Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Subcontractor Selection Process Through Vendor Bids: A Case of An Outsourcing Service in Construction

Subcontractors handle a large portion of the work in construction projects. The ability of the general contractor to deliver projects on time, within budget and with the expected level of quality are significantly dependent on the performance of subcontractors. Thus, selecting the right subcontractor for the right task is a determining factor for project success. Literature has identified several criteria for subcontractor selection that predominantly includes financial capacity, ability to complete on time and reputation and quality of workmanship. However, as projects are becoming more global and complex, ensuring selection and award through a fair and competitive formal process becomes imperative. Nevertheless, an understanding of a formal process, backing the selection criteria, seems to be lacking; more so in the context of engineering outsourcing services. Vendor bid analysis is one such service, wherein the general contractor packages the bids received from several subcontractors to a team in a different country who evaluate and enable the general contractor to select and award the subcontractors for project tasks. To this end, an exploratory case study was conducted in an outsourcing firm in India that provide services to general contractors in the USA to understand the formal process of subcontractor selection across organizational boundaries along with its inherent risks and challenges. Data was collected through a participatory research approach, supplemented with participant observation and team interviews which were analysed through inductive reasoning and cross-case comparison methods. The findings showed a formalized 5-phase process across the organizational interface that included assess, identify, evaluate, negotiate and optimize phases. Further, delving into the evaluate, negotiate and optimize phases, the nuances in outsourced projects and the firms strategy to overcome them were evident, such as selection criteria and negotiation strategy adopted in the case of a single bidder with high pricing to mitigate probable bid-rigging practices or ensuring constant training to overcome the challenges due to lack of trade and country specific know-how. In addition, through a reflective approach, the value addition services provided to the general contractor aimed to optimize the process and improve project governance. These findings are expected to provide practical implication for firms in similar business and act as a steppingstone to conduct further robust research.
PLANT REGENERATION VIA ORGANOGENESIS AND SOMATIC EMBRYOGENESIS IN VERBASCUM SINUATUM L.

The genus Verbascum L. belongs to the family Scrophulariaceae and its members are used as medicinal herbs in traditional medicines worldwide. In this study we achieved plant regeneration in Verbascum sinuatum L. via organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis by culture of mature embryos. Embryogenic and nonembryogenic calli were induced from mature embryos on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with different concentrations of benzyl adenine (BA) and α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) (but not for 1.5 and 3 mg l -1 NAA). For multiplication of somatic embryoids and differentiation of shoot buds, yellow and friable embryonic calli were transferred to MS medium containing 30 g/l sucrose, 0.5 mg l -1 charcoal and 0.1 or 1 mg l -1 2,4dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D) or to MS medium containing 60 g l -1 sucrose, 50 mg l -1 casein hydrolysate (CH), 0.5 mg l -1 kinetin (Kin), 5 mg l -1 2,4-D and 0.5 mg l -1 charcoal. Shoot multiplication and plantlet regeneration were achieved by transferring shoot buds to MS medium supplemented with 1 mg l -1 BA or Kin.
Validity and Reliability of the Persian Version of the Fear of Happiness Scale

Background: Certain scales have been designed to measure fear of happiness as a phenomenon that is observed in diﬀerent cultures. Objectives: Thepresentstudywasconductedtoinvestigatethepsychometricpropertiesof thefearof happinessscaleinanIranian sample, and to study this phenomenon in the Iranian culture. Methods: A total of 210 students of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran, including 83 males and 127 fe-males, completed the fear of happiness scale (FHS), the mindful attention awareness scale (MAAS), the fear of negative emotions scale (FNES), and the positive and negative aﬀect schedule (PANAS). The data obtained were analyzed in SPSS and LISREL using conﬁrmatory and exploratory factor analyses, the Pearson correlation and Cronbach’s alpha. Results: The single-factor structure of the main scale was not conﬁrmed in the sample. Conﬁrmatory factor analysis suggested the ﬁttingof thetwofactors,andtheexploratoryfactoranalysisobtainedtwofactors,namely“fearof experiencinghappiness”and“fear of consequences of happiness”, which explained 52.41% of the variance. The Cronbach’s alpha calculated for fear of experiencing happiness was 0.70 and for fear of consequences of happiness was 0.73. Conclusions: Theresultsof thepresentresearchshowedthatIraniancitizenstendtoreduceorsuppresstheirfeelingof happiness owing to their cultural beliefs. Moreover, the psychometric properties of the fear of happiness scale were found to be appropriate in Iranian students.
Comparative risk of serious and fatal treatment-related adverse events caused by 19 immune checkpoint inhibitors used in cancer treatment: a network meta-analysis

