Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Extraction and Characterization of Natural Fibres from Plantain (Musa paradisiaca) Stalk Wastes

Plantain stalks obtained from solid waste stream of Ganmo market in Ilorin was used in this study. Natural fibres extraction from waste plantain stalk was achieved using biological retting methods. The natural fibre was rented from the waste stalk after 24 days of soaking in water. The extracted fibres were exposed to 2, 4 and 6% alkali solution (NaOH) treatment for two hours, washed and dried in the oven for 7 hours. Elemental analysis of raw plantain fibres showed the presence of elements like Indium, Potassium, Silicon and Calcium among others. Tensile strength analysis of the fibres, for single fibre strands showed that the 2% treated fibre showed distinctly promising potential with the highest tensile characteristics of young modulus, stress at break and force at peak of 52864.366N/mm2, 5398.536N/mm2 and 2.650N, respectively. Evaluation of the chemical composition of plantain by FTIR spectroscopy indicated that treatment of natural fibres using NaOH beyond 2% have a negative impact on the plantain fibre properties. Through alkali exposure, the fibre configuration presents small variations in composition. It is consequently apparent that alkali treatment with concentration of less than 2% NaOH is sufficient to remove hemicelluloses and to obtain the optimum tensile effect.
Exploring brand loyalty toward traditional confectioneries in an emerging market

The purpose of this paper is to empirically explore the effects of brand dimensions, including brand image, brand value, brand impact, and brand satisfaction, on the brand loyalty of purchasers in an emerging country, Vietnam. The data were collected using paper-based surveys with a collected total of 310 responses from participants who had purchased traditional confectionery products. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to fully test the proposed hypotheses. The main findings reveal that brand image, brand impact, and brand satisfaction are important drivers of customers' brand loyalty. Among these brand dimensions, brand image is found to have the strongest effect on brand loyalty, while brand value had no impact on brand loyalty. Based on the findings, theoretical and practical implications are suggested for stakeholders, marketers, producers, and policymakers to build customer brand loyalty toward traditional confectioneries. Further research directions are also presented in this study.
Analysis of the aspects affecting sound radiation efficiency based on numerical simulations

The sound radiation efficiency of a vibrating structure is an acoustic descriptor, used both to compare and optimise products, and as input data in prediction models based on statistical energy analysis. Although a published standard for the measurements of the radiation efficiency is not yet available, the proposal ISO/CD 10848-5, regarding laboratory measurement methods to characterise the acoustic radiation of a building element, is currently under evaluation. The radiation efficiency of certain elements clearly depends on their dimension, on the type of excitation, the boundary conditions and the orientation of the baffles surrounding the sample. Moreover, evidence from different studies suggests that several factors related to the test arrangement strongly influence the results. These include the positions over which the vibration response of the tested element is measured, and, when the diffuse sound field approach is used to evaluate the radiated sound power, the number and the arrangement of the positions over which sound pressure levels are measured. The aim of this study is to analyse those aspects which strongly affect the experimental evaluation of the radiation efficiency, based on numerical simulations. To this purpose a homogeneous concrete wall was investigated by means of an FE vibro-acoustic analysis.
THE EFFECT OF TILMICOSIN AND APRAMYCIN ALONE OR TOGETHER IN TREATMENT OF EXPERIMENTALLY INFECTED CHICKENS WITH MYCOPLASMA GALLISEPTICUM ONLY OR WITH ESCHERICHIA COLI

Mycoplasmosis remains one of the most expensive and common diseases facing poultry industry. The presence of Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) predisposes birds to other infections as Escherichia coli which together causes mortality, and sub-optimal performance. Therefore, this study was carried out to evaluate the efficacy of tilmicosin, apramycin and both drugs together on experimentally infected chicken with local field isolates of MG only or with E. coli as CRD and CCRD treatments. The present investigation clarified that infected groups treated with both tilmicosin and apramycin showed additive or synergistic interaction between them, which in turn confirmed the safety use of this combination therapy. The use of the recommended therapeutic dose of tilmicosin (1ml/L) or apramycin (0.5gm/L) alone or in combination for 5 successive days after appearance of the clinical signs are of considerable value in the treatment of MG infection in broiler chickens as antimycoplasmal drugs through displayed valuable improvement in clinical symptoms, survival rate, lesion scoring and termination of infection by the mycoplasmacidal effect of both drugs. The results also indicated that combined tilmicosin-apramycin therapy as antimicrobial drugs gives The Effect Of Tilmicosin And Apramycin Alone Or . Abd El Aziz, M. I. et. , al. Kafr El-Sheikh Vet.Med.J. Vol. 1 No.1 (2003) 941 relatively stable results in the treatment of CCRD in chickens with a superior activity and efficacy than apramycin or tilmicosin alone followed by apramycin in reducing the severity of lesion, mortality rate, E. coli count and improve the general activity of chickens, so it can be used as alternative strategy that may contribute to the treatment programs of CCRD. Co-infected group treated with tilmicosin showed less improvement than other MG and E. coli infected treated groups this returned to its restricted effect on E. coli infection.
The Productivity and Efficiency of Vietnamese Securities Firms, 2009 to 2017

