Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Export Determinants of China’s FDI in Africa: Empirical Evidence From Oil/Minerals Exporting African Countries

This paper investigated the determinants of China’s FDI flow towards Africa’s oil/minerals exporting countries from 2003 to 2017 using the UN-Comtrade Harmonized System (HS) nomenclature trade data and UNCTAD China’s FDI data to examine the extent to which sector trade, institution and other variables determine China’s FDI. The econometric approach employed for the outlined model is random effects, generalized least squares and instrumental variable two-stage least squares. For the trade variables, the findings indicate that oil/minerals have higher magnitude and a positive significance to support the effect on the FDI flow. In other words, China’s FDI flow in Africa is inclined towards the extractive sector. Furthermore, the institutional quality finding is negative and significant to justify the upsurge of Chinese investment in weak politically stable regions
Accuracy and precision of lead isotope ratios in wines measured by axial inductively coupled plasma time of flight mass spectrometry

Isotope ratios and concentrations for lead measured by ICP-TOF-MS in twenty different wines from the five continents are reported. Concentrations and ratios were measured following microwave-assisted nitric acid digestion of the wines and extraction of lead by diethyl dithiophosphate (DDTP) into hexane. The hexane was evaporated and the complexed lead was re-dissolved in 0.5% nitric acid. Lead concentrations in the wines were between 5 and 150 ng ml −1. Average relative standard deviations (RSD) of 0.1% RSD in the 0.04–0.16% range for 206Pb/ 207Pb and 208Pb/ 206Pb ratios were obtained in solutions containing approximately 1 ng ml -1 of lead. For the 206Pb/ 204Pb ratio, an average of 0.85% RSD was obtained in the 0.15–1.7% range. Mass bias was assessed by measuring the NIST SRM 981 at regular intervals. The isotope ratio results obtained by ICP-TOF-MS are compared with results from multi-collector (MC) ICP-MS and quadrupole (Q) ICP-MS for assessment of accuracy. The ICP-TOF-MS data compare well with those of MC-ICP-MS for the 206Pb/ 207Pb and 208Pb/ 206Pb ratios. The agreement between ICP-TOF-MS and MC-ICP-MS for the 206Pb/ 204Pb is worse. Data sets are corrected for isobaric overlap from 204Hg on 204Pb. The data obtained by Q-ICP-MS are not in agreement with the results obtained by ICP-TOF-MS or MC-ICP-MS.
Gelatin-Acacia Complex Coacervation as a Method for Ketoprofen Microencapsulation

AbstractKetoprofen microcapsules were prepared by complex coacervation between gelatin and acacia, and dried with different methods: isopropanol addition, spray-drying, and freeze-drying, Successively, microparticles were analyzed by infrared thembalance, ultraviolet spectroscopy, optical and scanning electron microscopy, and sieves; and subjected to dissolution studies in order to examine parameters such as yield, moisture content, encapsulation percentage, morphology of solid particles, particle size, and dissolution behavior. Provided that encapsulation and drying methods did not affect ketoprofen dissolution profiles, the most appropriate drying method for industrial purposes was spray-drying.
Effects of heterogeneity, technological progress and interaction on carbon mitigation costs

1 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION . 4 1.1 BACKGROUND AND MOTIVATION . 4 1.2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES . 8 1.3 DISSERTATION OUTLINE . 10 CHAPTER 2 – U.S ELECTRICITY GENERATION SECTOR . 11 2.1 BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION . 11 2.2 LITERATURE REVIEW . 11 2.3 CONTRIBUTION . 13 2.4 METHODOLOGY . 14 2.4. 1 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PRICE AND DEMAND . 15 2.4. 2 REVENUE DECLINE AND ECONOMIC CAPACITY . 19 2.4. 3 WIND AND SOLAR COSTS . 20 2.4. 4 CO2 EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS . 20 2.4. 5 ITERATIVE ADOPTION MODEL . 21 2.5 RESULTS: RENEWABLE INTEGRATION AND ELECTRICITY PRICES . 21 2.5. 1 REVENUE DECLINE . 21 2.5. 2 MAXIMUM INCOME-EARNING ADOPTION OF WIND AND SOLAR (ECONOMIC POTENTIAL) . 25 2.5. 3 CARBON ABATEMENT COSTS FOR WIND AND SOLAR . 27 2.5. 4 SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS FOR LEARNING RATES . 29 2.5. 5 SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS OF DISCOUNT RATES . 31 2.6 CAVEATS . 32 2.7 DISCUSSION . 34 CHAPTER 3 RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS . 38 3.1 BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION . 38 3.2 LITERATURE REVIEW . 38 3.3 CONTRIBUTION . 40 3.4 METHODOLOGY . 40 3.4. 1 RESSTOCK BUILDING ENERGY SIMULATION MODEL . 42 3.4. 2 ACCOUNTING FOR HETEROGENEITY (GEOGRAPHIC AND BEHAVIORAL) . 43 3.4. 3 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS AND CART ANALYSIS . 48
SNOW COVER DISTRIBUTION’S CORRELATION WITH CLIMATIC FACTORS IN NORTHEAST CHINA’S MOLLISOL REGION