Background: This network meta-analysis assessed the comparative risk of grade 3–5 and grade 5 treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) for immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), either alone or in combination with other modalities, for cancer treatment. Methods: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and recent predominant oncology congresses were searched for relevant phase II and phase III randomized controlled trials (RCTs). As outcomes, grade 3–5, and grade 5 TRAE outcomes were reported as odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. Results: In 67 RCTs involving 36,422 patients and 19 ICIs, the incidence of grade 3–5 and grade 5 TRAEs was 17.9% and 0.8% with ICI monotherapy and 46.3% and 1.4%, respectively, with combinatorial therapy. Pneumonitis was the most common cause of grade 5 TRAEs following either monotherapy (16.3%) or combinatorial therapy (11.4%). Regarding grade 3–5 TRAEs, atezolizumab + chemotherapy (CT) and antiangiogenic therapy (AT) (atezolizumab + CAT), pembrolizumab + CT, ipilimumab + CT, and atezolizumab + CT were more toxic than any ICI monotherapy, pembrolizumab or nivolumab + radiotherapy (RT), and ICIs dual therapy (durvalumab + tremelimumab and nivolumab + ipilimumab). Tremelimumab, ipilimumab, durvalumab, and pembrolizumab were, however, associated with higher grade 5 TRAEs than combinatorial treatments. Atezolizumab + CAT was the most toxic and nivolumab + RT was the least toxic of combinatorial treatments; among monotherapies, tremelimumab and avelumab were the most and least toxic, respectively. The toxicity ranking changed with type of grade 3–5 TRAEs. Conclusions: Compared with combinatorial therapy, ICI monotherapy caused lower grade 3–5 TRAEs, but some monotherapies resulted in a higher incidence of fatal TRAEs. Atezolizumab + CAT and nivolumab + RT were the most and least toxic of combinatorial treatments, respectively, and tremelimumab and avelumab were the most and least toxic of the monotherapies, respectively.
Systemic inflammatory burden and local inflammation in periodontitis: What is the link between inflammatory biomarkers in serum and gingival crevicular fluid?

In periodontitis patients, high levels of several inflammatory markers may be expressed in serum, reflecting the effect of local disease on the general health. The objective of the present analysis was to compare cytokine levels assessed in peripheral blood with those in the gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and evaluate the impact of nonsurgical periodontal therapy on the incidence of high levels of 12 biomarkers in serum. Twenty‐four patients with chronic periodontitis (Group P) contributed with serum and GCF samples at baseline (BL) and 1 and 3 months after periodontal treatment (M1 and M3). Samples were assessed for 12 cytokines using the Bio‐Plex bead array multianalyte detection system. For each analyte, peak values were calculated as greater than the mean + 2SD of the one found in 60 periodontally healthy participants. Significant correlations between serum and GCF values were obtained in the periodontitis group for interleukin (IL) 1ra, IL‐6, and interferon γ at BL and for macrophage inflammatory protein 1β at M3 after treatment. Periodontitis subjects were found to exhibit high peaks for several inflammatory markers in serum. The highest incidence of peaks at BL was found for interferon γ (37.5% of the periodontitis subjects). For the four biomarkers with a detection frequency of >75% at BL (IL‐1ra, IL‐8, macrophage inflammatory protein 1β, and vascular endothelial growth factor), no significant difference was observed over time for the P group or between the two groups at BL. The significant correlation found between the serum and the GCF for certain cytokines and the fact that periodontitis subjects exhibit high peaks for several inflammatory markers in serum may support the hypothesis that the inflammatory reaction due to periodontitis is not restricted to the diseased sites. Within the limitations of the study, periodontal therapy did not seem to have any significant impact on the systemic cytokine levels.
The Case for Genetic Engineering of Native and Landscape Trees against Introduced Pests and Diseases

