Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of Perches at Different Positions in Conventional Cages for Laying Hens of Two Different Strains

Production, health and behaviour were studied in 648 White Leghorn hens of two strains, LSL and Shaver 288, housed in three-tier battery cages (four hens per cage, 600 cm2 per hen) with three treatments; two with a perch fitted across the cage, 17 (PB) or 24 cm (PC) from the back of the cage, respectively, and control cages without perch (NP). Introducing a perch did not significantly affect production, but PC gave more dirty eggs, and both PC and PB tended to give more cracked eggs. The perch caused inferior keel bone condition and hygiene of the cage floor and a stronger tibia. LSL hens showed higher production, better feed conversion ratio, fewer cracked eggs, better keel bone health and shorter claws than Shavers. Use of the perch averaged 25 and 90% during day and night, respectively. The perch did not significantly affect other behaviours. There were significant interactions between strain and cage design regarding laying percentage, egg weight, cracked eggs, live weight, foot- and perch hygiene, ke.
Proximate determination of clutch size in lesser black-backed gulls : the roles of food supply and body condition

Though many authors have demonstrated an adaptive relationship between food supply or territory quality and clutch size, the proximate mechanism by which clutch size is determined remains largely unknown. A series of supplementary feeding experiments on lesser black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus) is used in conjunction with a new technique to measure pectoral muscle protein levels in live birds to investigate the relationships between food supply, body condition, and clutch size. Comparisons across treatments revealed a positive relationship between the level of flight muscle protein at the start of laying and clutch size, but not egg size. In a year when the clutch sizes of unfed birds were reduced, suggesting low food availability, gulls provided with a protein supplement had higher levels of flight muscle protein at the start of laying and laid larger clutches than birds that received no food supplement. In contrast, gulls provided with an additional energy source (fat) did not attain higher protein level.
Stress Response of Juvenile Beluga, Huso huso, to Light and Tank Colors

Effects of light and tank colors on stress response of juvenile beluga sturgeon, Huso huso, was investigated by the measurement of some sero-haematological parameters and carcass chemical analysis. The analysis was based on the responses of 64 specimens (initial weight 98.83 ± 1.42 g) reared under white, red, green, or blue light, and 48 specimens reared in white, black, or blue tanks, all for 12 weeks. Blue/green light and black tanks produced positive effects on cortisol that can be related to physiological condition and stress.
Dyeing of Innovative Bicomponent Filament Fabrics (PET/PTT) by Disperse Dyestuffs: Characterization and Optimization Process

PET/PTT bicomponent filaments yarn is produced by two polymers: the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and the polytrimethylene terephtalate (PTT) extruded side by side. This yarn is known for its high mechanical properties in particular elasticity and elastic recovery. However, differences between physical and chemical properties of the two components make the dyeing step of this yarn complicated. The aim of this work is the development of a dyeing process for bicomponent filaments without altering their physical and chemical properties. Different techniques such as SEM, FTIR, and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used to characterize the studied yarn. For dyeing, three different disperse dyes CI Disperse Red 167.1, CI Disperse Yellow 211, and CI Disperse Red 60 with different energy classes were studied. The influence of dyeing conditions in particular dyeing temperature, pH of dye bath, dyeing time, and carrier concentration in the dye bath was evaluated. Responses analyzed are color strength (K/S), colorimetric coordinates and color fastness of samples dyed with studied dyes. In addition, the stability of elasticity and elastic recovery of bicomponent filament fabrics after the dyeing process has been also verified and proved.
The systematic position of the Miocene anatid Anas[?] blanchardi Milne-Edwards

