Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
THE INFLUENCE OF BOARD DIVERSITY ON ENVIRONMENTAL DISCLOSURES AND SUSTAINABILITY PERFORMANCE IN MALAYSIA

Sustainable growth and environmental issues have been one of the critical topics discussed by governments, legislators and environmentalists worldwide. These issues have vital impacts on the future sustainability performance of a company, societies, environment and other interrelated ecosystem. The objectives of the study are three-folds (i) to examine the extent of environmental disclosures (ER) among industrial listed companies, (ii) to examine the factors which motivate companies to disclose ER and (iii) to assess the impact of ER disclosures on sustainability performances in terms of returns on invested capital (ROIC) and sustainable growth (SG). Based on content analysis, this study finds that the level of ER disclosures is very low with an average ER Disclosure Score of only 26%. Hence more efforts are needed to motivate firms to disclose environmental activities. Using hierarchical tobit regression with robust standard error, this study finds that board diversity (Muslim directors), firm size, profitability and growth have significant influence on ER disclosures. Other board characteristics such as board size and board independence were not significant drivers of environmental disclosures. Firm size and growth had strong significant effect on one-year ahead and average 3-year future performances while the results of ER disclosures on future performances are insignificant.
A Combination Strategy of Feature Selection Based on an Integrated Optimization Algorithm and Weighted K-Nearest Neighbor to Improve the Performance of Network Intrusion Detection

With the widespread use of the Internet, network security issues have attracted more and more attention, and network intrusion detection has become one of the main security technologies. As for network intrusion detection, the original data source always has a high dimension and a large amount of data, which greatly influence the efficiency and the accuracy. Thus, both feature selection and the classifier then play a significant role in raising the performance of network intrusion detection. This paper takes the results of classification optimization of weighted K-nearest neighbor (KNN) with those of the feature selection algorithm into consideration, and proposes a combination strategy of feature selection based on an integrated optimization algorithm and weighted KNN, in order to improve the performance of network intrusion detection. Experimental results show that the weighted KNN can increase the efficiency at the expense of a small amount of the accuracy. Thus, the proposed combination strategy of feature selection based on an integrated optimization algorithm and weighted KNN can then improve both the efficiency and the accuracy of network intrusion detection.
Pediatric Pseudo-pseudoxanthoma Elasticum (PPXE) Resulting from D-Penicillamine Treatment for Wilson Disease.

We describe a 14-year-old male with Wilson disease (WD) who first developed pseudo-pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PPXE) after 4.5 years of treatment with D-penicillamine. While previously reported cases have occurred in adults following at least a decade of high-dose D-penicillamine use, this case demonstrates that D-penicillamine-induced PPXE can present in children with shorter treatment courses. Upon this diagnosis, the patient was switched from D-penicillamine to trientine, with adequate cupriuresis and stabilization of the skin lesion. Prompt diagnosis and management of PPXE in children can limit systemic progression and prevent long-term complications.
Students’ and teachers’ beliefs about historical empathy in secondary history education

ABSTRACT Teachers’ beliefs about skills play a significant role in how they teach those skills. Similarly, students’ mastery of a skill is influenced by their ideas about its value and what the performance of the skill exactly entails. In this study, 10 history teachers and 17 students in secondary school (age 16–17) were interviewed about their beliefs about historical empathy, objectives, and teaching strategies. The results show that the participants primarily saw historical empathy as a skill that can be learned. As main elements of historical empathy, they named contextualization, awareness of their own positionality, personal connection, and historical imagination. Inviting an eyewitness, visiting a historic site, and classroom discussions were considered particularly effective teaching strategies. Most teachers reported that they did not provide explicit instruction. Most teachers and students connected historical empathy to empathy in daily life. Extending this connection could be a significant way to work on citizenship competences.
ANALYSING HIGHER ORDER THINKING SKILLS ON THE COMPULSORY ENGLISH TEXTBOOK FOR TENTH GRADERS OF INDONESIAN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLS

