It is shown that connectivity is determining prognosis combining molecular, functional and clinical insights into the disease.
Energy conservation for wireless ad hoc routing

Self-configuring wireless ad hoc networks have attracted considerable attention in the last few years due to their valuable civil and military applications. One aspect of such networks that has been studied insufficiently is the energy efficiency. Energy efficiency is crucial to prolong the network lifetime and thus make the network more survivable. Nodes in wireless ad hoc networks are most likely to be driven by battery and hence operate on an extremely frugal energy budget. Conventional ad hoc routing protocols are focused on handling the mobility instead of energy efficiency. Energy efficient routing strategies proposed in literature either do not take advantage of sleep modes to conserve energy more efficiently, or incur much overhead in terms of control message and computing complexity to schedule sleep modes and thus are not scalable. In this dissertation, a novel strategy is proposed to manage the sleep of the nodes in the network so that energy can be conserved and network connectivity can be kept. The novelty of the strategy is its extreme simplicity. The idea is derived from the results of the percolation theory, typically called gossiping. Gossiping is a convenient and effective approach and has been successfully applied to several areas of the networking. In the proposed work, we will develop a sleep management protocol from gossiping for both static and mobile wireless ad hoc networks. Then the protocol will be extended to the asynchronous network, where nodes manage their own states independently. Analysis and simulations will be conducted to show the correctness, effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed work. The comparison between analytical and simulation results will justify them for each other. We will investigate the most important performance aspects concerning the proposed strategy, including the effect of parameter tuning and the impacts of routing protocols. Furthermore, multiple extensions will be developed to improve the performance and make the proposed strategy apply to different network scenarios.
Effect of Temperature on the Daily Increment Deposition in the Otoliths of European Sardine Sardina pilchardus (Walbaum, 1792) Larvae

Otolith microstructure analysis is a valuable tool to evaluate the relationship between larval age and growth and how it relates to environmental variability. Otolith growth and daily increment deposition were analyzed in sardine (Sardina pilchardus) larvae reared in the laboratory under different temperatures (13, 15, and 17 °C), with a diet rich in microalgae, rotifers, and copepods Acartia grani. The number and width of growth increments, first-check and otolith diameter were determined in the otoliths and then related to larval age and total length. At hatching, the sagittal otoliths consisted of a lenticular core with a diameter of 10.56 μm (±1.07 μm SD). Somatic growth increased with the increasing temperature and the growth rate of larvae reared at 13 and 15 °C was significantly lower than for larvae reared at 17 °C. At 17 °C, otoliths exhibited a higher diameter with wider increments than at 13 °C. There was a high variability of increment counts-at-age for larvae reared within the same temperature treatment. The increase of growth increments with larval size was higher for larvae reared at 17 °C until 35 days post-hatching than those growing at 15 °C. Scanning electronic microscopy confirmed that increments are deposited daily, with an average width smaller than 1 µm and as low as 0.33 μm, therefore impossible to distinguish using light microscopy. At colder temperatures, larval otoliths had thinner and less marked increments and lower growth rates, which can lead to incorrect age determinations. The effect of temperature on the otolith microstructure can help in identifying strong temperature gradients experienced by wild sardine larvae.
Seismic Consolidation of ’60s Pilotis R.C. Building for Social Housings with SCC-Steel Shear Walls

The reinforcement of a r.c. building for social housing has been achieved by using Steel-Concrete Composite (SCC) walls at the ground floor, preceded by temporary brick pillars for structural deficiency to vertical loads, due to the poor load capacity of the r.c. columns. The SCC walls have been realized first by placing steel columns on both sides of the existing pillars and, after removal of the temporary brick piers, by merging the steel columns in the cast of the new walls. The top of the walls has been connected to the upper floor in order to ensure the diffusion of the seismic forces. Foundations have been reinforced to support the seismic base shear.
Exploring Chinese Consumers’ Online Purchase Intentions toward Certified Food Products during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The outbreak of COVID-19 has significantly increased consumers’ demands for online groceries, as well as healthy, safe, and better-quality food products. In China, certified food products are commonly perceived as safe and good-quality products. Therefore, this study investigated potential factors that influenced Chinese consumers’ online shopping intentions toward certified food during the COVID-19 crisis. An integrated model was proposed by combining the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) with the impact of COVID-19 (IOC). The empirical results of structural equation modelling analysis with 491 usable responses revealed that the proposed model showed a good model fit and satisfactory explanatory power (R2 = 53%) regarding consumers’ certified online food shopping intentions during the pandemic. The path analysis demonstrated that attitude, perceived behavioural control, perceived usefulness (PU), and IOC significantly affected consumers’ online purchase intentions of certified food. PU and perceived ease of use (PEOU) were important drivers of attitudes, and PEOU significantly influenced PU. Moreover, the IOC was significantly related to most factors, except subjective norms. These findings can be useful for detecting changes in consumer behaviour, and providing suitable strategic implications for stakeholders in the Chinese certified food sector during the current and post-pandemic eras.
Prenatal Adversity Alters the Epigenetic Profile of the Prefrontal Cortex: Sexually Dimorphic Effects of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and Food-Related Stress

