Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Is the Right to Housing Being Realized in Canada? Learning from the Experiences of Tenants in Affordable Housing Units in a Large Canadian City

Background: Housing is a critical determinant of health and a basic human right. Historically, Canada’s housing policies have not been grounded in a human rights-based approach. In the 1990s, a policy shift prioritized efficiency in government spending and deficit reductions over the provision of many social programs including affordable housing. With various levels of government now acknowledging and recognizing the need for more affordable housing, it is important to understand tenant experiences, perspectives, and needs to ensure policies and practices are supporting individuals appropriately. Methods: In total, 161 individuals participated in this study by completing online or in-person questionnaires. Results: Exploratory analysis of results revealed that although there were some positive benefits to affordable housing, many tenants continued to struggle financially, physically, mentally, and emotionally without adequate supports in place. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for affordable housing to be part of a system of care that provides supports along a continuum. The results further reiterate that placing a person or family in affordable housing does not guarantee that their lives have improved. Without robust affordable housing models that prioritize the empowerment of individuals and families, housing policies may fail to fulfil the right to safe and affordable housing for Canadians, especially when considering historically marginalized populations.
Abnormal Returns around Mergers and Acquisitions in the Nepali Stock Market

A merger includes two relatively equal entities that are combined to form one legal entity worth more than a sum of its two separate parts. In the last few years, many Nepali financial institutions have been consolidating through mergers and acquisitions. This paper aims to investigate how the stock market reacts when financial institutions announce mergers and acquisitions. This paper also examines the impact of crosssectional variables on the abnormal returns obtained around merger announcements. The study covers 22 successful merger deals that occurred among 48 financial institutions over the period of 2004 to 2013. This paper used the event study method based on the market model to derive abnormal returns associated around the merger announcement date. The event dates are specified as the dates on which the mergers and acquisitions were announced. The results show that leaving a very few exceptional cases, none of the merged financial institutions received significant cumulative abnormal returns on the merger announcements, regardless of the use of different event periods. The cross-sectional regressions show that the pre-merger performance of target and relative market value are the significant influencing variables on acquirers' cumulative abnormal returns. The finding implies that Nepali financial institutions merge merely to increase their capital base without producing any synergistic effect. Therefore, they need strategic plans for choosing the right partner and achieving other benefits like synergy effect, economies of scale and cost reduction from mergers and acquisitions.
Emergent Morphology in Child Homesign: Evidence from Number Language

ABSTRACT Human languages, signed and spoken, can be characterized by the structural patterns they use to associate communicative forms with meanings. One such pattern is paradigmatic morphology, where complex words are built from the systematic use and re-use of sub-lexical units. Here, we provide evidence of emergent paradigmatic morphology akin to number inflection in a communication system developed without input from a conventional language, homesign. We study the communication systems of four deaf child homesigners (mean age 8;02). Although these idiosyncratic systems vary from one another, we nevertheless find that all four children use handshape and movement devices productively to express cardinal and non-cardinal number information, and that their number expressions are consistent in both form and meaning. Our study shows, for the first time, that all four homesigners not only incorporate number devices into representational devices used as predicates , but also into gestures functioning as nominals, including deictic gestures. In other words, the homesigners express number by systematically combining and re-combining additive markers for number (qua inflectional morphemes) with representational and deictic gestures (qua bases). The creation of new, complex forms with predictable meanings across gesture types and linguistic functions constitutes evidence for an inflectional morphological paradigm in homesign and expands our understanding of the structural patterns of language that are, and are not, dependent on linguistic input.
Species delimitation within the colonial flagellates Uroglena, Uroglenopsis and Urostipulosphaera (Chrysophyceae)

ABSTRACT Until recently, there was no agreement on species delimitation within the morphologically similar chrysophycean genera Uroglena, Uroglenopsis and Urostipulosphaera. In this study, we aimed at a modern taxonomic revision based on the combination of morphological characters (ultrastructure of cysts, cell and colony features) and a multigene phylogeny (SSU, ITS rDNA and rbcL sequences), with ecology taken into account. Of more than 650 explored localities, only approximately one in 10 hosted a viable and detectable population of these colonial chrysophytes at the time of sampling. We established and examined 189 short-term cultures along with single colony isolates, derived mostly from blooming or encysting populations. We obtained the cyst morphology for four species and two lineages of Uroglena, two species of Uroglenopsis, and four species of Urostipulosphaera. A total of 12 resolved lineages could be attributed to previously described species or new species (Uroglena imitata sp. nov., Urostipulosphaera granulata sp. nov.). Based on our molecular analyses and morphological observations, we assign all the previously described Uroglena-like taxa to newly recognized genera and propose a key to identification. Consequently, Uroglena now includes 16 species and two varieties, Uroglenopsis contains four species and Urostipulosphaera encompasses nine species. Within Uroglena and Urostipulosphaera, species are defined by the ultrastructure of their cysts. On the contrary, as Uroglenopsis has simple cysts, species are defined by cell and colony characteristics.
Agency costs in the market for corporate control: evidence from UK takeovers