Snow cover greatly influences climate in Northeast China, and it is one of the most relevant parameters to analyze climate change. The Mollisol area of Northeast China is one of the three seasonal snow areas in the country. This study investigates the spatial distribution characteristics and variation trends of monthly snow depth over a 30-year period. Linear regression analysis was applied for each factor. The results indicated a non-significant decreasing trend of snow depth in the mountainous area. Snow depth in the plains increased by 0–0.4 cm/year. The spatial distribution of first, last, and cover days of snow, and the maximum depth of snow cover were consistent in their correlation with snow cover depth. The snow cover gradually decreased with increasing temperature, latitude, and change in topography (altitude) from northeast to southwest. In terms of snow cover days, the highest correlation was obtained for temperature during the snow accumulation and melting periods. In contrast, there was no correlation with precipitation. The volume of snowmelt water had a significant change every 10 years.
The Effects of Human Capital and Social Factors on the Household Income of Bangladesh: An Econometric Analysis

TThe study examined the effects of human capital (education and experience) and social factors (gender, marital status, spatial condition, and occupation) on the monthly income of the people of Bangladesh through OLS and quantile regression based on the data of 9943 sample of Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES). It appears that both human capital and social factors have significant explanatory power to explicate the monthly income of the household. The OLS and quantile regression suggest that the effects of social factors are superior to that of human capital on the monthly income. The estimates further reveal that urban people get 18% more wage than their rural counterparts, and people engaged in the non-agricultural sector received 25% higher wages than the agricultural sector. Besides, female workers receive 36% less wage than male workers. Nevertheless, there is a distinct effect of the human capital and social factors in the gender and rural-urban context. The study recommends, a reorient policy to properly address these gender wage gap, sectoral and area-specific issues of the labor market with a view to ensuring the fair income distribution and inequality reduction.
Adaptive predictive control for pipelined multiprocessor image-based control systems considering workload variations

Image-based control (IBC) systems have a long sensing delay. The advent of multiprocessor platforms helps to cope with this delay by pipelining of the sensing task. However, existing pipelined IBC system designs are based on linear timeinvariant models and do not consider constraint satisfaction, system nonlinearities, workload variations and/or given interframe dependencies which are crucial for practical implementation. A pipelined IBC system implementation using a model predictive control (MPC) approach that can address these limitations making a step forward towards real-life adaptation is thus promising. We present an adaptive MPC formulation based on linear parameter-varying input/output models for a pipelined implementation of IBC systems. The proposed method maximizes quality-of-control by taking into account workload variations in the image processing for individual pipes in the sensing pipeline in order to exploit the latest measurements, besides explicitly considering given inter-frame dependencies, system nonlinearities and constraints on system variables. The practical benefits are highlighted through simulations using vision-based vehicle lateral control as a case study.
THE FACTORS OF SERVICE, RELIGIOSITY AND KNOWLEDGE IN THE DECISION OF CUSTOMERS TO SAVE FUNDS IN SHARIA BANKS IN YOGYAKARTA CITY

