Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Variation for pea seed protein concentration in the USDA Pisum core collection

Introduction Food legumes are important sources of protein, complex carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals in the diets of millions of people (12). While cereals supply nearly 50% of the protein in the human diet, an unfavorable balance in amino acids (poor in lysine) requires complementary protein sources (12). Legumes are good complements to cereals, as they are rich in lysine, but poor in sulfur containing amino acids (methionine and cysteine) (12). Pea seed proteins are composed of albumins and globins which separate into two major fractions: the 7S vicilin and convicilin fraction, and an 11S fraction that is predominantly composed of legumin (1). In this study, we characterized the total seed protein concentration of 480 accessions from the USDA Pisum core collection. The complete data set, which is summarized in this article, is available through the internet (http://www.arsgrin.gov/npgs/) or by contacting the curator (coynec@wsu.edu).
Tillage affects the activity‐density, absolute density, and feeding damage of the pea leaf weevil in spring pea

Conversion from conventional‐tillage (CT) to no‐tillage (NT) agriculture can affect pests and beneficial organisms in various ways. NT has been shown to reduce the relative abundance and feeding damage of pea leaf weevil (PLW), Sitona lineatus L. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in spring pea, especially during the early‐season colonization period in the Palouse region of northwest Idaho. Pitfall traps were used to quantify tillage effects on activity‐density of PLW in field experiments conducted during 2001 and 2002. As capture rate of pitfall traps for PLW might be influenced by effects of tillage treatment, two mark‐recapture studies were employed to compare trapping rates in NT and CT spring pea during 2003. Also in 2003, direct sampling was used to estimate PLW densities during the colonization period, and to assess PLW feeding damage on pea. PLW activity‐density was significantly lower in NT relative to CT during the early colonization period (May) of 2001 and 2002, and during the late colonization period (June) of 2002. Activity‐density was not different between treatments during the early emergence (July) or late emergence (August) periods in either year of the study. Trap capture rates did not differ between tillage systems in the mark‐recapture studies, suggesting that pitfall trapping provided unbiased estimates of PLW relative abundances. PLW absolute densities and feeding damage were significantly lower in NT than in CT. These results indicate that NT provides a pest suppression benefit in spring pea.
THE EFFECTS OF INFORMATION PRODUCTION PROCESS ON EXPERIENCE AND EVALUATION

Research to date on the value of information has mostly focused on the consumption side of information, namely, that consumers need to experience information in order to evaluate it. When it comes to digital media, users have multiple roles. In this context, materiality is applied to assess the role that technological components play in the interaction between user and digital media. The concurrent consumption and production of information raises questions as to the influence of information production on information value perception. To this end, we conceptualize the information production process. The fundamental assumption in this research is that value perception changes as a result of production experience. Furthermore, this study examines the boundaries of value perception for producers of information. 309 participants took part in a set of experiments. Willingness-to-pay by consumers and willingness-to-accept payment by producers were measured before and after consumption/ production/ peer-production. Results show that consumers’ and producers’ subjective value before their experience were equivalent; Change in value perception before and after consumption/production produced a statistically significant effect; Producers who evaluate the information after the experience, evaluated it higher than producers who evaluated the information before the experience; and value perception measured before the production by a single producer is lower than value perception by peer-producers. Hypotheses were accepted. If accepted, additional results will be presented at the conference.
The study of word stress and accent : theories, methods and data

Part I. Phonetic Correlates and Prominence Distinctions: 1. Acoustic correlates and perceptual cues of word and sentence stress: towards a cross-linguistic perspective Vincent van Heuven 2. Positional prominence vs. word accent: is there a difference? Larry Hyman 3. Explaining word-final stress lapse Anya Lunden 4. What Danish and Estonian can show to a modern word-prosodic typology Natalia Kuznetsova Part II. Typology: 5. Mora and syllable accentuation - typology and representation Rene Kager and Violeta Martinez-Paricio 6. Word stress, pitch accent and word order typology - with special reference to Altaic Hisao Tokizaki Part III. Case Studies: 7. Persistence and change in stem prominence in Dene (Athabaskan) languages Keren Rice 8. Spanish word stress: an updated multidimensional account Iggy Roca 9. Metrically conditioned pitch accent in Uspanteko Bjorn Kohnlein 10. Focus prosody in Kagoshima Japanese Haruo Kubozono 11. Where is the Dutch stress system? Some new data Marc van Oostendorp and Bjorn Kohnlein 12. Morphologically assigned accent and an initial three-syllable window in Ese'eja Nicholas Rolle and Marine Vuilleremet 13. The scales-and-parameters approach to morpheme-specific exceptions in accent assignment Alexandre Vaxman.
Genetic Diversity Analysis of Sorghum (Sorghum Bicolor L. Moench) Genotypes Using Rapd Markers