This study aimed to ascertain proportion of Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) based on the revised edition of Bloom’s Taxonomy in the language skills and language knowledge of tasks in the textbook of “ Bahasa Inggris of class ten employed in senior, vocational and Islamic senior high schools published by the Ministry of Education of the republic of Indonesia and its relevancy to the 2013 curriculum. By employing a content analysis research design, this study employed content cards as the instrument for analysing the textbook, in which two techniques were used to administer the data, namely content analysis and documentation. The data were analysed qualitatively using Brookhart including compiling, disassembling, reassembling, interpreting and concluding. Results turned out that the proportion of HOTS in language skills is integrated well. In addition, the content of higher-order thinking skills in tasks of the compulsory English textbook of “Bahasa Inggris of class ten employed in senior, vocational and Islamic senior high schools ” is relevant to the 2013 curriculum. It has fulfilled the standard suggested by the Decrees of the Ministry of Education. It is recommended that the teachers need to train students extensively on the implementation of the HOTS to achieve the goals targeted in the 2013 curriculum well.
RSS Ranging Algorithm Based on Kalman Filtering Combined BP Neural Network

Accurate distance estimation is an important prerequisite for positioning using wireless sensor networks (WSN). However, the path loss model (PLM) cannot accurately express the relationship between distance and received signal strength (RSS), because of the complexity of the indoor environment. Therefore, this paper proposes an improved Kalman filter as the RSS preprocessing method to make up for the defects of PLM. The improved algorithm uses BP neural network to correct the Kalman filter error, improve the filtering performance, and use the compensated RSS for PLM-based ranging. The experiment shows that the proposed method has better ranging accuracy than the method based on Kalman filtering. And the average is 0.29m, which has dropped by 0.61m.
Biostratigraphy, taxonomy and paleobiogeography of the upper Cisuralian (upper Yakhtashian–Bolorian) foraminifers from east-central Iran, with clarification of the taxonomy of the fusulinid genera Cuniculinella and Cuniculina pre-occupied

Abstract. Detailed studies of upper Cisuralian (i.e., upper lower Permian) fusulinids make it possible to decipher the paleobiogeographic relations of central Iran, as part of the Cimmerian terranes, with other Paleotethyan regions. Two sections, Bagh-e Vang and Shesh Angosht, located in east-central Iran, are revised. Four local fusulinid biozones are distinguished: upper Yakhtashian Pamirina darvasica and Sakmarella spp. Zone, lower Bolorian Misellina (Brevaxina) dyrhenfurthi Zone, mid-Bolorian Cuniculinella Zone, and upper Bolorian Misellina (Misellina) cf. M. (M.) termieri Zone (probably equivalent to the traditional Misellina (Brevaxina) parvicostata Zone). Taxonomically, the main results are as follows: (1) a clarification is provided of the fusulinid genus or subgenus “Cuniculina,” the name of which is preoccupied, and its synonymy with Cuniculinella; and (2) a lectotype is designated for Darvasites (Alpites) sinensis (Chen, 1934). The mid-Bolorian Cuniculinella Zone is recognized for the first time in Iran. Among the Bolorian fusulinids, Cuniculinella is reported in SE Pamir, Karakoram, central Afghanistan, SW Japan, central Japan, and California, confirming the faunal affinity of the study area in east-central Iran with both Paleotethyan and Panthalassan bioprovinces. Such a distribution is considered to have resulted from combined effects of global warming during the upper Cisuralian, warm oceanic currents along the Paleotethys Ocean, and the northward drift of the Iran block toward lower paleolatitudes.
Corporate Governance Configurations and Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure: Qualitative Comparative Analysis of Audit Committee and Board characteristics