Abstract: Many important native forest trees and familiar landscape trees of the northern temperate zone have been devastated by introduced pests and diseases. Without human intervention, many of these trees will become extinct or endangered. As trade and travel increase, it is likely that further devastating epidemics will occur. To undo the damage that has been done, we suggest limited, cautious transfer of resistance genes from the original host species in the source region of the pest or disease. The transgenic trees can then be replanted in forests or countryside to resume their original ecological niche. This method could have some advantages over tree‐breeding techniques, including introgression. For instance, fewer tree generations would be required and fewer unnecessary genes of the non‐native tree species would be introduced. Furthermore, once the technique is perfected it would be possible to separately add resistance genes to local land races of trees, for reintroduction to their original habitats, without relying on intensive and lengthy local introgression programs. Practical problems with identifying and transferring resistance genes do exist, however, and somaclonal errors might lead to genetically engineered trees that do not resemble their parent in growth form. Nevertheless, we believe that, with further work, this approach may offer a preferable alternative to introgression with non‐native trees.
Real-Time Action Recognition Using Multi-level Action Descriptor and DNN

This work presents a novel approach to the problem of real-time human action recognition in intelligent video surveillance. For more efficient and precise labeling of an action, this work proposes a multilevel action descriptor, which delivers complete information of human actions. The action descriptor consists of three levels: posture, locomotion, and gesture level; each of which corresponds to a different group of subactions describing a single human action, for example, smoking while walking. The proposed action recog - nition method is able to localize and recognize simultaneously the actions of multiple individuals using appearance-based temporal features with multiple convolutional neural networks (CNN). Although appearance cues have been successfully exploited for visual recognition problems, appearance, motion history, and their combined cues with multi-CNNs have not yet been explored. Additionally, the first systematic estimation of several hyperparameters for shape and motion history cues is investigated. The proposed approach achieves a mean average precision (mAP) of 73.2% in the frame-based evaluation over the newly collected large-scale ICVL video dataset. The action recognition model can run at around 25 frames per second, which is suitable for real-time surveil - lance applications.
Validity and Reliability of the Assessment Tool for Asthma (ATA) Questionnaire: the ATA Study.

OBJECTIVES A multicenter trial was designed to validate the "Assessment Tools for Asthma (ATA)" questionnaire, a newly developed questionnaire, which evaluates both asthma control and risk factors associated with asthma control with a single instrument. MATERIALS AND METHODS This cross-sectional study involved 810 cases from 14 clinics in 9 Turkish cities. The ATA questionnaire and Asthma Control Test (ACT) were administered. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS) was used to evaluate the control status of 100 randomized cases. ATA is an eight-item physician-administered questionnaire. It comprises the following two sections-ATA1, assesses symptomatic control criteria, and the remaining section, queries the flare-up of asthma, control of comorbidities, treatment adherence, and inhaler technique. RESULTS The mean scores for ATA1, ATA total, VAS, and ACT were 24.7±14.8, 53.8±19, 7.1±3, and 18.8±5.5, respectively. According to the ATA questionnaire, among all patients, 34.3% had controlled, 18.8% had partly controlled, and 46.9% had uncontrolled asthma. Furthermore, 16.6% patients had flare-ups between visits, 96.4% patients had uncontrolled comorbidity, 17% patients had irregular asthma treatment, and only 8.4% patients used the incorrect inhaler technique. The ATA questionnaire showed internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha coefficient=0.683). ACT, ATA1, and two specialists' evaluations using VAS correlated strongly with the ATA total scores (Spearman correlation coefficient (r) values: 0.776, 0.783, and 0.909, respectively; p-values: p<0.001, p<0.001, and p<0.001, respectively). According to Receiver Operating Characteristic analysis, the cut-off value of ATA was 50 (sensitivity=84.4%, specificity=82.40%). CONCLUSION The validated ATA questionnaire may be a practical tool for physicians in asthma management.
Aphid and host‐plant genotype × genotype interactions under elevated CO2