Genetic diversity among 24 genotypes of sorghum was studied by using 20 random primers. The total number of amplified PCR bands was 591 of which 495 (83.75%) were polymorphic displaying PIC values ranging from 0.27 to 0.69 with an average of 0.52. Similarity coefficients among the genotypes were ranged from 0.33 to 0.89. The similarity coefficient was used to construct a UPGMA based dendrogram using average linkage between groups. The analysis illustrates considerable potential of RAPD markers for estimating genetic diversity among 24 genotypes of sorghum.
GM-CSF-induced IL-i 13 gene expression in PMN

The present invention pertains to a stabilized pharmaceutical composition which comprises a mixture of (a) a pharmaceutical agent unstable at a pH above about 3.5; and (b) a stabilizing amount of an acidic pharmaceutically acceptable carrier to stabilize the pharmaceutical agent. The acidic pharmaceutically acceptable carrier is a dried premixture of a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier and an aqueous solution of an acid. The stabilized pharmaceutical composition has a pH value of less than about 3.5, and when stored at a temperature of about 50 DEG C. for about 4 weeks at about 27% relative humidity, retains at least about 80% of the pharmaceutical agent. This invention also pertains to sustained-release forms of the stabilized pharmaceutical compositions as well as to novel methods for preparing and using the stabilized pharmaceutical compositions and to stabilized pharmaceutical compositions made by the novel method.
Characterization of Follicular Stasis in a Colony of Female Veiled Chameleons (Chamaeleo calyptratus)

CHARACTERIZATION OF FOLLICULAR STASIS IN A COLONY OF FEMALE VEILED CHAMELEONS (CHAMAELEO CALYPTRATUS) Robyn Harcourt Pimm University of Guelph, 2013 Advisors: Dr. Gabriela Mastromonaco Dr. W. Allan King This study investigates the etiology, diagnosis, and treatment of follicular stasis in female veiled chameleons (Chamaeleo calyptratus). Reproductive status was assessed by enzyme immunoassay of fecal metabolites of estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and corticosterone; ultrasonography; and male introduction trials. Ultrasonography and hormone pattern analysis confirmed follicular stasis, while female response to male presence was inconclusive. Hormone patterns of corticosterone metabolites indicated a cyclical pattern consistent with reproductive events, but there was insufficient data to compare peak levels between ovulatory and nonovulatory cycles. Ovulation induction was unsuccessful using either chicken GnRH-II, or a combination of progesterone and prostaglandin F2α. Feed restriction induced weight loss, but this was not directly related to changes in follicle size. Prevention of follicular development (i.e. contraception) was attempted using Depo-Provera and Lupron Depot, but neither treatment was effective. The outcomes of this study supplement the information on follicular stasis in reptiles, but further research is still needed.
The responses of British butterflies to four decades of climate change

Species are responding to climate change by shifting their distributions polewards and/or uphill. However, the rates at which distributions are changing vary greatly among species. An understanding of how species’ distributions are changing, and what drives the rate of distribution change, is necessary in order to identify which conservation strategies have the potential to facilitate range shifts and to prevent population and species losses. I studied the responses of southerly-distributed butterflies in Britain to four decades of climate change. I found that not only did the rates of species’ distribution area, northern range margin and abundance changes vary amongst species, but that rates of change also varied within species over time. Some of the variation in distribution change was explained by species’ abundance trends; species required stable or increasing abundances in order to expand their distribution areas. Once species were expanding their range, however, the rate of expansion was affected by the amount of suitable habitat available in the landscape. The application of a simulation model, SPEED, to project species’ distribution change supported these conclusions; all species modelled were capable of distribution expansion given sufficiently high population growth rate. Moreover, increased habitat availability allowed greater rates of distribution expansion. The observed trend towards more negative abundance changes in recent years suggests that habitat quality has deteriorated. Results from this thesis showing that stable or increasing abundance trends are a prerequisite for distribution expansion imply that conservation strategies should focus on improving species’ abundance trends through increasing habitat quality. Results also support the notion that conservation efforts aiming to protect and restore as much natural habitat as possible, in order to facilitate species’ distribution expansion under climate change, are likely to be effective.
Compounding effects of habitat fragmentation and predation on bird nests

