Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Geographical variation in the morphology of the Wedge-tailed Shearwater (Puffinus pacificus)

Abstract Geographical variation in the morphology of the Wedge-tailed Shearwater (Puffinus pacificus) was assessed using multivariate analyses, including MANOVA and canonical discriminant analysis. This study tested the roles of climatic (sea surface temperature) and geographical (latitude, longitude and inter-population distance) factors as potential agents of natural selection on the body dimensions of this geographically variable species. Patterns of morphological variation, represented by phenotypic distances, were found to be unrelated to the geographical proximity of colonies. The Wedge-tailed Shearwater exhibited the trend in body size predicted by Bergmann's Rule, increasing significantly with increasing latitude and decreasing temperature. Allen's Rule proposes that an animal's extremities should be relatively shorter in colder climates, but the data did not support this hypothesis with regards to variation in bill-shape of the Wedge-tailed Shearwater. Owing to the interrelated nature of ecological parameters, such as food, climate, distribution, life history and breeding biology, it is unlikely that a single factor is responsible for the observed morphological variation. However, food, through its influence on competition, dispersal, growth, fecundity and survival, may play an important role in the patterns of morphological variation found in this study. Therefore, the heterogeneity of the foraging habitat over the range of the species may be responsible for the observed variation, owing to differences in the distance required to travel to the feeding grounds and the availability and quality of food.
Marginal basins of the NW Pacific and Eastern Eurasia

ABSTRACT The broad zone between old oceanic lithosphere of the NW Pacific and Eastern Eurasian continental lithosphere is home to a chain of marginal basins. Different from oceans, marginal basins are more influenced by the underlying subduction zone both geophysically and geochemically and are more likely to be blanketed by sediments from the nearby continent. This special issue collects 19 papers that explore the tectonic, magmatic, sedimentary and fluid activity features of marginal basins during rifting, spreading and post-spreading stages. Most papers in this special issue focus on South China Sea marginal basins, where abundant research provides interesting insights into how marginal sea basins evolve. Because South China Sea basins are fully evolved and their key features have not been overprinted by younger deformation, the results of this special issue are very useful for understanding the evolution of other marginal basins.
Establishing past environmental conditions and tracking long-term environmental change in the Canadian Maritime provinces using lake sediments

Freshwater lakes in the Canadian Maritime provinces have been detrimentally influenced by multiple, often synergistic, anthropogenically-sourced environmental stressors. These include surface-water acidification (and a subsequent decrease in calcium loading to lakes); increased nutrient inputs; watershed development; invasive species; and climate change. While detailed studies of these stressors are often hindered by a lack of predisturbance monitoring information; in many cases, these missing data can be determined using paleolimnological techniques, along with inferences on the full extent of environmental change (and natural variability), the timing of changes, and linkages to probable causes for change. As freshwater resources are important for fisheries, agriculture, municipal drinking water, and recreational activities, among others, understanding long-term ecological changes in response to anthropogenic stressors is critical. To assess the impacts of the major water-quality issues facing freshwater.
Programming MOOCs – different learners and different motivation

ABSTRACT MOOCs for learning the basics of programming have become popular among people with a diverse range of backgrounds, interests and learning contexts. Studies show that learners who enrol in MOOCs tend to have different motivation from learners in traditional courses, but it is not known how motivation differs for people with different backgrounds. This study aims to describe how the motivational factors behind enrolment in programming MOOCs relate to learners’ characteristics. The data were gathered in the spring of 2017 with a motivation scale (FIEM) from 1,536 participants of the MOOC ‘About Programming’. Using comparative analysis, differences in motivational factors between groups by gender, employment status and previous experiences in programming were found. Correlational analysis revealed that educational level, age and self-evaluated probability of completing the MOOC were also related to motivational factors. Different people are motivated by different factors, indicating that this knowledge could be used to design interesting and motivating programming MOOCs, which are relevant to learners with various backgrounds.
Rapid targeting and isolation of the -like globin gene cluster fragment from AA, AS and SS genotypes using BamHI restriction enzyme