Prenatal adversity or stress can have long-term consequences on developmental trajectories and health outcomes. Although the biological mechanisms underlying these effects are poorly understood, epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, have the potential to link early-life environments to alterations in physiological systems, with long-term functional implications. We investigated the consequences of two prenatal insults, prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) and food-related stress, on DNA methylation profiles of the rat brain during early development. As these insults can have sex-specific effects on biological outcomes, we analyzed epigenome-wide DNA methylation patterns in prefrontal cortex, a key brain region involved in cognition, executive function, and behavior, of both males and females. We found sex-dependent and sex-concordant influences of these insults on epigenetic patterns. These alterations occurred in genes and pathways related to brain development and immune function, suggesting that PAE and food-related stress may reprogram neurobiological/physiological systems partly through central epigenetic changes, and may do so in a sex-dependent manner. Such epigenetic changes may reflect the sex-specific effects of prenatal insults on long-term functional and health outcomes and have important implications for understanding possible mechanisms underlying fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and other neurodevelopmental disorders.
Radiation Dose to the Lens of the Eye in Medical Staff Performing Fluoroscopy.

The sensitivity of the lens of the eye to radiation has been underestimated for a long time (1). As cataracts have been described even after very low doses, and as there is probably no actual lower threshold limit for lens clouding (2, 3), the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) recommended as early as 2012 to reduce the radiation dose to the lens of the eye to 20 mSv/year (3). The relevant threshold limit in persons professionally exposed to radiation was lowered in Germany from 150 mSv/year to 20 mSv/ year only in 2018 with the Radiation Protection Act (StrlSchG). From 1 January 2022, the radiation dose to the lens of the eye will have to be mandatorily monitored by using special dosimeters and measuring Hp(3) (threshold 20 mSv/year) in accordance with the Radiation Protection Ordinance of 2018. In many users, however, it is unrealistic that the doses relevant for regular monitoring (Hp(3) >15 mSv/year) will be reached, and what is needed is a measuring method that is simple to implement to check for the need for special eye dosimetry. In this study, we investigated to which doses the lens of the eye is likely to be exposed during long periods of performing fluoroscopy, whether adhering to the new threshold of 20 mSv/year is realistic, and whether the personal dosimeter that is usually worn outside the protective clothing (lead apron) enables a conservative estimate of the radiation dose to the lens of the eye—that is, one that avoids underestimates—and is therefore suitable for determining the need for specialist eye dosimetry.
EEG-Based Emotional Video Classification via Learning Connectivity Structure

Electroencephalography (EEG) is a useful way to implicitly monitor the user's perceptual state during multimedia consumption. One of the primary challenges for the practical use of EEG-based monitoring is to achieve a satisfactory level of accuracy in EEG classification. Connectivity between different brain regions is an important property for the classification of EEG. However, how to define the connectivity structure for a given task is still an open problem, because there is no ground truth about how the connectivity structure should be in order to maximize the classification performance. In this paper, we propose an end-to-end neural network model for EEG-based emotional video classification, which can extract an appropriate multi-layer graph structure and signal features directly from a set of raw EEG signals and perform classification using them. Experimental results demonstrate that our method yields improved performance in comparison to the existing approaches where manually defined connectivity structures and signal features are used. Furthermore, we show that the graph structure extraction process is reliable in terms of consistency, and the learned graph structures make much sense in the viewpoint of emotional perception occurring in the brain.
Determination of quality value of cotton fibre using hybrid AHP-TOPSIS method of multi-criteria decision-making

Abstract This paper presents a new multi-criteria decision-making approach to determine the quality value of cotton fibre. Major cotton fibre properties were considered and their relative importance or weights were determined by a typical pair-wise comparison method. Cotton fibres were ranked according to their relative closeness with respect to the best and worst possible alternatives. This ranking was compared with the ranking of yarn tenacity in two different yarn counts. It was found that there is significant agreement between the two rankings.
Ground performance and building response due to tunnelling

The construction of tunnels inevitably causes ground movements that, in the urban environment, present a risk of damage to buildings and structures. The assessment of the degree of risk of such damage is important both from the point of view of engineering design and for planning and consultation purposes. This paper focuses on two important aspects of urban tunnelling: (1) the influence of the tunnelling process on volume loss and (2) the progressive response of buildings to tunnelling-induced subsidence. Extensive use is made of the results of a major cooperative research project into the ground movements and building responses resulting from the construction of the Jubilee Line Extension. Of particular interest from the case study data is the very small values of horizontal strain that were measured above foundation level. For the covering abstract see ITRD E128041.