Purpose: This paper examines whether agency costs predict disciplinary takeover likelihood for UK listed companies between 1986 and 2015. Design/Methodology/Approach: Using survival analysis, our approach is to identify candidates for disciplinary takeover on the basis of Tobin’s Q (TQ), which is consistent with the approach advocated by Manne (1965). We then examine how indicators of agency costs affect takeover likelihood within the set of disciplinary candidates. Findings: We provide evidence of the effectiveness of Tobin’s Q, rather than excess return, in identifying disciplinary takeover candidates. Takeover hazard for disciplinary candidates is higher for companies with higher levels of asset utilization and sales growth in particular. Companies with stronger agency problems are relatively less susceptible to disciplinary takeover. Practical Implications: Given the UK context of our study, where anti-takeover provisions are disallowed, and when compared to findings of US studies, our results imply some support for the effectiveness of an open merger policy. Originality/Value: While the connection between takeover likelihood and the market for corporate control has been made in previous studies, our study adopts a more explicit agency theory framework than previous studies of takeover likelihood. A key component of our contribution follows from differentiating candidates for disciplinary takeovers from other forms of M&A.
Exploring controls of the early and stepped deglaciation on the western margin of the British Irish Ice Sheet

New optically stimulated luminescence dating and Bayesian models integrating all legacy and BRITICE‐CHRONO geochronology facilitated exploration of the controls on the deglaciation of two former sectors of the British–Irish Ice Sheet, the Donegal Bay (DBIS) and Malin Sea ice‐streams (MSIS). Shelf‐edge glaciation occurred ~27 ka, before the global Last Glacial Maximum, and shelf‐wide retreat began 26–26.5 ka at a rate of ~18.7–20.7 m a–1. MSIS grounding zone wedges and DBIS recessional moraines show episodic retreat punctuated by prolonged still‐stands. By ~23–22 ka the outer shelf (~25 000 km2) was free of grounded ice. After this time, MSIS retreat was faster (~20 m a–1 vs. ~2–6 m a–1 of DBIS). Separation of Irish and Scottish ice sources occurred ~20–19.5 ka, leaving an autonomous Donegal ice dome. Inner Malin shelf deglaciation followed the submarine troughs reaching the Hebridean coast ~19 ka. DBIS retreat formed the extensive complex of moraines in outer Donegal Bay at 20.5–19 ka. DBIS retreated on land by ~17–16 ka. Isolated ice caps in Scotland and Ireland persisted until ~14.5 ka. Early retreat of this marine‐terminating margin is best explained by local ice loading increasing water depths and promoting calving ice losses rather than by changes in global temperatures. Topographical controls governed the differences between the ice‐stream retreat from mid‐shelf to the coast.
Identification and quantification of phenolic compounds in grapes.

Grapes are a major source of phenolic compounds. Phenolic compounds play an important role in the quality of grapes and wines, and the antioxidant activity of grapes has been positively correlated with their phenolic composition. This work was focused on the identification of phenolic compounds in the fruit extracts of ‘Norton’, also known as ‘Cynthiana’ grapes (Vitis aestivalis). Identification and quantification were performed using high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS TOF) with an electrospray ionization interface in negative mode ion. Detection was carried out at 280 and 320 nm. Cactechin, epicatechin, isoremnetin, siringic acid, caffeic acid, gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, miricetyn, hidroxybenzoic acid, quercetyn, stilbenes, such as resveratrol, pteroestibene, transpiceid, piceatannol and E-viniferin were identified in the extract, and caffeic acid, gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, miricetyn, hidroxybenzoic acid and quercetyn were also quantified. The major concentrations found were of epicatechin, caffeic acid and catechin, followed by protocatechuic acid, hidroxybenzoic acid, gallic miricetyn and quercetyn corresponding to 1.9065, 1.4506, 1.2131, 0.2424, 0.0835, 0.0529, 0.0297, 0.0030 ug/g dry weight, respectively.
The Transmission Flow of Pottery in Malang as the Representation of Art Education