Islamic banks are experiencing rapid development amid the current global crisis in Indonesia and even in the world. This becomes evidence that Sharia Bank can maintain its existence from all the problems of a complex economic crisis that hit in 2007. Indonesia as the largest Islamic country in the world is a potential market that supports the sustainability of Islamic banking. The Islamic sharia principles in its management, causes many people in Indonesia, especially in Yogyakarta decide to save their funds in Islamic banks. The population in this study is all Islamic bank customers in Yogyakarta, with sample selection using incidental sampling. The data analysis method used is multiple linear regression. This study shows the positive influence of service and public trust in Islamic banks. Similarly, knowledge about Islamic banks, and one's religiosity has an important role in the decision making to save funds in Islamic banks in the city. Islamic labelity and current trends supported by high community religiosity are also important factors in the decision to deposit funds in Islamic banks. In fact, the biggest influence that influences customer's decision to save funds in a bank is the quality of service and trust. Thus, the attention of banking players is needed in improving performance and banking services, so that public confidence is higher in the decision to save funds in the bank. In other words, the community remains consistent to make economic transactions with banks in order to respond to the challenges of the economic crisis in the future.
Return Migration and Earnings Mobility in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia

We examine the role of cross-border return migration in the intertemporal and intergenerational transmission of status across seven surveys from Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia. We use transition matrices and instrumental variable regressions to link prime-age menâ€™s present outcomes to those in prior years and to their fathersâ€™ outcomes. Earnings in prior years are inferred using job-type and occupation-group cell means. We find that return migrants land higher-earning jobs and are more inter-generationally mobile. However, they outperform non-migrants not only currently but even in past years. Controlling for mitigating factors, the role of migration disappears, suggesting that individual-level effects and demographics are responsible.
Maternal circulating status of vitamin D, adiponectin and lipid ratios in gestational diabetes mellitus

Background. The present research was an attempt to assess maternal serum values of 25-hydroxy vitamin D3 [25(OH)D3], adiponectin and the lipid ratios and comparison of their associations with insulin resistance and insulin sensitivity in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Methods. It was conducted on 100 participants including 49 women with GDM and 51 normal pregnant women at 24–28 weeks of gestation. Maternal fasting serum values of glucose, 25(OH)D3, lipid profile, adiponectin and insulin were assessed and the lipid ratios and biomarkers of resistance and sensitivity to insulin were calculated. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results. Current research revealed that levels of 25(OH) D3 were significantly lower in GDM than in normal pregnancy. Binary logistic regression analysis showed that GDM was associated negatively with 25(OH)D3, HDL-C and adiponectin and positively with the lipid ratios. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that only values of 25(OH)D3 were independently associated negatively with the insulin resistance (P = 0.012). Conclusions. Levels of 25(OH)D3 were significantly decreased in GDM compared with normal pregnancy. On the other hand, 25(OH)D3 had a significant negative correlation with insulin resistance which was stronger than the lipid ratios and adiponectin.
Determination of the dielectric constant of the water model TIP4P by free energy perturbation and induced polarization

A method based on free energy perturbation is introduced for calculation of the dielectric constant of bulk liquids by molecular simulation. Its application to the TIP4P water model gives a result in good agreement with that obtained using a previously described method based on induced polarization. Both estimates are obtained in a single Monte Carlo simulation of a sample of water in a uniform applied electric field. Two simulations were performed yielding four estimates for the dielectric constant. The resulting values were in the range 56-64 with (statistical) standard errors of ∼3 for the polarization method and ∼9 for the free energy method
Density and molar volume studies of phosphate glasses

The density and molar volume of some phosphate glasses (xNa2O•(100-x)P2O5, x = 30, 35, 40, 45, 50); xB2O3•(1-x)NaPO3, x = 5, 10, 15, 20, 25; xNa2O•(30-x) K2O•10Al2O3• 25B2O3•35P2O5, x= 5, 10, 15, 20, 25) glasses were determined, in order to study their structure. The density of the glasses increased while their molar volume values decreases with the increase of sodium oxide content in phosphate glasses. The results obtained could be correlated to several factors such as the polarization, the field strengths and the ionic radii of the different incorporated cations.
Contribution of Vocabulary Mastery on News Writing Skill