The β-globin gene cluster contains the β-globin gene on which the substitution of the 17thnucleotide gives rise to sickle cell anemia and other β-globin gene variants with varying severity. Recent therapy measures focus on understanding the structure and mechanism of expression of the β-globin gene. In this study, we attempted to isolate a gene fragment containing the complete set of the human β-globin gene cluster from AA, AS and SS blood types, using the restriction enzyme BamHI which has a recognition site within the 19-kb 3’ cluster region downstream the β-globin gene cluster. DNA fragment size of 69.65 kb was generated by the enzyme from the genome of AS and SS blood types while the fragment generated from the AA blood type was 70.28 kb. Fragments generated using Bam HI was all comparable and close to the documented size of the β-globin gene cluster. In addition to the 69.65 kb fragment generated from the DNA from SS blood type, a novel 5.73 kb fragment was also visualized which was absent in the lanes containing restricted DNA from the AA blood type. Key words: BamHI, beta-globin, genotype, isolation.
Gene Flow and Local Adaptation in Trees

Populations are locally adapted when populations have the highest relative fitness at their home sites, and lower fitness in other parts of the range. Results from the extensive experimental plantations of populations of forest trees from different parts of the range show that populations can survive and grow in broad areas outside the home site. However, intra- and interspecific competition limit the distribution of genotypes. For populations from large parts of the range, relative fitness, compared with the local population, is often highest at the home site. At the edges of the range, this local adaptation may break down. The extent of local adaptation is determined by the balance between gene flow and selection. Genetic differentiation and strong natural selection occur over a range of tens or hundreds of kilometers, but reliable measurements of gene flow are available only for much shorter distances. Current models of spatially varying selection could be made more realistic by the incorporation of strong selection and isolation-by-distance characteristic of tree populations. Many studies suggest that most variation in adaptive traits is based on loci with small effects. Association genetics methods and improved genomic resources are useful for the identification of the loci responsible for this variation. The potential for adaptation to current climate change depends on genetic variation and dispersal and establishment rates.
EFFECT OF BREED AND HOLDING PERIOD ON EGG QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF CHICKEN

The external and internal qualities of 80 fresh eggs from each Barred Plymouth Rock (BPR), White Leg horn (WL), Rhode Island Red (RIR) and White Rock (WR) layers were ascertained in one, seven, fourteen and twenty-one days holding periods. Egg weight was highest in WLH (58.38 g), intermediate in BPR (56.3g) and RIR (55.95g) and lowest in WR (59.60g). Egg length was highest in WLH (5.91 cm), intermediate in BPR (5.86 cm) and RIR (5.71 cm) and lowest in WR (5.62 cm). Egg width was highest in WLH (4.21 cm), intermediate in BPR and WR (4.16 cm) and lowest in RIR (4.13 cm). Shape index was highest in WR (74.10), intermediate in RIR (72.32) and WLH (71.34) and lowest in BPR (71.14). Breaking strength was highest in WLH egg (3.38 kg/cm), intermediate in RIR (3.31 kg/cm) and BPR (2.61 kg/cm) and lowest in WR (2.19 kg/cm) egg. Albumen height of WR, WLH, BPR and RIR egg was 4.66, 4.33, 4.19 and 3.60 mm respectively. Haugh unit was highest in WR (58.68), intermediate in WLH (45.81) and BPR (54.20) and lowest in RIR (45.81). Shell thickness was highest in WLH and RIR (0.35 mm), intermediate in WR (0.32 mm) and lowest in BPR (0.31 mm). There were significant difference among the breeds and holding period for all the egg quality traits except egg width. Breed and holding period interactions were significant for egg length, shape index, albumen height and Haugh unit but not for other traits. The egg weight, egg length, egg width, albumen height and Haugh unit of all breeds were higher in fresh egg that means one days egg but breaking strength and shell thickness were higher in seven days holding period eggs than the other period eggs. The egg weight, egg length, egg width, breaking strength performance is superior in White Leghorn over other breeds. Shape index and albumen height is better in White Rock than other breeds.
Effects of Copper Toxicity on Leaves of Oregano (Origanum vulgare subsp. hirtum)