1. Elevated CO2 can alter plant physiology and morphology, and these changes are expected to impact diet quality for insect herbivores. While the plastic responses of insect herbivores have been well studied, less is known about the propensity of insects to adapt to such changes. Genetic variation in insect responses to elevated CO2 and genetic interactions between insects and their host plants may exist and provide the necessary raw material for adaptation.
Presence of the distinct systems responsible for superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide generation in red tide phytoplankton Chattonella marina and Chattonella ovata

Raphidophycean flagellates, Chattonella marina and C. ovata, are harmful red tide phytoplankters; blooms of these phytoplankters often cause severe damage to fish farming. Previous studies have demonstrated that C. marina and C. ovata continuously produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as superoxide anion (O - 2 ) hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) under normal growth conditions, and an ROS-mediated toxic mechanism against fish and other marine organisms has been proposed. Although the exact mechanism of ROS generation in these phytoplankters still remains to be clarified, our previous study suggested that NADPH oxidase-like enzyme located on the cell surface of C. marina may be involved in O - 2 generation. To investigate the localization of O - 2 and H 2 O 2 generation in C. marina and C. ovata, we employed 2-methyl-6(p-methoxyphenyl)-3,7-dihydroimidazo[1,2-a]pyrazin-3-one and 5-(and-6)-carboxy-2', 7'-dichlorodihydrodihydrofluorescein dictate, acetyl ester, which are specific fluorescent probe for detecting O - 2 and H 2 O 2 , respectively. Observation by fluorescence microscopy of live phytoplankters incubated with each probe revealed that O - 2 is mainly generated on the cell surface, whereas H 2 O 2 is generated in the intracellular compartment in these phytoplankters. When the cells were ruptured by ultrasonic treatment, O 2 levels of C. marina and C. ovata decreased significantly, whereas a few times higher levels of H 2 O 2 were detected in the ruptured cell suspensions when compared with the levels of the live cell suspension. In immunoblotting analysis, the protein recognized by anti-human gp91 phox was detected in both species. These results suggest that, in both phytoplankters, the underlying mechanisms of O - 2 and H 2 O 2 generation may be distinct and such systems are independently operating in the cells.
A Novel Combined Prediction Scheme Based on CNN and LSTM for Urban PM2.5 Concentration

Urban air pollutant concentration prediction is dealing with a surge of massive environmental monitoring data and complex changes in air pollutants. This requires effective prediction methods to improve prediction accuracy and to prevent serious pollution incidents, thereby enhancing environmental management decision-making capacity. In this paper, a new pollutant concentration prediction method is proposed based on the vast amounts of environmental data and deep learning techniques. The proposed method integrates big data by using two kinds of deep networks. This method is based on the design that uses a convolutional neural network as the base layer, automatically extracting features of input data. A long short-term memory network is used for the output layer to consider the time dependence of pollutants. Our model consists of these two deep networks. With performance optimization, the model can predict future particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations as a time series. Finally, the prediction results are compared with the results of numerical models. The applicability and advantages of the model are also analyzed. The experimental results show that it improves prediction performance compared with classic models.
Influence of greenhouse climate and plant density on external quality of chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflorum (Ramat.) Kitamura): First steps towards a quality model