Drawing on the complexity theory and responding to the recent calls to use such creative methods that mix between a quantitative and qualitative approach. This study fills the literature gap adding novelties, showing evidences from the unexplored (or underexplored) European context and, consequently, shedding light to inconclusive results in previous studies regarding the influence of audit committee and board characteristics on CSR Disclosure by applying a novel research methodology: the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). The data were collected from Eikon database for a sample of the top 69 non-financial European companies (based on market capitalisation) for the period 2016–2018. The study results support the equifinality and complexity tenets of complexity theory. It also suggests that CSR Disclosure depends on a complex configuration of some audit committee attributes, for instance, independence, members with accounting and financial expertise, chair independence, size and activity, and other board characteristics (independence, gender, size, activity, and CEO duality). These characteristics play a leading role as the ingredients of the recipe and, in an appropriate combination, promote achieving high levels of CSR Disclosure. Our empirical results offer multidimensional and valuable insights for professionals, regulators, and policymakers in establishing and revising the guidelines related to the composition of the audit committee and board of directors.
Factors influencing individuals’ personal health information privacy concerns. A study in Ghana

ABSTRACT With advances in digitization, there have been heightened concerns about online privacy in developing countries, in particular, the privacy of personal health information (PHI) as these are shared among various stakeholders. To understand these concerns, this study explores the impacts of individuals’ characteristics, experiences, and perceptions on PHI privacy concerns (PHIPC) in the healthcare setting of a developing country, Ghana. Using data from 276 individuals, the results show individuals are less concerned about PHI collection, but more concerned about the management of their PHI once it is collected (e.g. errors, secondary use, and unauthorized use). The results further indicate that the factors influencing PHIPC are differentiated for the collection and management of PHI. While gender, age, health status, and privacy risk perceptions impact PHI collection concerns, PHI management concerns are impacted by privacy orientation, computer experience, and trust in healthcare providers. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
The extraction of site-energy distributions from temperature-programmed desorption spectra

Most surfaces do not exhibit a uniform energy of absorption and desorption, and knowledge of the distribution of energies among the surface sites would be a significant step in characterizing an adsorbent or a catalyst surface. An immense literature exists on attempts to extract site-energy distributions (SED's) from adsorption isotherms. This paper presents an approach for obtaining SED's from temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) spectra. Various situations are illustrated using numerically synthesized data'', experimental data from the literature, and experimental desorption data taken in our laboratory.
Determinants of travellers’ expenditures at airports

This study applies a Double-Hurdle Model to a sample of 2,723 passengers to analyse whether socio-demographics (i.e. gender, age, level of education, income and place of residence), travel-related variables (i.e. type of accommodation and travel party) and flight-related determinants (i.e. check-in mode, wait time) and the pre- intention to buy significantly influence passengers’ shopping behaviours (i.e. to buy or not to buy and the amount of money to be spent). Findings reveal that the ‘decision to buy’ is significantly influenced by travel-related (i.e. type of accommodation and travel party) and flight-related (i.e. wait time) variables only. On the contrary, the level of expenditure is significantly influenced by socio-demographics (i.e. age and income), travel-related variables (i.e. type of accommodation and travel party), flight-related variables (i.e. type of check-in) and pre-intention to buy. Overall, findings show that the determinants of ‘decision to buy’ and of ‘how much to spend’ are not the same. Furthermore, a key highlight is that the check-in modality exerts a significant influence on the level of expenditure, with passengers making their check-in in a traditional modality spending more than their counterparts who check- in online. Contributions to theory and managerial implications are discussed and suggestions for further research are given.
THE LEAD LAG RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SPOT AND FUTURES MARKETS IN THE ENERGY SECTOR: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM INDIAN MARKETS

The study aims at finding the intraday Lead-Lag relationship between Spot and Futures Market for Energy Sectors Stocks on which Single Stock Futures (SSFs) is available, by applying 1-min Price Returns for the period ranging from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2019. The study explores pricediscovery between stock futures and their underlying stocks by applying vector error correction model, Hasbrouck (1995) Information Shares, and Common Factor Component Weights of Gonzalo and Granger (1995). The findings indicate that trades in the Futures Market contribute more to Price-Discovery than Spot Market.
Habit and social influence as determinants of PowerPoint use in higher education: A study from a technology acceptance approach