Abstract The effects of increasing concentrations of soil copper on a number of leaf structural parameters in oregano plants were studied to determine the effect of copper toxicity. Copper-stressed leaves were small and chlorotic and underwent a thickening of their lamina, due principally to an increase in the number and volume of mesophyll cells. The number of stomata and glandular and non-glandular hairs increased significantly. Chloroplasts of mesophyll cells declined dramatically in number and volume. Grana and stroma thylakoids of chloroplasts did not undergo any noticeable alterations, but starch grains disappeared, plastoglobuli became larger and the double membrane limiting the chloroplast became dilated. Leaf chlorosis was determined by total chlorophyll analysis and measurement of the leaf Cu, Fe and Mg content. The effects of copper toxicity on oregano leaves comprised significant structural alterations which reflect reduced metabolic activity.
Mycotoxin co-contamination of food and feed: meta-analysis of publications describing toxicological interactions

Most fungi are able to produce several mycotoxins simultaneously; moreover food and feed can be contaminated by several fungi species at the same time. Thus, humans and animals are generally not exposed to one mycotoxin but to several toxins at the same time. Most of the studies concerning the toxicological effect of mycotoxins have been carried out taking into account only one mycotoxin. In the present review, we analysed 112 reports where laboratory or farm animals were exposed to a combination of mycotoxins, and we determined for each parameter measured the type of interaction that was observed. Most of the published papers concern interactions with aflatoxins and other mycotoxins, especially fumonisins, ochratoxin A and trichothecenes. A few papers also investigated the interaction between ochratoxin A and citrinin, or between different toxins from Fusarium species. Only experiments with a 2×2 factorial design with individual and combined effects of the mycotoxins were selected. Based on the raw publi.
INTRASPECIFIC TRANSFER OF HERBICIDE RESISTANCE IN THE RED MICROALGA PORPHYRIDIUM SP. (RHODOPHYCEAE) VIA PROTOPLAST FUSION

Stable progeny doubly resistant to the herbicides sulfometuron methyl (SMM) and diuron [3‐(3,4‐dichlorophenyl)‐1,1‐dimethylurea] (DCMU) were obtained at a frequency of 2% on fusion of protoplasts derived from mutants of Porphyridium sp. (UTEX 637) that were resistant only to SMM (strain SMR) or DCMU (strain DC‐2). In the presence of both herbicides, only the fusion progeny could grow; both parental mutants were inhibited. In the absence of SMM, the activity of acetohydroxy acid synthase (AHAS) in the wild‐type strain was similar to that in DC‐2, exceeding that of SMR by up to 4.5‐fold. AHAS activities of all fusion progeny were lower than those of the wild‐type strain and DC‐2 but higher than that of SMR. In the presence of SMM, AHAS activities of all tested fusion progeny ranged between those of the two parental mutants. This result indicates that both types of AHAS, the type resistant to SMM and the sensitive type, originating from SMR and DC‐2, respectively, were expressed in the fusion progeny. In the presence of DCMU, the photosynthetic activity of SMR was completely inhibited, whereas that of DC‐2 was unaffected. The photosynthetic activity of the fusion progeny in the presence of DCMU was slightly lower than that of DC‐2. Both the cell volume and the DNA content of the fusion progeny were similar to those of the parents. However, the genetic nature of the fusion products has not yet been elucidated. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on transfer of herbicide resistance via protoplast fusion in algae.
Self-employment, gender, financial knowledge, and high-cost borrowing