Summary The effects of greenhouse climate and plant density on external quality of chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflorum syn. Chrysanthemum morifolium) are reviewed. The external quality aspects analysed in this paper are stem morphology (length, diameter and “strength”), leaf morphology (number and size) and floweringaspects (number, size and position). Increasing assimilate availability level (e.g. higher light intensity, higher CO2 concentration and/or lower plant density) has a positive effect on several external quality aspects of chrysanthemum. It results in longer stems, more lateral branches, a higher number of flowers and increased flower size per plant. Furthermore, both temperature and daily light integral are the main factors that determine stem elongation and time toflowering. Time to flowering is not affected by the CO2level. In general it can be concluded that eachexternal quality character is influenced by several growing conditions interacting with each other. Therefore, the development of an explanatory model, as a climate control tool to predict and optimize external quality in year-round chrysanthemumproduction, would be of utmost importance. To build such a model detailed and integrated information about chrysanthemum growth and development is needed. This review intends to serve as a starting point for modelling external quality of cut chrysanthemum.
Local Political Institutions and Smart Growth

Using Florida survey data from 2002 and 2007, this article seeks to determine the characteristics of local governments that make them more or less inclined to engage in smart growth-related land-use regulations. The study draws on a range of theoretical traditions to motivate an empirical model of policy adoption, emphasizing the interaction between interest group politics and local political institutions as the primary explanatory factors. In addition, the article differentiates between types of smart growth regulations designed to promote a key smart growth principle—compact development—in terms of their redistributive consequences. The study finds some support for the notion that the adoption of smart growth practices is affected by the activism of interest groups and their interaction with local political institutions.
NOMA-Based Irregular Repetition Slotted ALOHA for Satellite Networks

In this letter, a non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) scheme is employed for irregular repetition slotted ALOHA (IRSA). Specifically, packet replicas are transmitted with discrete power levels, which are pre-determined by the NOMA scheme. In this case, most packet collisions can be resolved in the power domain, contributing to a much lower packet loss rate. Density evolution analysis is formulated and the degree distributions are optimized for different numbers of power levels. The simulation results validate our analysis and show that the proposed scheme can outperform existing IRSA schemes.
Biofilm production by Staphylococcal isolates from chronic osteomyelitis and orthopedic device-related infections in a tertiary care centre, Imphal

Background: Microorganisms growing in a biofilm are associated with chronic, recurrent infections, and health problems for patients with indwelling devices which are difficult to treat with antimicrobial agents. Staphylococcus species are the most common microorganisms isolated from these patients. This study was conducted to detect biofilm production in Staphylococcal isolates from orthopedic device-related infections (ODRI) and chronic osteomyelitis (CO) and correlation of antimicrobial susceptibility pattern between biofilm producers and nonbiofilm producers. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at the Department of Microbiology in a tertiary care center after the Institutional Ethics Committee approval, from October 2014 to September 2016. Detection of biofilm was performed by Congo Red Agar (CRA), tube method (TM), and tissue culture plate (TCP) methods. Antimicrobial susceptibility test was performed by Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method, and minimum inhibitory concentration for oxacillin and vancomycin was determined according to the Clinical Laboratory Standard Institute guidelines. Results: A total of 51 clinical isolates, consisting of 45 Staphylococcus aureus and 6 coagulase-negative Staphylococci (CoNS), were isolated from 47 CO and 4 ODRI patients of which 32 were methicillin-resistant S. aureus and 2 MRCONS. Biofilm production was detected in 22 isolates by TCP, 18 by TM, and 13 by CRA methods. Fifty percent ODRI isolates and 42.5% CO isolates were biofilm producers. The biofilm producers have lower antimicrobial sensitivity pattern in all except vancomycin. Conclusion: Biofilm producers were detected from 43.1% of total isolates with higher antimicrobial resistance pattern.
Correlating dynamic amino acid properties with success rate of crystallization of proteins from Bacteroides vulgatus

To enhance the success rate of protein crystallization, many studies were conducted to determine the relationship between amino acid properties and the success rate of protein crystallization. Although those were successful, new efforts should be made to search for the new factors, which affect protein crystallization. In this study, two dynamic amino acid properties were used to correlate with the success rate of crystallization of proteins from Bacteroides vulgatus, because the amino acid properties used in previous studies were steady. As previously done, logistic regression and neural network were used to model that relationship, and the results were compared against those obtained from each of 532 amino acid properties, which severed as benchmark. The results demonstrated that dynamic amino acid properties should be taken into consideration of protein crystallization. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)