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to examine the variables that affect the use of PowerPoint by university professors. Based on the revised unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT-2), a theoretical model adapted to the study context was proposed. The impact of the attitude towards PowerPoint, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivations, and habit, in the intention to use and actual use of PowerPoint was evaluated. A survey was applied to 106 university professors from two Spanish universities, and the theoretical model was subsequently tested using a path analysis. The results suggest the existence of a direct non-critical path consisting of social pressure and habit, and an indirect critical path consisting of performance expectancy via the attitude towards PowerPoint. This research highlights the importance of critical reflection in the use of technological tools such as PowerPoint in classrooms. The practical implications of these findings to improve pedagogical practices are discussed.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EXTERNAL DEBT, INTERNAL DEBT AND ECONOMIC GROWTH: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS ON BRICS-TM COUNTRIES - DIŞ BORÇ, İÇ BORÇ VE EKONOMİK BÜYÜME ARASINDAKİ İLİŞKİ: BRICS-TM ÜLKELERİ ÜZERİNE AMPİRİK BİR ANALİZ

Ozel kesim acigi, butce acigi ve cari acik, ic ve dis borclanmanin temel nedenleri arasinda yer almaktadir. Ulkelerin gelismislik farklarinin azaltilmasinda devlet piyasaya mudahale ederek, borclanma yoluna gidebilmektedir. Bu nedenle, BRICS-TM ulkelerinin yuksek buyume hizlarina sahip olmasinda dis ve ic borclanmanin varliginin arastirilmasi onem arz etmektedir. Bu calismanin amaci, BRICS-TM ulkelerinde 2000-2016 donemine ait verilerle dis ve ic borc ile ekonomik buyume arasindaki iliskinin arastirilmasidir. Arastirmanin ampirik analizi icin panel veri analizi yontemi kullanilmistir. Analizden elde edilen bulgulara gore, dis ve ic borc ile ekonomik buyume arasinda esbutunlesme ve nedensellik iliskisi bulunamamistir. Bu sonuclar, BRICS-TM ulkelerinin yuksek buyume oranlarina sahip olmasinin ic ve dis borclanma ile desteklenmedigini gostermektedir.
Boosting the Activity and Stability of Copper Tungsten Nanoflakes toward Solar Water Oxidation by Iridium-Cobalt Phosphates Modification

Severe interfacial electron–hole recombination greatly limits the performance of CuWO4 photoanode towards the photoelectrochemical (PEC) oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Surface modification with an OER cocatalyst can reduce electron–hole recombination and thus improve the PEC OER performance of CuWO4. Herein, we coupled CuWO4 nanoflakes (NFs) with Iridium–cobalt phosphates (IrCo-Pi) and greatly improved the photoactivity of CuWO4. The optimized photocurrent density for CuWO4/IrCo-Pi at 1.23 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) rose to 0.54 mA∙cm−2, a ca. 70% increase over that of bare CuWO4 (0.32 mA∙cm−2). Such improved photoactivity was attributed to the enhanced hole collection efficiency, which resulted from the reduced charge-transfer resistance via IrCo-Pi modification. Moreover, the as-deposited IrCo-Pi layer well coated the inner CuWO4 NFs and effectively prevented the photoinduced corrosion of CuWO4 in neutral potassium phosphate (KPi) buffer solution, eventually leading to a superior stability over the bare CuWO4. The facile preparation of IrCo-Pi and its great improvement in the photoactivity make it possible to design an efficient CuWO4/cocatalyst system towards PEC water oxidation.
The Influence of Gamification on Online Consumers Attitude and Intention to Purchase Fast Moving Consumer Goods

In the world of business, gamification is considered to be a quick-rising technique, with numerous organizations embracing gaming techniques and game-style rewards to grow customer interest and engagement and influence customer’s attitude toward their brands. This study has investigated the factors of gamification influencing online customers' attitudes and intentions to purchase fast moving consumer goods (FMCG). This study presents a research model based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and previous empirical studies. There are seven factors in this model which are perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived enjoyment, perceived social influence, perceived trust, attitude and intention. Four out of seven factors are independent variables and attitude is mediator variable in the proposed research model. This study used quantitative research techniques and study data was collected from 200 participants who downloaded the gamified Oreo application, played with the app for certain duration, and later filled the study questionnaire. Collected data were analyzed with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) in AMOS statistical software. In this study, it has been found that perceived usefulness, perceived social influence, and perceived enjoyment positively influence attitude. However, it has been found that perceived ease of use does not influence attitude and perceived usefulness does not influence purchase intention. Trust and perceived ease of use have been found to positively influence perceived usefulness yet perceived enjoyment has not been found to influence perceived usefulness.
Racial disparities in student outcomes in British higher education: examining Mindsets and bias