ABSTRACT Anas[? ] blanchardi (Milne-Edwards, 1863), an abundantly represented fossil duck from the lower Miocene of Saint-Gerand-le-Puy, Allier, France, has been recognized as systematically problematic in recent decades. Most recently, Cheneval (1983b) moved this fossil and closely related forms to Dendrochen (Miller, 1944), a purportedly dendrocygnine genus from the lower Miocene of South Dakota. We reexamined blanchardi using characters shown to be of phylogenetic utility in a recent phylogenetically analysis of the Anseriformes (Livezey, 1986). This reappraisal showed that blanchardi diverged from the rest of the Anatidae after Dendrocygna but before Stictonetta. A single “best” branching sequence for the included taxa—blanchardi, Thalassornis, and the Anserinae (geese and swans)—is not possible at present. Several possibly convergent characters indicate that blanchardi was moderately specialized for diving. We conclude that blanchardi (and provisionally its close relatives Anas[? ] consobrina and Anas[.
A systems approach for green public procurement implementation

This paper aims to identify important factors in green public procurement (GPP) implementation and then to clarify how these factors affect GPP implementation. ,The authors applied the Delphi method first and then conducted a focused and constrained multiple case study at 18 government procurement centers across China. ,The authors identified four clusters of factors for successful GPP implementation: more clear, consistent and operational policy goals; a nation-wide green procurement campaign to enhance social capital and cultural resources; promoting staff’s ethics, professionalism, capacity and knowledge; and establishing checks and balances among organizations involved in the whole purchasing process. ,GPP can significantly improve environmental protection and sustainable development. ,Based on key insights from systems theory and agency theory, the authors emphasize that GPP implementation must take down its own functional silos and adopt a process approach across organizational tiers to synchronize human resource based and inter-organizational capabilities into a unified whole through information sharing, communications and collaboration.
Dynamic Interactions of Nigerian Stock Market and Macroeconomic Variables

This study investigated the Dynamic Interactions of Nigerian Stock Market and Macroeconomic Variables with annual data collected from the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigerian Stock Exchange Fact Books and National Bureau of Statistics from 1985 to 2018. It was found that economic growth proxied by Growth Domestic product and Interest rate have positive and significant relationship with all share index within the period of study, while inflation exerts negative influence on All Share Index. It was also found that exchange rate has insignificant impact on All Share Index within the scope of the study. Consequently, the researchers are of the opinion among others that government and her regulatory bodies devise adequate measure to curtail inflation in Nigeria. Keywords : Nigeria Stock Market, All Share Index, Macroeconomic Variables, ARDL. DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/11-8-04 Publication date: April 30 th 2020
Vitamin D Deficiency, Hypocalcemia, and Hearing Loss in Children.

OBJECTIVE Characterize relations between vitamin D deficiency (VDD), hypocalcemia, and hearing loss (HL) in children. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective review. SETTING Tertiary referral hospital. PATIENTS Children in the Audiological and Genetic Database with a diagnosis of VDD, rickets, or osteomalacia. INTERVENTION None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Prevalence, type, severity (4-tone pure-tone average, PTA), and progression of HL. HL was defined as greater than 15 dB HL at any threshold by pure tone, greater than 20 dB HL by sound field audiometry, or greater than 25 dB in infants less than 1 year of age. RESULTS Of 888 children with VDD, 474 (53.4%) had HL, with 17% having moderate-profound HL. Compared with an age-matched cohort of 13,320 children drawn from the same database, children with VDD were significantly more likely to have sensorineural HL (SNHL) (adjusted odds ratios [aOR] 1.26 [95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01-1.58]). Among children with VDD, children with femur fracture had a significantly higher rate of HL (81% versus 53%, p = 0.008) and children with hypocalcemia had a significantly higher rate of moderate-profound HL (36% versus 18%, p = 0.016). Additionally, hypocalcemia with and without VDD was associated with SNHL (aOR 2.30 [1.07-4.56]). CONCLUSIONS Both vitamin D deficiency and hypocalcemia were found to be independently associated with SNHL, a type of HL that is less likely to improve over time. Recognition of VDD and hypocalcemia as independent risk factors for the development of SNHL could allow for better evaluation and treatment of this patient population. Routine audiological evaluation should be considered in this population.
Using the Information Provided by Forbidden Ordinal Patterns in Permutation Entropy to Reinforce Time Series Discrimination Capabilities