This research is motivated by the results of observations during journalism lectures. When writing news, vocabulary mastery is required. Mastery of vocabulary is important in writing skills, including writing news. In fact, it is not yet known the level of contribution of vocabulary mastery to news writing skills. Mastery of vocabulary is important for one's writing material. Starting from this, this study intends to explain the contribution of vocabulary mastery to students' news writing skills. This study uses a quantitative approach with a distributional correlational method. The population of this study was students of the 2014 FBS UNP Indonesian Language and Literature Study Program. The sample consisted of 51 people taken by a simple random technique using the Taro Yamane formula with a precision of 10%. The data were collected using a news writing skill test and a vocabulary mastery test. Based on the analysis of the research data, it is known that vocabulary mastery contributes to news writing skills. Thus, the results of this study have implications for learning news writing skills. If vocabulary mastery and journalistic knowledge are not considered in learning, student news writing will be less good. So, it is suggested to some parties such as students to increase their vocabulary mastery; for lecturers/teachers to build student vocabulary through increasing reading assignments.
Impact analysis of cluster frontline demonstrations in enhancing the black gram productivity in Bilaspur District of Himachal Pradesh

The Cluster Frontline Demonstration are important tool in transfer of latest technologies with the objective of convincing farmers and extension functionaries together about the production potentialities of production technologies for further wide scale diffusion. Under these demonstrations, extension scientists arrange ideal farming conditions at farmers’ fields demonstrating package and practices at their field by adopting improved varieties, balanced fertilization on the basis of soil test and scientific management of pests and diseases. Under this, necessary and critical inputs are also provided. Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Bilaspur conducted 71 number of Cluster Front line Demonstrations (CFLDs) on black gram crop during kharif 2015 and 2016 on an area of 24 hectares at farmers fields. There was a wide yield gap between the potential and demonstration grain yields in black gram crop mainly due to technology and extension gaps. The study on black gram crop indicated that increase in grain yield over farmers practice was 48.4 and 78.4 percent, respectively, during these two years. It was further observed that in terms of economics, black gram crop recorded higher net returns per hectare compared to farmer’s practice during all the years. The benefit cost ratio was 1.8 and 2.7, respectively, during kharif 2015and 2016 in demonstration plots of black gram. The percent technology index varied from 31.8 to 60.0 percent indicating urgent need to motivate the farmers to adopt economical viable technologies for increasing production, productivity and profitability of pulse crops.
Essential Oil Constituents of Piper vicosanum Yunker from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

Abstract The composition of Piper vicosanum Yuncker leaf essential oil from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest (Parque Estadual do Rio Doce, Minas Gerais, Brazil) was investigated. GC and GC/MS analysis of the oils from samples of two populations led to the identification of 64 constituents amounting over 93% of the total oil. The composition was dominated by monoterpenoids (56.0–62.6%), with limonene (40.0–45.5%) and 1,8-cineole (10.4–15.0%) as major compounds. This oil is clearly different from those of all other previously reported Piper leaf oils.
Do OS abstractions make sense on FPGAs?

Hybrid computing systems, consisting of a CPU server coupled with a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) for application acceleration, are today a common facility in datacenters and clouds. FPGAs can deliver tremendous improvements in performance and energy efficiency for a range or workloads, but development and deployment of FPGA-based applications remains cumbersome, leading to recent work which replicates subsets of the traditional OS execution environment (virtual memory, processes, etc.) on the FPGA. In this paper we ask a different question: to what extent do traditional OS abstractions make sense in the context of an FPGA as part of a hybrid system, particularly when taken as a complete package, as they would be in an OS? To answer this, we built and evaluated Coyote, an open source, portable, configurable “shell” for FPGAs which provides a full suite of OS abstractions, working with the host OS. Coyote supports secure spatial and temporal multiplexing of the FPGA between tenants, virtual memory, communication, and memory management inside a uniform execution environment. The overhead of Coyote is small and the performance benefit is significant, but more importantly it allows us to reflect on whether importing OS abstractions wholesale to FPGAs is the best way forward.
Wood flour–reinforced plastic composites: a review

Abstract The light weight, easy availability, and biodegradability of natural fiber composites afford a variety of uses of these materials for the building and automobile sectors. Among all available natural fibers, wood flour is one of the most abundantly available resources. Commodity plastics such as high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, linear low-density polyethylene, and polypropylene, can be reinforced with wood flour, along with a compatibilizer and a coupling agent. A wide variety of compatibilizers and coupling agents are commercially available to cater to different needs. Under optimal conditions and compositions, they impart better mechanical, chemical, and thermal properties to the wood flour–reinforced plastic.
Assessment of non-genetic effects on the fattening and slaughter traits for Danube white pigs based on the performance test evaluation.

