Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosures Improve Financial Performance? A Perspective of the Islamic Banking Industry in Pakistan

This study aims to investigate the impact of corporate social responsibility disclosures (CSRD) on the financial performance of the Islamic banking industry of Pakistan. The study employed the method of content analysis for collecting the required data from annual reports of all four full-fledged Islamic banks operating in Pakistan from 2012 to 2017. The study developed a novel comprehensive CSRD index by using the “Global Reporting Initiative” (GRI) and “Accounting and Auditing Organization of Islamic Financial Institutions” (AAOIFI). This index consists of five dimensions and 105 sub-dimensions of CSRD. The use of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), Panel Corrected Standard Errors (PCSEs), and Generalized Least Squares (GLS) using random-effect (RE) and fixed-effect (FE) estimators revealed a significant negative relationship between CSRD and the financial performance of the sample firms. Regarding separate dimensions, the relationship of the Environmental and Economic dimensions of CSRD is significantly positive with current performance, but it is insignificant for the relationships of Legal, Philanthropic, and Ethical dimensions of CSRD with the current financial performance. In addition to contributing to the scarce literature in the Islamic banking industry of a developing country like Pakistan, the study will also help the policymakers and other stakeholders, including the AAOIFI, to develop a comprehensive CSRD policy or index and further improve the already established standards for CSRD.
Acquisition of Nut-Cracking Behaviour by 2 Capuchin Monkeys (Cebus apella)

The acquisition of nut-cracking behaviour was investigated in two naive groups of captive capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella). Two adult males acquired this behaviour independently and without any ad hoc training. The opportunity to freely explore and manipulate the ‘hammers’ favoured the discovery of the correct and successful spatial relationship between the nut and the tool. The other group members did not seem to learn the use of tools either independently or by observing their proficient cagemates.
Enhanced Northern Hemisphere Correlation Skill of Subseasonal Predictions in the Strong Negative Phase of the Arctic Oscillation

The Arctic Oscillation (AO) is the most dominant atmospheric variability in the Northern Hemisphere in boreal winter. Its negative phases sometimes bring extreme cold conditions over Eurasia and North America in boreal winter, impinging on various socioeconomic sectors. Thus, accurate prediction of the AO‐related conditions with a long lead time is greatly anticipated. This study investigates conditional prediction skill in the northern extratropics relative to AO phases using retrospective forecast data of multiple models provided by the Subseasonal to Seasonal Prediction Project, which is jointly conducted by the World Weather Research Programme and the World Climate Research Programme. We found that predictions starting from the strong negative AO phase tend to have enhanced prediction skill in terms of the anomaly correlation coefficient of 500‐hPa geopotential height, which measures the similarity of spatial patterns. The skill enhancement is not apparent in terms of the root mean square error score. We also discuss dynamical mechanisms behind the enhanced prediction skill. The Eliassen‐Palm flux diagnosis indicated that the strong negative AO phase induces the stronger eddy‐zonal flow feedback to sustain the anomalous zonal flow condition than the strong positive AO phase. Moreover, the anomalous zonal flow is associated with an anomalous zonally asymmetric pattern. As a result, the anomalous AO pattern is better predicted in the strong negative AO phase, contributing to the enhancement of the Northern Hemisphere correlation skill. Results highlight that dynamics inherent in the extratropical atmosphere can provide the subseasonal predictability in a certain atmospheric condition.
Exploitation of beneficial birds against major insect pests of castor Ricinus communis l.

Castor is infested by number of insect pests and these are attacked by many natural enemies and insectivorous birds. Some insecticides/ other treatments and beneficial birds in suppression of insect pests of castor were evaluated at the Regional Agricultural Research Station, Palem during 2009-13. The results revealed that the farmers practice (need based insecticides application) is significantly superior against the defoliators (1.90, 1.82 and 1.62 larvae/ plant for semilooper, Spodoptera and Bihar hairy caterpillar, respectively). But the farmers practice, though gave maximum yield, the cost benefit ratio was not high. A total of 20 species of beneficial birds under 15 families and 4 orders were observed with the species diversity (N=36) (1.89 H’) and bird density/ km2 occurred being more. These birds played a role with spread of SlNPV infected larva.
Mental and Physical Health Behaviors of Doctor of Physical Therapy Students