Despite its widely tested and proven usefulness, there is still room for improvement in the basic permutation entropy (PE) algorithm, as several subsequent studies have demonstrated in recent years. Some of these new methods try to address the well-known PE weaknesses, such as its focus only on ordinal and not on amplitude information, and the possible detrimental impact of equal values found in subsequences. Other new methods address less specific weaknesses, such as the PE results’ dependence on input parameter values, a common problem found in many entropy calculation methods. The lack of discriminating power among classes in some cases is also a generic problem when entropy measures are used for data series classification. This last problem is the one specifically addressed in the present study. Toward that purpose, the classification performance of the standard PE method was first assessed by conducting several time series classification tests over a varied and diverse set of data. Then, this performance was reassessed using a new Shannon Entropy normalisation scheme proposed in this paper: divide the relative frequencies in PE by the number of different ordinal patterns actually found in the time series, instead of by the theoretically expected number. According to the classification accuracy obtained, this last approach exhibited a higher class discriminating power. It was capable of finding significant differences in six out of seven experimental datasets—whereas the standard PE method only did in four—and it also had better classification accuracy. It can be concluded that using the additional information provided by the number of forbidden/found patterns, it is possible to achieve a higher discriminating power than using the classical PE normalisation method. The resulting algorithm is also very similar to that of PE and very easy to implement.
The Distribution of Population Survival Times

A discrete unstructured population model with nonoverlapping generations is used to calculate the probability of extinction as a function of the number of generations elapsed and the initial population size. This formulation accounts for demographic effects, environmental variation, and catastrophic mortality. Accurate approximations are developed for large carrying capacity and large time. The main qualitative results are as follows: The probability of early extinction depends strongly on the initial population size. A substantial fraction of small starting populations become extinct within a short time. Those that survive the initial period typically survive for a long time. This skew in extinction times makes the expected time to extinction a misleading indicator. Probabilities of extinction are sensitive to environmental variation in the net reproductive rate and the shape of the distribution of disturbances, not just its mean. Probabilities of extinction are likewise sensitive to the rate of catastrophe occurrences and the shape of the catastrophe distribution, not just its mean. Diffusion approximations are likely to be inaccurate for small populations or for populations that show large changes in size in a single generation. These difficulties may be overcome by use of an extrapolation based on solutions for discrete population size and time.
Density and biology of the rock‐partridge (Alectoris graeca whitakeri) in Sicily (Italy)

Abstract Relative indices (MOT = the average number of birds counted during the trips in the breeding season; ITA = the average number of birds encountered per hour during the trips in the breeding season) were used to monitor the rock‐partridge breeding population in four areas of Sicily. Statistical analysis of variance demonstrated that the indices are unbiased estimators of the populations under study. The Anova Model II results showed that sampling means were obtained by studying populations of different densities in the chosen areas. The reason for this difference is due to the different habitat structure and mainly to the presence‐absence of hunting protection. Post‐breeding relative indices (MOTpb = the average number of birds encountered during the trips in the post‐breeding season; MIB = the average number of birds gathered in coveys) were also useful in population monitoring. Data on breeding biology show a medium productivity rate (ratio juveniles/adults) of the population. Pair‐forming starts.
Impact of Negative Feedback-seeking Behavior on Innovative Behavior: Focusing on the Mediating Effect of Learning Goal Orientation Moderated by Coaching Leadership