This paper provides an examination of the impact of size, regulation and ownership structure on the productivity and efficiency of 53 securities firms in Vietnam in the years 2009 to 2017. The results show that the size of the firms and regulation has an impact on the performance of the firms. Foreign ownership also has a significant negative correlation with the firms’ efficiency, while majority ownership by domestic Vietnamese, individual shareholders (as opposed to ownership by institutional shareholders) has a positive impact. In contrast, there is no significant correlation between ownership by banks and the productive efficiency of the firms.
Distributional analysis of rural-urban household healthcare expenditure differentials in developing countries: evidence from Ghana

Purpose Equity in access to and use of healthcare resources is a global development agenda. Policymakers’ knowledge of the sources of differences in household healthcare spending is crucial for effective policy. This paper aims to investigate the differences in the determinants of household healthcare expenditure across space and along selected quantiles of healthcare expenditure in Ghana. The determinants of rural-urban healthcare expenditure gap are also explored. Design/methodology/approach Data was obtained from the sixth round of the Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS 6) conducted in 2013. An unconditional quantile regression (UQR) and a decomposition technique based on UQR, adjusted for sample selection bias, were applied. Findings The results indicate that differences in the determinants of household healthcare expenditure across space and along quantiles are driven by individual-level variables. Besides, the rural-urban health expenditure gap is greatest among households in the lower quantiles and this gap is largely driven by differences in household income per capita and percentage of household members enrolled on health insurance policies. Originality/value The findings show that there are differences in the determinants of household health expenditure along with the income distribution, as well as between rural and urban localities, which would call for targeted policies to address these inequalities.
Deciphering Food Hawkerpreneurship: Challenges in Franchising Street Food Businesses in Malaysia

This study investigates the challenges and identifies the critical success factors in transforming traditional hawker food into a franchisable business, principally within the context of Malaysia. This study aims to provide guidelines that could support the process of enterprising traditional street food businesses, especially to assist the mobilization and promotion of hawkerpreneurship for existing traditional food hawkers and future adopters. A total of five hawkerpreneurs and four traditional hawkers were qualitatively assessed through semi-structured interviews. As a result, four critical challenges that both hawkerpreneurs and traditional hawkers encountered were identified, namely: (1) exploring the unknown (2) high capital investment for total “make-over” (3) lack of knowledge in brand repositioning, and (4) resistance to automation and standardization, particularly as a way to retain authenticity. By considering these concerns, young entrepreneurs and financial investors can assess the potentiality and feasibility of hawker food, and identify areas to focus on in running a successful traditional street food business. The results of this study could further assist in developing the support mechanisms and start-up strategies that encourage the adoption of hawker food entrepreneurship among Malaysians.
A new ground-dwelling species of Cnemaspis Strauch (Squamata: Gekkonidae) from the northern Western Ghats, Maharashtra, India

A new species of gecko of the genus Cnemaspis is described from the forests of the Western Ghats region of Maharashtra. Cnemaspis kolhapurensis sp. nov. is diagnosable by the following combination of characters: dorsal scales homogenous, small and feebly keeled; no spine-like tubercles on flanks, ventrals smooth, imbricate, 20–23 scale rows across venter, between lowest rows of dorsal scales. Supralabial I narrowly contacting nasal. Paired postmentals separated by one or two enlarged gular scales. A continuous series of 24–28 precloacal-femoral pores. The continuous series of precloacal and femoral pores exhibited by this species is unique among Indian members of the genus.
“BIDIMENSIONAL AND TRIDIMENSIONAL SAMPLE BASED SYNTHESIS OF VECTORIAL ELEMENTS DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS” Por

We present an efficient method for the synthesis of patterns defined as 2D collections of vector elements. Current solutions to this problem rely on the triangulation of the input space or on statistical measures of the sample to drive the synthesis step. We propose a method applicable to colored textures from regular to stochastic, which provides control over the local density of elements. Also, our results show the same visual quality as previous works. The sample is segmented into groups of similar elements and we use a novel local neighborhood distance metric to compare distinct and incomplete neighborhoods. This metric does not ignore existing unpaired elements. The main synthesis loop consists of a procedural growth, where seeds are replaced by a reference to an element from the sample, generating new seeds until the target space is filled. We also show that this method can be adapted to synthesize textures over surfaces.
MAPPING OUT A CONSTRUCTION INVENTORY WITH (LEXICAL) MAPPING THEORY