Introduction. High incidences of mental health issues in the undergraduate and graduate students are reported nationwide. e purpose of this study was to assess the Doctor of Physicalerapy (DPT) students’ depression, anxiety, and stress levels using the 21-item Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) to investigate how mental and physical behaviors correlate with DPT students’ mental health and to identify the coping strategies of DPT students to guide the intervention strategies of PT programs. Methods. A 49-item survey with demographic questions and 3 open-ended questions was developed to assess the students’ mental and health behaviors. e DASS-21 was imbedded in the survey. Email invitations to 136 DPTstudents from one DPT program in the Southwestern region of the United States resulted in 59 responses. Results.Most students had normal DASS21 scores for stress (66%), anxiety (64%), and depression (73%). However, only 46% had normal ranges for all 3 scales and a concerning number of students scored in the moderate and severe ranges for stress (19%), anxiety (25%), depression (12%), and previous suicide ideation (7%). No correlation was found between the DASS21 scores and the gender or relationship status. No significant difference was found between the years in the program in the subscores of stress (P = .189), anxiety (P = .095), or depression (P = .149). All subscores of the DASS-21 were inversely correlated with hours of sleep: stress (r =2 0.317, P = .014), anxiety (r = 20.467, P # .005), and depression (r =20.310, P = .017). Depression subscores were associated with lower frequency of aerobic (r =20.335, P = .01) and strengthening exercises (r = 2 0.259, P = .049). Discussion and Conclusions. Physical therapist education programs should address themental health issues of students by providing education on how to incorporate active positive coping strategies into their very busy lives. Students in this study are aware of healthy physical and mental strategies but do not use them consistently.
Climate change impacts on structure and diversity of fish communities in rivers

It is widely accepted that climate change constrains biota. Yet, because of the lack of consistent multisite and multitaxon surveys, few studies have addressed general rules about how climate change impacts on structure and diversity of animal communities. Especially, the relative influence of nonclimatic anthropogenic disturbances on this impact is fairly unknown. Here, we present for the first time a meta‐analysis assessing the effect of global warming on stream organisms. Fish communities of large rivers in France undergoing various anthropogenic pressures showed significant increase in proportions of warm‐water species and of specific richness during the last 15–25 years. Conversely, the equitability decreased, indicating a gradual decrease of the number of dominant species. Finally, the total abundance increased, coupled with rejuvenation and changes in size‐structure of the communities. Interestingly, most of these effects were not depressed by the strength of nonclimatic anthropogenic disturbances. Conversely, geographical location of communities and especially closeness of natural barriers to migration could influence their response to climate change. Indeed, increase in the proportion of southern species seemed hindered at sites located close to the southern limit of the European species' geographical ranges. This work provides new evidence that climate change have deep impacts on communities which, by overtaking the effects of nonclimatic anthropogenic disturbances, could be more substantial than previously thought. Overall, our results stress the importance of considering climate change impacts in studies addressing community dynamics, even in disturbed sites.
Central Obesity and Stress- Predisposing Factors to Hypertension among Health Workers in Jos University Teaching Hospital, Plateau State, Nigeria

Central obesity poses more threat to human health than general obesity and stress increases its presentation. This study assessed prevalence of central obesity and stress, and their association with hypertension. Two hundred and eighty-three health workers in Jos Teaching Hospital, Plateau State, Nigeria were randomly selected. Socio-demographic characteristics and lifestyles (physical activity, alcohol intake, smoking and stress) were evaluated by semi-structured and International Stress Management Association Questionnaire. Central obesity was determined by waist circumference.
Breastfeeding, ‘tainted’ love, and femmephobia: containing the ‘dirty’ performances of embodied femininity