This study was conducted to derive theoretical and practical implications in situations where innovation of the business is desperate in the face of the emergence of agile organizations and digital transformation. To do so, we tried to verify the correlation between negative feedback-seeking behavior and innovative behavior and whether the learning goal orientation of these two variables has a moderated mediating effect by coaching leadership. It analyzed the collected questionnaire from 381 members working in domestic companies; SPSS 25.0, AMOS 25.0, and Process Macro 3.0 were used. The analysis result showed that the negative feedback seeking behavior had a positive effect on the learning goal orientation, and the leader's coaching leadership found to have a moderating effect between the negative feedback seeking behavior and the learning goal orientation. Learning goal orientation has been found to have a moderated mediating effect between negative feedback seeking behavior and innovative behavior. This study is significant in the sense that it reveals the process of how members seeking negative feedback in the organization could be led to innovative behavior and shows the necessity of organizational support for coaching leadership for the vitalization of innovative behavior. ■ keyword :∣Negative Feedback Seeking Behavior∣Learning Goal Orientation∣Innovative Behavior∣Coaching Leadership∣ 접수일자 : 2020년 02월 28일 수정일자 : 2020년 03월 13일 심사완료일 : 2020년 03월 13일 교신저자 : 오상진, e-mail : sjoh@assist.ac. kr 부정피드백추구행동이 혁신행동에 미치는 영향: 코칭리더십에 의해 조절된 학습목표지향성의 매개효과 중심으로 543
Occurrence of Sprouts and Seedlings of Pinyon Pines, Alligator Junipers, and Gray Oaks Following Harvest of Fuelwood and Prescribed Burning

Abstract Objectives were to determine number and height of sprouts and seedlings following clearcutting of a mesa dominated by pinyon pines (Pinus edulis) and alligator junipers (Juniperus deppeana) in southwestern New Mexico and to determine effects of prescribed burning for control of sprouts and seedlings. No stump of pinyon pine sprouted. Nearly 50% of stumps of alligator junipers sprouted with most occurring in plots with slash removed; the fewest and tallest sprouts occurred in plots with slash uniformly scattered following clearcutting. Nearly 25% of stumps of gray oaks (Quercus grisea) sprouted. Burning in the same year as clearcutting did not affect sprouting of gray oaks as much as other treatments. Not burning clearcuts and leaving slash scattered resulted in the fewest sprouts, and shortest sprouts of gray oaks occurred in plots with slash removed. Seedlings of pinyon pines, alligator junipers, and gray oaks were most prevalent in uncut control plots. Some seedlings of alligator junipers were in plots with slash scattered and removed, and few seedlings were in plots that were burned. Most seedlings of gray oaks were in uncut control plots and plots where slash was removed. Seedlings of pinyon pines grew tallest in plots with slash removed, seedlings of alligator junipers grew tallest in plots where slash was scattered, and seedlings of gray oaks grew tallest in all plots except the uncut control.
A Trichogramma Species Showing a Better Adaptation to High Temperature than its Symbionts

High temperature cures Wolbachia endocytobionts in their symbiotic Trichogramma hosts reproducing by thelytokous parthenogenesis, and restores a bisexual reproduction. This restoration occurs at a lower temperature in T. cordubensis than in T. pretiosum. High temperature affects host biological characteristics to a lesser extent in T. cordubensis than in T. pretiosum. Therefore, adaptive differences to thermal conditions not only exist among Wolbachia symbionts but also among their Trichogramma hosts, and these differences appear to be independent in the two partners.
Effects of automatic milking system on teat tissues, intramammary infections and somatic cell counts

Abstract To assess the impact of automatic milking systems (AMS) on the different aspects of milk production a research project involving both commercial and experimental dairy farms with different AMS and different management was started. This paper reports the results of a follow-up study on primiparous cows focused on assessing some markers to be used to monitor udder and teat health. Heifers were included after calving and sampled for at least 12 months. Quarter milk samples and teat measurements were taken to assess: intramammary infection (IMI) frequencies, somatic cell counts (SCC), teat thickness changes, teat skin and apex conditions. The study included 28 cows in herd A and 27 in herd B for a total number of 2344 samples. Overall, teat apex and skin conditions were maintained along the lactation. Teat skin conditions tended to decrease because of the accumulated number of milkings while lactation proceeded, but at a largely acceptable level in both herds. Teat apex conditions showed a decrease. Teat thickness changes displayed different patterns in the two herds, probably because of the different type of AMS, but in both cases a trend to decrease in thickness could be observed. The application of AMS in herd B, free from contagious pathogens, did not influence the frequency of IMI and the SCC. In herd A, characterized by the presence of Staphylococcus aureus IMI, the frequency of IMI showed a progressive increase, very likely as a consequence of the spread of infections during milking. Teat skin had no association with the frequency of IMI. Teat thickness changes outside values considered as physiological proved to be associated with decreased conditions in the teat apex score in herd A, but not in herd B. However, a decrease in teat apex score proved to be associated with an increase in IMI frequency in both herds. The results of this field trial confirm that AMS have no negative impact on IMI incidence, SCC and teat tissue conditions when the initial cow health status and overall herd management are good. In the presence of contagious pathogens, and when cows have more than 300 days in milk (DIM) the frequency of negative outcomes significantly increases and the proper control measures should be taken.
Innovations in HR Management: a Content Analysis Approach