This research aimed to analyze the flow of transmission for pottery skills in three centers of pottery in Malang: Penanggungan. Glanggang and Pagelaran Village. A qualitative approach was used through the phenomenology research design. The researchers conducted in-depth interviews and observations, and studied references. After the data were collected, they were reduced, presented, and verified. Triangulation was carried out to determine the validity of the data. Data were analyzed using the interactive model. This research produced two flows of pottery transmission. In the first flow, traditional pottery craftsmen in Malang transmit the traditional pottery skills from parents to their biological children; however, in the development, it can be transmitted to the wife/husband and/or to the child in law. In the second flow, creative pottery skills in Malang are transmitted from instructors to craftsmen through education and training; however, not all craftsmen who complete the education and training will always be a creative craftsman. The picture of flow of transmission for the pottery represents the implementation of arts education in the society. Keywords: flow of transmission, Malang pottery, representation of arts education
Attitudinal and behavioural indices of the second demographic transition: Evidence from the last three decades in Europe

The Second Demographic Transition (SDT), which links ideational changes with demographic developments, is among the most prominent and debated theoretical frameworks in family demography. Yet, the existing attempts to operationalise it as a composite set of measures remain unevaluated. We evaluate two existing SDT indices: attitudinal and behavioural. We assess how strongly they have been linked to each other in the last three decades in Europe and test their consistency over time. Using four waves of the European Values Study and publically available demographic indicators for 23 European countries, we reconstruct, update, and evaluate the SDT indices. The attitudinal index measures postmaterialism, gender-egalitarianism, and religiosity. The behavioural index includes indicators of postponement, nonmarital childbearing, marriage, and divorce. The correlation between the attitudinal and behavioural indices is positive, but its strength varies substantially over time. The behavioural index is heavily determined by age at first marriage and at first birth, and only weakly correlated with marriage and divorce rates. The internal consistency of the attitudinal index is unstable over time. The strong link between the two SDT indices is driven by a correlation between the attitudinal index and two demographic postponement measures. As the strength of the correlation varies, conclusions based on cross-national data for a single year may be misleading. We show that the ideational and demographic changes posited by the SDT should not be treated as a package. Their operationalisation should take into account their multidimensionality. To facilitate future research, we provide ready-to-use indicator and index values used in the analysis.
Adherence to Land use Zones in Implementation of Participatory Village Land use Planning Policy in Ulanga District in Tanzania

Proper implementation of land use planning may contribute to solving land use problems, including land use conflicts. Adherence to land plans depends on many factors which vary according to circumstances of a study area. The present study aims to contribute to knowledge needed to enhance adherence to zones in land use planning. Specifically, the study had two objectives, namely: (1) to examine extent of adherence to village land use plans and, (2) to assess factors that influence adherence to the village land use plans. Data were collected through household survey of 120 respondents from two villages, key informants, focus group discussions, field observation, review of guidelines for land use planning, village land use plans (VLUPs), district land use framework, books and journal articles. GPS points to examine adherence to VLUPs were analyzed using Kappa statistic. Factors influencing adherence to VLUPs were analysed using binary logistical regression and pair-wise ranking. There was moderate adherence with kappa coefficient of 0.47 and Original Research Article Naiposha and Nzunda; AJEE, 15(2): 15-30, 2021; Article no.AJEE. 68956 16 0.49 for Iragua and Kichangani villages. Larger families with higher incomes were more likely not to adhere to land use plans. Immigrants were also more likely not to adhere to plans than residents. Corruption of village leaders, lack of follow up by village leaders on implementation, lack of awareness on land use plans and underestimated population growth were the key prioritised factors that resulted in non-adherence of land use plans. The study recommends a review of the zoning standards to enhance sufficiency of allocated zones; privatization of grazing land; establishment of communal grazing management plans; and involvement of communities in developing complete plans. The study also recommends close monitoring; reviewing of VLUPs; enforcement of good governance; establishing incentive schemes; offering continuous education and developing participatory implementation framework.
Flexible Electricity Dispatch of an Integrated Solar Combined Cycle through Thermal Energy Storage and Hydrogen Production

In this work, the flexible operation of an Integrated Solar Combined Cycle (ISCC) power plant has been optimized considering two different energy storage approaches. The objective of this proposal is to meet variable users’ grid demand for an extended period at the lowest cost of electricity. Medium temperature thermal energy storage (TES) and hydrogen generation configurations have been analyzed from a techno-economic point of view. Results found from annual solar plant performance indicate that molten salts storage solution is preferable based on the lower levelized cost of electricity (0.122 USD/kWh compared to 0.158 USD/kWh from the hydrogen generation case) due to the lower conversion efficiencies of hydrogen plant components. However, the hydrogen plant configuration exceeded, in terms of plant availability and grid demand coverage, as fewer design constraints resulted in a total demand coverage of 2155 h per year. It was also found that grid demand curves from industrial countries limit the deployment of medium-temperature TES systems coupled to ISCC power plants, since their typical demand curves are characterized by lower power demand around solar noon when solar radiation is higher. In such scenarios, the Brayton turbine design is constrained by noon grid demand, which limits the solar field and receiver thermal power design.
Analysis of the Bimaterial Interface Cracks Based on Configurational Forces