ABSTRACT In this conceptual analysis, we theorise breastfeeding as an embodied ‘dirty’ performance of femininity and draw on Hoskin’s (2019a) work on femme theory to propose that women who breastfeed in public, who do so for an ‘extended’ time, and who enjoy it are subject to femmephobic attacks. We integrate three streams of literature to unsettle the ‘taint’ of breastfeeding. We first theorise breastfeeding as an act of femininity where women perform gender trouble in line with Butler's work. We also draw on Douglas’ work on ‘dirt’ and Rivera’s work on emotional ‘dirty’ work to theorise that ‘taint’ is one way in which society stigmatises the phenomenon of breastfeeding. Specifically, we propose that embodied breastfeeding evokes ‘tainted’ emotions. We then draw on Schippers’ work on ‘containing’ pariah forms of femininity (lest they ‘contaminate’ patriarchy) by showing how femmephobic stigmatisation limits breastfeeding women’s corporeality and presence in shared spaces.
Confirmation of Bacteroides gingivalis as a Species Distinct from Bacteroides asaccharolyticus

We divided the asaccharolytic, black-pigmented Bacteroides strains into two groups on the basis of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) base ratios, DNA hybridization (S1 nuclease method) results, and direct hemagglutination. One homologous group of strains, which included the type strain of Bacteroides asaccharolyticus and had guanine-plus-cytosine contents of 52 to 54 mol%, contained only nonoral isolates. Another DNA homology group contained all of the strains from periodontal pockets and some nonoral isolates. These strains appeared to belong to the recently described new species Bacteroides gingivalis Coykendall et al. B. gingivalis strains had guanine-plus-cytosine contents of 48 to 50 mol%, showed high DNA homology values, and shared hemagglutinating activity. No DNA homology was observed between the two groups. Using a different method of analysis for DNA homology (S1 nuclease method), we confirmed the conclusion of Coykendall et al., who separated these two groups into different species, B. asaccharolyticus and B. gingivalis. Two strains from infected root canals could not be placed in either of these two species. On the basis of the DNA homology results, all asaccharolytic strains were distinguished clearly from the saccharolytic, black-pigmented Bacteroides strains, which at present are classified in the species Bacteroides melaninogenicus.
Estimation of size selectivity of fish species caught by different gears in the old Brahmaputra River

Over the last couple of decades, the old Brahmaputra River, one of the ancient river systems of Bangladesh, has fallen in verge of biodiversity changes affecting its range of fauna and flora. Study was, therefore, conducted to investigate the selectivity of fish species caught by different fishing gears used in the old Brahmaputra River system over a period of 1 year. L50% of different gears was determined mainly for dominant species where 41 fish species were recorded. Highest L50% was recorded in gill net (fash jal) followed by basket trap (vair) whereas lowest value was recorded for seine net. Seine net, cast net, sidi bair and hand line (borshi) were considered non selective gears where fash jal and sidi bair were regarded as gear specific for large fish species and koi jal, ber jal, dharma jal, howra bair and koach were considered specific for small species. Among all the gears, seine net, cast net, koi jal and howra bair were found to be harmful for small species of fishes. Monofilamentous gill net (current jal) although marked as banned gear, was found to be operated in the river and causing considerable damage to the fish stock. Fash jal was considered as harmful gear for catfish as it was found to be used to catch fishes below legal size. It is suggested that fash jal should be restricted for several months, which may allow the newly stock fingerlings to grow to market size.
The response of pastures in Northern Ireland to N, P and K fertilizers and to animal slurries: II. Effects of mineral composition

SUMMARY Herbage samples from 16 trials testing the effects of N, P and K fertilizers and slurry on grassland were analysed for % N, P, K, Ca, Mg and Na. The data were examined to see if a fertilizer policy designed for optimum yield should be modified after taking pasture mineral content into account. The correct fertilizer nitrogen policy appears to be to apply nitrogen for the desired yield and to disregard any effects on mineral content. The correct fertilizer policy for phosphorus and potassium is to steer a middle course between depleting soil reserves and accumulating undesirable excesses. The quantities of phosphorus and potassium which should be applied to cut grass to maintain the status quo in the soils are discussed. The amount of phosphorus and potassium added in slurry must be allowed for in this calculation. As the amount of slurry available depends upon the farming system, an effective fertilizer policy for phosphorus and potassium can only be devised by studying the farm as a whole. At the first cut, the slurries provided on average 115 kg NH4-N/ha, 114 kg K/ha and 86 kg P/ha. Slurry potassium was somewhat less than half as effective as fertilizer potassium in increasing % K in the herbage at the first cut. Furthermore, the herbage recovered only 0·8 kg of the 86 kg of slurry phosphorus. In the short term, slurry was only just over 10% as effective as fertilizer phosphorus, presumably because much phosphorus in it is organically bound.
White tail spots and tail-flicking behavior enhance foraging performance in the Hooded Warbler