In this paper I propose how to model the relation between the meaning and the syntax of lexical items in a way which allows to account for all argument alternations in any language despite the absence of an adequate and complete representation of lexical knowledge for any language. The proposed model assumes an empirical, corpus-based collection of the patterns of participant-to-function mappings for classes of verbs in a given language (such as Levin 1993 and its follow-ups for English) and represents the alternative mappings without committing the grammar writer to represent the speakers’ knowledge of the world. The proposed model can be interfaced with a representation of lexical knowledge when one becomes available. In the interim, the present proposal together with some earlier work on the representation of argument structure (in particular, Kibort 2007, 2008, 2013) can, for the first time, be considered a complete stand-alone tool to create an inventory of constructions involving argument alternations in a language. Since the available argument structure operations are represented in the same way across languages regardless of their realisation, the model should be useful for descriptive and typological studies. It may also be a helpful step forward for computational grammars grappling with how to capture the wide range of argument alternations systematically: although it is far from representing full lexical knowledge, it is sufficient to capture the fact that some alternations are determined by semantic factors, and formally to relate the alternating variants to one another.
Mineralogical study and enhanced gravity separation of gold-bearing mineral, South Eastern Desert, Egypt

El-Hudi gold deposit, located in the South Eastern Desert of Egypt, represent large veintype gold occurrence. The representative sample revealed the abundance of quartz as main constituent with minor amounts of mineral impurities. Gold was detectable (12 g/t) as determined using atomic absorption. The petrographic study revealed that the gold grains ranged from 10-40 μm. The grain boundaries of quartz are highly stained with iron minerals as hematite and limonite. Sericite mineral is common in discrete gold-bearing veins. Eroded pyrite was detected with high alteration leaving only cubic-shaped cavities behind. Different techniques for gravity separation were used to separate gold from the quartz mineral. After crushing and grinding of the sample, shaking table was used to upgrade the coarser fractions while Falcon concentrator was employed to upgrade the fine fraction. The best concentrate was obtained through grinding the whole sample to less than 0.2 mm, followed by cleaning steps. The gold content is increased from 12 to 145 g/t with total recovery of 78%.
Occurrence and ecological implication of a tropical anguillid eel, Anguilla marmorata, in Brunei Darussalam, Borneo Island

Tropical anguillid eels account for two-thirds of the 19 species in Anguilla Schrank, 1798. However, information on the species diversity, geographical distribution, and life histories of the tropical eels is very limited. Recent studies suggested that morphological species identification of the tropical anguillid eels should be validated by molecular analysis for accurate identification. After surveying for three years, two anguillid eels were found in Brunei Darussalam, Borneo Island. They were firstly identified as Anguilla marmorata Quoy & Gaimard, 1824 using morphological analysis and further gene analysis of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) confirmed the species identification. This study is the first comprehensive description of A. marmorata in Brunei Darussalam, Borneo Island. Furthermore, it is also the first study to validate two anguillid eels collected from the tropical Bonin Islands of Japan as A. marmorata by means of morphological and COI analyses. The molecular phylogenetic tree and haplotype network analyses suggest that A. marmorata found in Brunei Darussalam would belong to the North Pacific population of the westernmost distribution.
Positive perceptions of beer consumption among portuguese university students

The abusive consumption of alcohol by college students has negative effects on both individual and public health. Positive expectations about alcohol are related to behaviours and patterns of consumption frequently acquired in adolescence. Objective. This study analyses the impact of individual variables (gender, age at first drink, being away from home, and first option degree course) on beer consumption in first-year college students. The moderating effect of positive perceptions about alcohol consumption will also be considered. Method. The sample comprised 214 first-year college students at a Portuguese public university. Results. Positive perceptions of alcohol consumption had an impact on levels of beer consumption and the rate of beer consumption could be explained by just four student variables: age at first drink, gender, first option degree course, and positive perceptions of alcohol consumption. The indices of model fit were adequate. Conclusions. Interventions targeting reductions of student’s alcohol consumption should consider the effects of positive perceptions of alcohol.
Title Neural modulation of social reinforcement learning by intranasal oxytocin in male adults with high functioning autism spectrum disorder – a randomized trial Authors

Affiliations Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, Germany JARA Brain Institute II, Molecular Neuroscience and Neuroimaging (INM 11), RWTH Aachen & Jülich Research Center, Germany Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM 3), Jülich Research Center, Germany Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Germany Division of Endocrinology and Diabetes, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, Germany Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LVR Klinik Bonn, Germany Department of Neurology, University Hospital Cologne, Germany
Accuracy of body mass index based on self-report data among law enforcement cadets