An evaluation based on performance tests was carried out on 639 male and female (castrated) animals from the Danube White breed in Agricultural Institute Shumen. The testing of animals was done at 90 kg live weight with the “Pig log 105” apparatus. Significant sources of specific variance in different levels of probability were established for line, year, sex and replacement animals. Significant effects of sublevels of the studied environmental factors were also established. The results, presented by us, emphasized the necessity of fixed trait evaluations and determination of their effects during the genetic evaluation of the Danube White population.
Passivation of Ge ( 100 ) ∕ GeO2 ∕ high-κ Gate Stacks Using Thermal Oxide Treatments

The physical and electrical properties of Ge/GeO 2 /high-κ gate stacks, where the GeO 2 interlayer is thermally grown in molecular oxygen, are investigated. The high-K layer (ZrO 2 , HfO 2 , or Al 2 O 3 ) is deposited in situ on the GeO 2 interlayer by atomic layer deposition. Detailed analysis of the capacitance-voltage and conductance-frequency characteristics of these devices provides evidence for the efficient passivation of the Ge(100) surface by its thermal oxide layer. A larger flatband voltage hysteresis is observed in HfO 2 -based gate stacks, as compared to Al 2 O 3 gate stacks, which is possibly related to the more pronounced intermixing observed between the HfO 2 and GeO 2 .
Understanding Data Usage Patterns of Geographically Diverse Mobile Users

The increasing trend of the traffic demand from mobile users and the presence of limited resources creates a challenge for network resource management. Understanding the data usage pattern and traffic demand of mobile users is a way forward to enable data-driven network resource management. However, due to the complex nature of mobile networks, understanding and characterizing data usage pattern of mobile users is a daunting task. In this work, we investigate and characterize data usage patterns and behavior of users in mobile networks. We leverage a dataset (~340 M records) collected through a crowd-based mobile network measurement platform – Netradar – across six countries. We elucidate different network factors and study how they affect the data usage patterns by taking mobile users in Finland as a use case. We perform a comparison on data usage patterns of mobile users across six countries by considering total data consumption, network access, the number of sessions created per user, throughput, and user satisfaction level on services. We show that data usage behavior of users over a mobile network is primarily driven by user mobility, the type of data subscription plan marketed by Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), network congestion, and network coverage. Besides, the data usage patterns over different network technologies (e.g., preferring cellular over WiFi) and the percentage of users accessing congested networks vary by country; mostly due to the market pricing strategy and radio coverage. However, the overall data consumption (cellular and WiFi) is comparatively similar in most of the countries we studied.
Growth of bismuth tri‐iodide platelets by the physical vapor deposition method

The work reports the growth of single BI3 crystals with platelets habit. Platelets were grown by physical vapor deposition (PVD) in a high vacuum atmosphere and with argon, polymer or iodine as additives. Crystals grew in the zone of maximum temperature gradient, perpendicular to the ampoule wall. Crystals grown with argon as additive show a very shining surface, have hexagonal (0 0 l) faces, sizes up to 20 x 10 mm2 and thicknesses up to 100 μm. They were characterized by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Dendritic‐like structures were found to be their main surface defect. SEM indicates that they grow from the staking of hexagonal unities. Electrical properties of the crystals grown under different growth conditions were determined. Resistivities up to 2 x 1012 Ωcm (the best reported value for monocrystals of this material) were obtained. X‐ray response was measured by irradiation of the platelets with a 241Am source of 3.5 mR/h. A comparison of results according to the growth conditions was made. Properties of the crystals grown by this method are compared with the ones measured for others previously grown from the melt. Also, results for bismuth tri‐iodide platelets are compared with the ones obtained for mercuric and lead iodide platelets. (© 2004 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)