Habitat fragmentation and invasive species are two of the greatest threats to species diversity worldwide. This is particularly relevant for oceanic islands with vulnerable endemics. Here, we examine how habitat fragmen- tation influences nest predation by Rattus spp. on cup-nesting birds in Samoan forests.We determined models for predicting predation rates by Rattus on artificial nests at two scales: (i) the position of the bird's nest within the landscape (e.g. proximity to mixed crop plantations, distance to forest edge); and (ii) the microhabitat in the immediate vicinity of the nest (e.g. nest height, ground cover, slope). Nest cameras showed only one mammal predator, the black rat (Rattus rattus), predating artificial nests.The optimal model predicting nest predation rates by black rats included a landscape variable, proximity to plantations and a local nest site variable, the percentage of low ( 1k m from the edge). As ground cover reduced, nest predation rates increased. Waxtags containing either coconut or peanut butter were used as a second method for assessing nest predation.The rates at which these were chewed followed patterns similar to the predation of the artificial nests. Rural development in Samoa will increase the proportion of forest edge near plantations. Our results suggest that this will increase the proportion of forest birds that experience nest predation from black rats. Further research is required to determine if rat control is needed to maintain even interior forest sites populations of predator-sensitive bird species on South Pacific islands.
An Examination of the Effectiveness of Peer Feedback on Chinese University Students’ English Writing Performance

Effective writing pedagogy in higher education has been a consistent goal of researchers and instructors in the English as a second / foreign language writing field. Formative peer feedback, a key factor in pedagogical writing practices, has been receiving growing interest. Given that much remains unknown regarding how the quality of peer feedback and back-feedback affects students’ writing performance, this quantitative study adopted a quasi-experimental design to inspect primary pedagogical effects of peer feedback on university students’ writing performance in an EFL context. The results of a one-way repeated measures ANCOVA analysis revealed that beginning with slightly different writing ability, the peer feedback group made more growth in writing achievement than the traditional feedback group. Further analysis through hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed that both the quality of students’ feedback and the quality of students’ back-feedback were significant predictors of students’ writing performance. Additionally, the quality of students’ back-feedback had a slightly larger impact than that of the quality of students’ feedback. This study not only provides further evidence of the power of formative peer feedback as an effective learning tool, but also recommends the inclusion of it in the university curriculum to encourage students to monitor their own learning processes and be life-long learners.
Frequency and Timing of Leaf Removal Affect Growth and Podophyllotoxin Content of American Mayapple in Shade

Leaves of American mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) are being investigated as an alternative and renewable source of podophyllotoxin, a pharmaceutical compound used in the manufacture of several drugs. This study examined long-term performance of mayapple populations subjected to different harvest strategies.Anaturally occurring population in shade was subjected to leaf removal treatments of frequency (every year, every 2nd or 3rd year) or timing (early or late season). Plots were 1.0 m 2 , established during Spring 2001, and treatments were applied from 2001 to 2004. Control plots not previously harvested were also included each year. Plants did not tolerate the severest of leaf removal treatments: early harvest time in combination with annual harvest frequency. Early annual harvests reduced total leaf dry mass and total leaf area in a quadratic manner. Late harvest conducted annually, and early harvest conducted every other year, also reduced leaf dry mass and area but not as much as early annual harvest. Plants harvested every year, early, or early every year produced fewer sexual shoots than other treatment combinations. Contents ofa-peltatin, β-peltatin, and total lignans were higher for leaves harvested early than those harvested late during each year of the study, demonstrating that lignan contents were affected by leaf age and not treatment. In conclusion, our results for plants grown in shade show that leaves can be removed late in the growing season every 2nd or 3rd year or early every 3rd year without reducing long-term performance of the population. This is more restrictive than that reported for populations in full sun where plants tolerated late harvests every year.
The Effect of Self-Management Exercise Program on Physical Fitness among People with Prehypertension and Obesity: A Quasi Experiment Study

Lack of exercise related to poor self-management can lead to a low level of physical fitness in people with prehypertension and obesity. Self-management has the potential to enhance exercise performance with moving people from the beginning of behavior change to action and maintenance behavior. This study investigated the effect of the Self-Management Exercise Program on physical fitness in persons with prehypertension and obesity developed by primary investigator. A total of 32 participants were randomly assigned to two groups: the experimental group (n=16) receiving the Self-Management Exercise Program and the control group (n=16) receiving conventional care. Physical fitness was evaluated by the 3-minute step test, 60 second chair stand, and sit and reach test at baseline and 12-week. Data analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, Independent t-test, and Paired t-test. The results demonstrated that the experimental group had significantly higher physical fitness compared to before the program; and significantly higher than those compared to the control group. The Self-Management Exercise Program is effective and improves physical fitness in people with prehypertension and obesity including cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular endurance, and flexibility. Nurses can apply the program to enhance physical fitness in this population by increasing exercise behavior through self-management skills. Further study is needed to confirm whether the physical fitness increases over an extended time using the program.
Ecology of free-living cats exploiting waste disposal sites : diet, morphometrics, population dynamics and population genetics