One of the objectives of human resource management (HRM) is to promote the satisfaction of both managers and employees regarding HRM practices. Since promoting satisfaction begins by assessing its current level, this study aims to analyse the challenges faced by industrial companies' managers within developing countries – such as Morocco- in terms of implementing human resource (HR) function practices. This paper presents then a practice-oriented study conducted using a qualitative method based on the content analysis approach. Thus, data collection was based mainly on semi-structured interviews to which 30 managers had participated. Indeed, this study aims to measure managers' satisfaction regarding the HR function while highlighting, at the same time, the practices used in motivation, documentation process, etc., and in terms of locating weaknesses and obstacles to better HRM. The validity of inquiry was tested and proven by two validation strategies: member checking and external audits strategies. The results found, revealed genuinely remarkable weaknesses. Indeed, it turned out to be a lack consistent in terms of the proper structuring of the HR function. In addition to the poor mastery and application of basic HRM practices, namely the primitivity of documentation processes, and the job-person inadequacy, especially in the scarcity of adoption of developed management methods such as the implementation of provisional management of jobs and skills, the establishment of an occupational health system, and maturity in terms of carrying out the tasks of the control system, or even as regards the weaknesses linked to the lack of active communication, to the clarity of the objectives targeted for all the members, and to the sharing of private information, in addition to those arising from the irrelevance of the training received by the staff. As for proposing solutions, the integration of IT tools could improve the performance of HR management processes. Indeed, information systems promote active communication, different storage data that develop the quality of the decision. They also facilitate managing administrative issues, communicating and applying procedures, programming relevant training and motivating employees. The study has important implications for HR professionals and strategic leaders that are especially interested in developing countries. Keywords human resources management, HR function, content analysis, industrial companies, Morocco, job satisfaction, the performance of HR function, IT tools integration, information systems, knowledge-based systems, human-computer interaction.
Enzyme activities in cocoa beans during fermentation

The activities of endoprotease, aminopeptidase, carboxypeptidase, invertase (cotyledon and pulp), polyphenol oxidase and glycosidases were studied during heap fermentation of ICS-95 cocoa beans. These enzymes are of key importance in flavour precursor formation and in pigment degradation during cocoa fermentation. Optimal extraction and assay conditions were established to characterise the enzymes reactions and to quantify and compare enzyme activities during cocoa fermentation. The enzymes exhibited large differences in pH optima and stability during fermentation. Aminopeptidase, invertase (cotyledon and pulp) and polyphenol oxidase were strongly inactivated, carboxypeptidase was partly inactivated, whereas endoprotease and glycosidases remained active throughout the fermentation. Since many enzymes are inactivated during fermentation, it is generally recognised that the actual period of enzyme action is short. Although our results confirmed total inactivation for some enzymes, we show that several key enzymes are not completely inactivated during fermentation. Therefore, some enzyme reactions can continue throughout the whole fermentation process. Only polyphenol oxidase was strongly inactivated during sun and artificial drying of the beans. The other enzymes were stable during the drying process. Enzymes like endoprotease and glycosidases are still active in properly fermented and dried beans. © 1998 SCI.