1Quincy R. Johnson, 2Jillian M. Joyce, 3Filip Kukić1, 4Robert G. Lockie 5Charles L. Kornhauser, 6Robin M. Orr, 1J. Jay Dawes 1Oklahoma State University, School of Kinesiology, Applied Health and Recreation Stillwater, OK, USA 2Oklahoma State University, Department of Nutritional Sciences Stillwater, OK, USA 3Abu Dhabi Police, Police Sports Education Center, United Arab Emirates 4California State University, Department of Kinesiology Fullerton, CA, USA 5Colorado State Patrol Department Headquarters, Golden, CO, USA 6Bond University, Tactical Research Unit, Robina, Qld, Australia
Understanding the Biosynthesis of Phloridzin in Apple

The dihydrochalcone phloridzin is the major phenolic compound found in apple (Malus x domestica) and is present in high concentrations in the bark, roots and leaves. Dihydrochalcones have been been found in very small quantities in other genera but high concentrations of phloridzin are only found in apple. The phloridzin pathway is a branch of the phenylpropanoid pathway and an unknown carbon double bond reductase (CDBR) is believed to be the key branch point enzyme. The primary aim of this thesis was to identify the CDBR enzyme and to gain an understanding of why high concentrations of this dihydrochalcone are unique to apple. Candidate CDBR genes were identified by reference to previously characterised reductases acting on structurally similar substrates. Three classes were identified; alkenal reductases, isoflavone reductases and enoyl CoA reductases. Apple genes sharing sequence similarity to these CDBRs were identified from published ESTs and tested using two over expression systems (stable expression in tt5 Arabidopsis and transient expression in 35S:AtMYB75 tobacco). An RNAi silencing strategy in ‘Royal Gala’ was adopted to test the effects of candidate gene suppression on phloridzin levels. Finally, expression levels of phenylpropanoid genes in the leaves of apple and pear were compared to identify potential expression patterns which might lead to phloridzin production in apple. A total of 13 candidate genes were tested for their role in phloridzin biosynthesis using the strategies described above. One enoyl CoA reductase enzyme (ENRL-3) was able to increase the levels of phloridzin when transiently expressed in 35S:AtMYB75 tobacco leaves. Silencing ENRL-3 in ‘Royal Gala’ led to a 67% decrease in phloridzin levels in the one available silenced line. In addition, an ENRL enzyme closely related to ENRL-3 reduced the putative phloridzin pathway substrate p-coumaroyl CoA. Expression studies and enzyme assays revealed lower CHI (CHALCONE ISOMERASE) transcript and activity levels in apple compared with pear. Futhermore, enzyme assays using ‘Royal Gala’ protein extracts showed the reduction of naringenin chalcone to phloretin, implying the existence of a novel phloridzin pathway branch point at naringenin chalcone. Collectively these results suggest that ENRL-3 contributes to the total pool of phloridzin in apple leaves. However, there may be other enzyme activities which led to phloridzin formation iv in apple. The low CHI expression observed in apple leaves and the ability to form phloretin from naringenin chalcone, instead suggest that a unique metabolite bottleneck exists at this step which results in the formation of high levels of phloridzin seen in apple. This study provides the platform for future studies into phloridzin biosynthesis and in particular elucidation of the newly observed naringenin chalcone reductase activity.
Investigation of the Relationship between Smartphone Addiction and Leisure Satisfaction of University Students

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between smartphone addiction and leisure satisfaction of university students in terms of some variables. In the study, correlational survey research model was used and smartphone addiction and leisure satisfaction of university students were examined with a comparative approach. The population of this study consists of 855 university students studying at two large universities. Smartphone Addiction and Leisure Satisfaction Scales were used to collect research data. Research findings show that leisure satisfaction and smartphone addiction among university students are high. Another finding of the research is that students who participate in active sports, social, artistic and cultural activities have low smartphone addiction. Finally, smartphone addiction among students significantly reduces their leisure satisfaction.
RESPONSES OF TROPICAL PLANTS TO NUTRIENTS AND LIGHT ON A LANDSLIDE IN PUERTO RICO

NED FETCHER, BRUCE L. HAINES,t ROBERTO A. CORDERO, D. JEAN LODGE,*? LAWRENCE R. WALKER,: DENNY S. FERNANDEZ and WILLIAM T. LAWRENCE*? Department of Biology, Box 23360, and * Terrestrial Ecology Division, Center for Energy and Environment Research, University of Puerto Rico, GPO Box 363682, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico, tBotany Department and Institute of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7271 and tDepartment of Biological Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV 89154-4004, USA
Performance of new gladiolus cultivars under the Gangetic plateau of West Bengal conditions

An experiment was conducted to assess the performance of gladiolus cultivars at the Horticultural Research Station, Moundori farm, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, where was nine cultivars tested during two consequentional year 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 under AICRP programme in West Bengal. Among the new cultivars tested, AC.No.7 and Punjab Glad-1may be recommended for quality spike production along with Pusa Kiran, Pusa Subham, Yellow enterprise and Candy Man.