The free·Jiving domestic cat (Felis catus), a feral predator in Australia, occupies the entire continent and many offshore islands. Throughout the Australian landscape are rubbish tips, which provide biological attraction points around which free-living cats congregate in high densities. This study examined populations of cats exploiting tip sites in two contrasting bioregions in New South Wales. The study detennined the most useful methods for the detection and assessment of abundance of free-living cats, and compared the efficacy of the detection methods between contrasting environments. The diet, morphometries, population dynamics and population genetics of two populations of tip cats at Oberon and Tibooburra were investigated and the tip populations compared to each other and to cats living away from the tip sites. Trapping and observational data together with genetic analysis provided a broad-base for the investigation of the population dynamics of the cats from both study areas. The data showed that the densities of cats at the tip sites were higher than densities recorded for free-living cats elsewhere in Australia, including offshore islands. Introduced rodents comprised a large proportion of the diet of cats living at and away from the tip sites, and the tip cats also relied heavily on putrescible rubbish. It was detennined that parameters other than weight are the best measure of the size of cats, and femur length is suggested as the most accurate measure for comparing sizes of free-living cats. The sex ratio of adult cats was close to equality. Females had up to two litters per year and the non-breeding period was longer in the colder, wetter Oberon environment than in the warmer, drier Tibooburra environment. Kitten survival rates at the tip sites were relatively high (::::: 60%) compared to other studies. The tip populations comprised long-term resident cats, with occasional immigrants, and the migration rates were weak and female-biased. Female kin groups were identified at both tip sites and the larger lineages were assigned parentage for most of the tip offspring. Paternity assessment suggested the possibility of multiple paternity for individual litters, and the most likely fathers were predominantly
Profitability in Egyptian hotels: business model and sustainability impact

ABSTRACT The goals of this research are: first, to identify factors impacting hotel profitability; second, to explore the profitability ratios most commonly used by Egyptian hotel managers; third, to examine whether the hotel profitability is considered an issue of control or not. Questionnaires were collected from a convenience sample of hotels at different locations in Egypt. Two-stage analysis was performed, involving the hotel profitability estimation in the first stage using a sophisticated frontier analysis technique (LIMDEP), and the determination of hotel profitability determinants during the second stage using regression analysis. Results showed that hotels’ ability to succeed is not only determined by their business model attributes of size or location, but by their type, brand, and some controlled factors such as sustainability practices. The importance/performance analysis (IPA) showed that occupancy rate as a profitability indicator was situated in the second IPA quadrant, meaning similarity between importance and performance perceptions. Furthermore, measuring efficiency is a useful tool to identify factors impacting profitability. This research found that hotels located in the capital city do not show higher profitability values than hotels locating in remote areas. Hotels’ size, capacity, star rating, type, managers’ experience and sustainability factors were found to be the main profitability determinants. To date, this study is one of the first attempts to identify hotel profitability determinants in Egyptian hotels.
METABOLIC AND ENDOCRINE ADAPTATIONS TO HEAT STRESS IN LACTATING DAIRY COWS

Heat stress (HS), a stress response in homeotherms mainly due to elevated ambient temperature and failure of effective heat dissipation, causes a substantial negative economic impact to livestock industry worldwide. Reduced feed intake, a typical phenomenon observed during HS, was thought to be the primary driver for the milk production loss. However, accumulating evidence indicates that HS influences animal metabolism and endocrine profiles independent of reduced feed intake. Previous studies comparing heat-stressed lactating cows with control group pair-fed (PF) to the intake of HS group but housed in thermoneutral conditions, in order to eliminate the confounding factors result from differentiated feed intakes, showed that HS increased circulating insulin and decreased plasma non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) in lactating cow, the opposite responses typical of PF cohorts. Therefore, the present studies were performed in order to elucidate the mechanism(s) underlying these counterintuitive changes. In response to a glucose tolerance test (GTT), both HS and PF decreased whole body glucose disposal rate, a sign of insulin resistance. Only PF decreased skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity in terms of reduced protein kinase B (PKB/AKT) phosphorylation, a downstream protein of insulin receptor (IR), while HS group maintained similar intact insulin responsiveness in the liver and skeletal muscle as thermoneutral conditions. There was a global reduction in gene expression of the enzymes related to lipid
Tolerance and Stress in a Polluted EnvironmentThe case of the mummichog

There appear to be costs of embryonic resistance to pollutants opulations of organisms that have been chronically exposed to chemical pollutants may develop increased tolerance, or resistance, to those toxicants. Tolerance may result from genetic adaptation or physiological acclimation to the polluted environment. Although some researchers say that the term resistance should be applied only to genetic adaptation and tolerance to physiological acclimation, other investigators have defined the terms in other ways. Many workers have used the words interchangeably, as we do in this article.