ABSTRACT Many species of insectivorous birds have contrasting plumage patches that are often displayed during foraging. Although such displays are widely hypothesized to flush potential prey and enhance foraging performance, experimental evidence that they function in this way was previously available only from redstarts (Myioborus spp.). I provide additional evidence from an experimental study of the Hooded Warbler (Setophaga citrina) in northwestern Pennsylvania, USA. Hooded Warblers regularly flick their tails while foraging, revealing large white spots on the outer tail feathers. I tested the function of the white tail spots with plumage manipulation experiments. At nests containing 5-day-old nestlings, the attending adults were captured and assigned to one of two treatment groups. For experimental birds, I temporarily darkened the white tail spots with a brown marking pen; for sham-darkened controls, I applied a comparable amount of ink to the dark inner rectrices. Experimental birds with darkened tails showed significantly reduced foraging performance compared with controls, and the decline in foraging performance was driven almost entirely by a decreased frequency of aerial prey attack. High-definition video recording at nests showed that plumage manipulation also altered the types of prey females delivered to nestlings; females with darkened tails delivered significantly fewer winged insects, and proportionally more insect larvae, than controls. However, the types of prey delivered by males were unaffected by plumage manipulation. Tail-flicking behavior codevelops with independent foraging in juveniles and is a significant positive predictor of juvenile foraging performance, even when the effects of juvenile age and activity are controlled statistically. Collectively, these results provide strong support for the hypothesis that white tail spots and tail-flicking behavior of Hooded Warblers function to flush visually oriented winged prey and enhance foraging performance. They also raise questions about sexual dimorphism in the tail pattern and its relationship to possible sex differences in foraging strategies.
Pathogenic potential of Brucella ovis field isolates with different genotypic profile and protection provided by the vaccine strain B. ovis ΔabcBA against B. ovis field isolates in mice

ABSTRACT: Brucella ovis causes economic and reproductive losses in sheep herds. The goal of this study was to characterize infection with B. ovis field isolates in a murine model, and to evaluate protection induced by the candidate vaccine strain B. ovis ΔabcBA in mice challenged with these field isolates. B. ovis field strains were able to colonize and cause lesions in the liver and spleen of infected mice. After an initial screening, two strains were selected for further characterization (B. ovis 94 AV and B. ovis 266 L). Both strains had in vitro growth kinetics that was similar to that of the reference strain B. ovis ATCC 25840. Vaccination with B. ovis ΔabcBA encapsulated with 1% alginate was protective against the challenge with field strains, with the following protection indexes: 0.751, 1.736, and 2.746, for mice challenged with B. ovis ATCC25840, B. ovis 94 AV, and B. ovis 266 L, respectively. In conclusion, these results demonstrated that B. ovis field strains were capable of infecting and inducing lesions in experimentally infected mice. The attenuated vaccine strain B. ovis ΔabcBA induced protection in mice challenged with different B. ovis field isolates, resulting in higher protection indexes against more pathogenic strains.
Comparative Plastome Analyses and Phylogenetic Applications of the Acer Section Platanoidea

The Acer L. (Sapindaceae) is one of the most diverse and widespread genera in the Northern Hemisphere. Section Platanoidea harbours high genetic and morphological diversity and shows the phylogenetic conflict between A. catalpifolium and A. amplum. Chloroplast (cp) genome sequencing is efficient for the enhancement of the understanding of phylogenetic relationships and taxonomic revision. Here, we report complete cp genomes of five species of Acer sect. Platanoidea. The length of Acer sect. Platanoidea cp genomes ranged from 156,262 bp to 157,349 bp and detected the structural variation in the inverted repeats (IRs) boundaries. By conducting a sliding window analysis, we found that five relatively high variable regions (trnH-psbA, psbN-trnD, psaA-ycf3, petA-psbJ and ndhA intron) had a high potential for developing effective genetic markers. Moreover, with an addition of eight plastomes collected from GenBank, we displayed a robust phylogenetic tree of the Acer sect. Platanoidea, with high resolutions for nearly all identified nodes, suggests a promising opportunity to resolve infrasectional relationships of the most species-rich section Platanoidea of Acer.
Chemospecific deficits in taste sensitivity following bilateral or right hemispheric gustatory cortex lesions in rats