ABSTRACT Poor financial decisions are a primary cause of small firm failure. This research therefore reports on an examination of antecedents behind questionable financial borrowing practices among self-employed individuals. Poor financial decisions are proxied as the use of high-cost short-term payday loans, check-cashing services, and the like (collectively, alternative financial services, AFS). More than 20 percent of self-employed individuals in the United States reported having borrowed from AFS providers, a practice that is arguably symptomatic of the poor financial decisions that could lead to business failure. Self-employed individuals, particularly those with high levels of financial self-efficacy (an attribute important to entrepreneurship) are particularly likely to employ AFS borrowing. Overconfident individuals, including self-employed individuals, comprise a disproportionate fraction of AFS users. This work also found that financial knowledge among self-employed people is, on average, no higher than that among employees, and low financial knowledge is also associated with AFS usage. Women, even though generally less financially knowledgeable than men, are relatively less likely than men to use AFS borrowing.
The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Firm Performance

ABSTRACT Using the financial data of listed Chinese companies, we study the impact of COVID-19 on corporate performance. We show that COVID-19 has a negative impact on firm performance. The negative impact of COVID-19 on firm performance is more pronounced when a firm’s investment scale or sales revenue is smaller. We show, in an additional analysis, that the negative impact of COVID-19 on firm performance is more pronounced in serious-impact areas and industries. These findings are among the first empirical evidence of the association between pandemic and firm performance.
Fontes, doses e modo de aplicação de nitrogênio em feijoeiro no sistema plantio direto

ABSTRACT EFFECT OF SOURCES, DOSES AND NITROGEN SPLIT IN WINTER COMMONBEAN IN NO TILLAGE SYSTEM Several works show the efficiency of the nitrogen fertilization in the yield increase common beanyield; however, there is need of new studies, because of the economical point of view, the managementof nitrogen that corresponds the largest yield of grains many times it does not correspond to the mostprofitable and, therefore, it does not fit for recommendation to the producer. The objective of the workwas to study the effect of sources, doses and nitrogen split in the development and yield of winter common ( 1 ) Parte integrante da Dissertacao de Mestrado do primeiro autor. Recebido para publicacao em 3 de outubro de 2006 eaceito em 6 de janeiro de 2009. ( 2 ) Aluno de Pos-graduacao em Sistema de Producao (Doutorado), Faculdade de Engenharia, UNESP – Campus de IlhaSolteira, 15385-000 Ilha Solteira (SP). E-mail flavio_agro@hotmail.com( 3 ) Departamento de Fitotecnia, Tecnologia de Alimentos e Socio-Economia, Faculdade de Engenharia, UNESP – Campus deIlha Solteira. E-mail: arf@agr.feis. unesp.br (*) Autor correspondente; mesa@agr.feis. unesp.br(
Metabolic costs during predator‐induced dielvertical migration of Daphnia

Life-history parameters were determined for a cohort of 60 clonal Daphnia magna grown individually in thermally stratified, 1-m-long flow-through tubes under a constant high-food regime (2.0 mg C liter−1). The individuals could migrate freely in the tubes and their depth was noted at regular intervals. Half of the tubes received water from a reservoir containing a fish. The animals in these tubes stayed deep during the day and higher at night, thus showing a “normal” diel vertical migration behavior. The other half of the tubes was supplied with the same water, but free of fish. The individuals in this set exhibited no diel migration, but stayed in the warm upper strata day and night. The migrating animals in the fish-treated set grew at rates (0.21 d−1) only a third those of individuals in the no-fish treatment (0.57 d−1). Most of the difference between the treatments can be attributed to the lower temperatures experienced by the migrating individuals. However, an experiment with no thermal stratification showed that the chemical presence of fish in the water can significantly retard Daphnia growth.
How Do Firms Respond to COVID-19? First Evidence from Suzhou, China

ABSTRACT In this article, daily electricity usage data for 34,040 enterprises in Suzhou (China) were examined for economic activity associated with the response to COVID-19. Employing a difference-in-differences estimation model, we find that the manufacturing industry incurred the greatest negative effect while industries such as construction, information transfer, computer services and software, and health care and social work were positively impacted by COVID-19. Private firms suffered more than state-owned enterprises and foreign-owned firms, and smaller firms experienced an additional 30% decline compared to large-sized firms.
Stink bugs on soybean in northeastern Brazil and a new record on the southern green stink bug, Nezara viridula (L.) (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae)