ABSTRACT Students from Black Minority Ethnic (BME) groups continue to experience disadvantages compared to White students in UK Higher Education (Pilkington, A. 2013. "The Interacting Dynamics of Institutional Racism in Higher Education." Race Ethnicity and Education 16 (2): 225–245. ). Evidence highlights that an attainment gap exists between BME students and their White counterparts (Office for National Statistics. 2019. A Guide for the Collection and Classification of Ethnic Group, National Identity and Religion Data in the UK. Accessed May 25, 2019. www.ons.gov.uk; NUS. 2011. Race for Equality: A Report on the Experiences of Black Students in Further and Higher Education. London: National Union of Students. Accessed January 18, 2015. http://www.nus.org.uk/PageFiles/12350/NUS_Race_for_Equality_web.pdf), with BME students increasingly reporting negative experiences (Bunce, L., N. King, S. Saran, and N. Talib. 2019. "Experiences of Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Students in Higher Education: Applying Self-determination Theory to Understand the BME Attainment Gap. " Studies in Higher Education 1–14. ). The findings from a sample of 943 first-year undergraduate students and 210 staff members highlighted no significant differences between White and BME students’ Growth Mindsets and stereotypical thoughts despite the common discourse of minority students being considered lacking in skills, motivation, or aspirations (Burke, R. L. 2015. Successful Strategies and Techniques Used by High School Teachers, School Counselors, and School Leaders to Encourage African American Males to Enroll in College (Doctoral dissertation, Capella University); Douglas, B. , C. W. Lewis, A. Douglas, M. E. Scott, and D. Garrison-Wade. 2008. “The Impact of White Teachers on the Academic Achievement of Black Students: An Exploratory Qualitative Analysis. ” Educational Foundations 22: 47–62; Dotterer, A. M. , S. M. McHale, and A. C. Crouter. 2009. “Sociocultural Factors and School Engagement Among African American Youth: The Roles of Racial Discrimination, Racial Socialization, and Ethnic Identity. ” Applied Development Science 13 (2): 61–73; Gillies, V. and Y. Robinson. 2012. "‘Including’ While Excluding: Race, Class and Behaviour Support Units. " Race Ethnicity and Education 15 (2): 157–174; Johnson, E. 2007. “Schooling, Blackness and National Identity in Esmeraldas. ” Ecuador. Race Ethnicity and Education 10 (1): 47–70). The findings are discussed with a need to create an awareness that the achievement gap is a symptom of widespread racial inequities and the potential of using growth Mindsets as an anti-racist tool to address the racial disparity.
Utilisation of Quinoa for development of fermented beverages

Lactic acid fermentation of pseudocereals represents a useful tool for the preparation of value-added beverages with beneficial properties to consumers. The aim of this work was the development of a novel quinoa-based beverage fermented with commercially available probiotic culture including Bifidobacterium sp. , Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Streptococcus thermophilus. The results concluded that fermentation of quinoa beverages significantly increased proteins and total phenolic content and antioxidation activity in the final products (by 36.84%, 26.67%, and 14.74%, respectively). In general, the overall acceptability of unfermented quinoa beverages was low (less than 46%), but the fermentation process slightly increased their acceptability (by 9.43%). A significant improvement of acceptability was observed, when the raspberry syrup was supplemented into the fermented beverages (by 90.98% compared to the no supplemented samples). Viability of fermenting microorganisms, pH, total acidity, and organic acid content were determined during the storage of beverages for 21 days at 5 °C. It was found that prepared quinoa beverages had a good probiotic potential (>6 CFU.mL -1 of lactic acid bacteria cocci). Furthermore, this study also showed that the quinoa represents a suitable raw material for formulation novel gluten and dairy-free fermented beverages with increased content of nutritionally important compounds.