Our prior studies showed bilateral gustatory cortex (GC) lesions significantly impair taste sensitivity to salts (NaCl and KCl) and quinine (“bitter”) but not to sucrose (“sweet”). The range of qualitative tastants tested here has been extended in a theoretically relevant way to include the maltodextrin, Maltrin, a preferred stimulus by rats thought to represent a unique taste quality, and the “sour” stimulus citric acid; NaCl was also included as a positive control. Male rats (Sprague–Dawley) with histologically confirmed neurotoxin‐induced bilateral (BGCX, n = 13), or right (RGCX, n = 13) or left (LGCX, n = 9) unilateral GC lesions and sham‐operated controls (SHAM, n = 16) were trained to discriminate a tastant from water in an operant two‐response detection task. A mapping system was used to determine placement, size, and symmetry (when bilateral) of the lesion. BGCX significantly impaired taste sensitivity to NaCl, as expected, but not to Maltrin or citric acid, emulating our prior results with sucrose. However, in the case of citric acid, there was some disruption in performance at higher concentrations. Interestingly, RGCX, but not LGCX, also significantly impaired taste sensitivity, but only to NaCl, suggesting some degree of lateralized function. Taken together with our prior findings, extensive bilateral lesions in GC do not disrupt basic taste signal detection to all taste stimuli uniformly. Moreover, GC lesions do not preclude the ability of rats to learn and perform the task, clearly demonstrating that, in its absence, other brain regions are able to maintain sensory‐discriminative taste processing, albeit with attenuated sensitivity for select stimuli.
Excavations at Motza in the Judean Hills and the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B in the Southern Levant

Resume: Les fouilles effectuees recemment a Motza, pres de Jerusalem, ont revele la presence d’un important site neolithique occupe de maniere continue du PPNB ancien au Neolithique ceramique. Bien datee, l’occupation du PPNB ancien a livre de nombreux vestiges architecturaux, des sepultures, des fi gurines d’argile et de pierre, ainsi qu’une abondante industrie sur silex et obsidienne. Le niveau 6, epais de pres de deux metres, comporte trois couches d’occupation successives, presentant des restes architecturaux distincts. Ceux-ci incluent des structures curvilineaires et rectangulaires avec des sols de chaux, des cours, des foyers et des murs massifs de plus d’un metre d’epaisseur. Cette couche est datee par seize datations radiocarbone toutes comprises entre 8600 et 8200 av. J.-C. (cal.). L’industrie lithique de Motza presente une combinaison de traditions plus anciennes du PPNA associees a des innovations technologiques. Les pointes d’Helwan et de Jericho dominent l’outillage et beaucoup sont faconnees sur des lames bidirectionnelles comme au Levant Nord. La plupart des lames de faucilles sont elles aussi faconnees sur des produits bipolaires. La gazelle (Gazella gazella) qui domine l’assemblage faunique du PPNB ancien indique que la chasse reste importante a cette periode. La gazelle sert preferentiellement de support pour l’industrie osseuse, un choix herite du Sultanien. Les pratiques funeraires sont variees, mais les inhumations sont majoritairement primaires et la position sur le cote en fl exion forcee domine. Dans les trois inhumations primaires d’adultes, les crânes ont ete preleves apres decomposition. Le traitement des corps observe a Motza se singularise par la presence de plâtre associe aux sepultures de diverses manieres, particulierement des morceaux meles au remplissage. Les decouvertes faites a Motza invitent a revoir l’hypothese selon laquelle, dans cette region, le PPNB n’aurait debute qu’avec sa phase moyenne (MPPNB). De plus, la technologie naviforme evoluee et les pointes d’Helwan presentes a Motza, apparaissent comme des marqueurs chronologiques de cette periode; associees aux datations C14, elles confi rment l’existence de cette phase ancienne du PPNB au Levant Sud.