Durante os meses de marco e abril de 2001, conduziram-se levantamentos da populacao de percevejos pentatomideos em soja [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] no Nordeste brasileiro (Balsas  Maranhao  latitude 7°31'S e longitude 46°02'W). A maioria (82,4%) dos percevejos fitofagos coletados foi da especie Euschistus heros (F.). Outras seis especies de percevejos foram coletadas em numero menor (<5,0%). Dentre elas, coletou-se pela primeira vez na regiao a especie exotica, Nezara viridula (L.), caracterizando um novo registro e ampliando a sua distribuicao na Regiao Neotropical.
Evolution of a barley composite cross-derived population: an insight gained by molecular markers

SUMMARY Many studies have highlighted the continuously increasing need for genetic diversity in the field; nonetheless, plant breeding is still predominantly generating uniform cultivars. Evolutionary plant breeding offers the possibility of reconciling agro-biodiversity, high yields and adaptation to climate change. However, the diversity that can be conserved in heterogeneous populations, its evolution and the potential of ‘evolutionary breeding’ in the actual scenario of climate change is still a matter of debate. In the present study, a total of 147 barley individuals, 56 from seven parental populations (PPs) and 91 from the composite cross-derived population (CCP) resulting from their inter-crossing were genotyped at 22 Simple Sequence Repeat (SSR) loci with the objective of obtaining insights into how genetic diversity evolved in the field during 13 years of multiplication. A total of 92 different alleles were detected in the PP and 100 in the CCP. Results showed that the composite individuals are grouped into five major clusters differing for both the number of individuals and the relative level of genetic diversity. The mean values of the most common descriptors of genetic diversity were not significantly different between the parental and the composite populations. However, analysis of molecular variance showed some degree of differentiation between the two populations suggesting that evolution occurred during the years of multiplication and selection effects were detected for some loci. The SSR loci detected as putatively under selection in the present study have already been reported as co-localized with quantitative trait loci for adaptedness traits or tagging genes related to abiotic stress response. According to the current results, evolving crop populations, which have the capability of adapting to the conditions under which they are grown, can be useful in conserving genetic diversity and as sources of genes for breeding purposes in particular in the actual scenario of climate change.
Soil organic carbon stocks in southeast Germany (Bavaria) as affected by land use, soil type and sampling depth

Precise estimations of soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks are of decided importance for the detection of C sequestration or emission potential induced by land use changes. For Germany, a comprehensive, land use–specific SOC data set has not yet been compiled. We evaluated a unique data set of 1460 soil profiles in southeast Germany in order to calculate representative SOC stocks to a depth of 1 m for the main land use types. The results showed that grassland soils stored the highest amount of SOC, with a median value of 11.8 kg m−2, whereas considerably lower stocks of 9.8 and 9.0 kg m−2 were found for forest and cropland soils, respectively. However, the differences between extensively used land (grassland, forest) and cropland were much lower compared with results from other studies in central European countries. The depth distribution of SOC showed that despite low SOC concentrations in A horizons of cropland soils, their stocks were not considerably lower compared with other land uses. This was due to a deepening of the topsoil compared with grassland soils. Higher grassland SOC stocks were caused by an accumulation of SOC in the B horizon which was attributable to a high proportion of C‐rich Gleysols within grassland soils. This demonstrates the relevance of pedogenetic SOC inventories instead of solely land use–based approaches. Our study indicated that cultivation‐induced SOC depletion was probably often overestimated since most studies use fixed depth increments. Moreover, the application of modelled parameters in SOC inventories is questioned because a calculation of SOC stocks using different pedotransfer functions revealed considerably biased results. We recommend SOC stocks be determined by horizon for the entire soil profile in order to estimate the impact of land use changes precisely and to evaluate C sequestration potentials more accurately.