In this paper, an innovative interface fracture criterion is proposed based on the concept of configurational forces in material space. In this criterion, the crack-tip configurational forces as the driving force are introduced to describe the interface crack evolution under mixed-mode loading conditions. And it assumes that the interface crack propagates due to the competition of resultant configurational forces with interface fracture toughness. The analytical expression of the configurational forces is obtained by differentiating the elastic strain energy density and conservative integral for interface cracks. And the relation of interface crack-tip configurational forces with classical complex intensity factors is obtained through strict mathematical deduction. The interface crack-tip configurational forces are evaluated for a classic interface crack problem covering a wide range of bimaterial oscillation indexes. The configurational forces-based interface fracture criterion is validated through series interface fracture experiments. The proposed criterion may provide a novel framework for the analysis of interface fracture under complex loading conditions.
Concomitant central venous sinus thrombosis and subdural hematoma in acute promyelocytic leukemia: middle meningeal artery embolization enables safe anticoagulation. Illustrative case

BACKGROUND Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) has long been associated with coagulation disorders. The proposed mechanism is a combination of fibrinolysis, proteolysis, platelet dysfunction, thrombocytopenia, and possibly disseminated intravascular coagulation. Hemorrhagic complications are prominent. OBSERVATIONS In this case, a 25-year-old female with newly diagnosed APL developed extensive cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) and was initiated on a protocol with idarubicin and all-trans retinoic acid. The general recommendation for treating CVT is anticoagulation to stabilize the existing thrombus and prevent propagation. The patient was initiated on a heparin drip, but her clinical course was complicated by subdural hemorrhage (SDH) and epidural hemorrhage in the setting of thrombocytopenia. Anticoagulation was held, and her CVT propagated on follow-up imaging. To restart anticoagulation for CVT with a limited risk of SDH, the authors pursued middle meningeal artery (MMA) embolization. The patient was transitioned to apixaban and discharged to home. LESSONS MMA embolization enables safe anticoagulation in patients with concomitant CVT and SDH. The authors report the complex clinical course and effective management of this rare clinical scenario.
Hydraulic-seasonal-time-based state space model for displacement monitoring of high concrete dams

Displacement is the most intuitive reflection of the comprehensive behavior of concrete dams, especially the time effect displacement, which is a key index for the evaluation of the structural behavior and health status of a dam in long-term service. The main purpose of this paper is to establish a state space model for separating causal components from the measured dam displacement. This approach is conducted by initially proposing two equations, which are the state and observation equations, and model parameters are then optimized by the Kalman filter algorithm. The state equation is derived according to the creep deformation of dam concrete and foundation rock and is used to preliminarily predict the dam time effect displacement. Considering the generally recognized three components of dam displacement, the hydraulic-seasonal-time (HST) model is used to establish the observation equation, which is used to update the time effect displacement. The efficiency and rationality of the established state space model is verified by an engineering example. The results show that the hydraulic component separated by the state space model only contains the instantaneous elastic hydraulic deformation, while the hysteretic elastic hydraulic deformation is divided into the time effect component. The inverted elastic modulus of dam body concrete is an instantaneous value for the state space model but a comprehensive reflection of the instantaneous and hysteretic elastic deformation ability for the HST model, where the hysteretic elastic deformation is a part of the hydraulic component. For the Xiaowan arch dam, the inverted values are 42.9 and 36.7 GPa for the state space model and HST model, respectively. The proposed state space model is useful to improve the interpretation ability of the separated displacement components of concrete dams.
A Way to Membrane-Based Environmental Remediation for Heavy Metal Removal

During the last century, industrialization has grown very fast and as a result heavy metals have contaminated many water sources. Due to their high toxicity, these pollutants are hazardous for humans, fish, and aquatic flora. Traditional techniques for their removal are adsorption, electro-dialysis, precipitation, and ion exchange, but they all present various drawbacks. Membrane technology represents an exciting alternative to the traditional ones characterized by high efficiency, low energy consumption and waste production, mild operating conditions, and easy scale-up. In this review, the attention has been focused on applying driven-pressure membrane processes for heavy metal removal, highlighting each of the positive and negative aspects. Advantages and disadvantages, and recent progress on the production of nanocomposite membranes and electrospun nanofiber membranes for the adsorption of heavy metal ions have also been reported and critically discussed. Finally, future prospective research activities and the key steps required to make their use effective on an industrial scale have been presented