Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An assessment of volatility and leverage effect before and during the period of Covid-19: a study of selected international stock markets

: This research work assesses the volatility and leverage effect of the selected stock markets before and during the outburst of the Covid-19 of the selected international stock markets. This study is based on daily time-series data obtained from yahoo.finance database. The period of the study has been considered from 1 September 2019 to 31 December 2019, before the period of Covid-19, and from 1 January 2020 to 30 April 2020, during the period of Covid-19. In the course of analysis, descriptive statistics, the GARCH model, the EGARCH model, and the TGARCH model have been used. The GARCH test results show that volatility existed before and during the period of Covid-19. Both E-GARCH and T-GARCH test results show that the leverage effect existed before and during the period of Covid-19. So, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in terms of bad news has a bigger influence on international stock markets.
Integrating operational knowledge in design of new buildings to improve facility performance - A comparative study of building and large ship projects

Purpose: This paper aims to focus on deliberate actions by the building client to integrate knowledge of facilities management, in particular building operation, in design and construction of sustainable facilities. Examples of current practices are studied to answer the questions: Which initiatives to enable operational friendly and sustainable buildings are currently used by building clients in Denmark, which initiatives could be appropriate to use in the future, and which parties are in the best position to implement the various initiatives? Design/methodology/approach: The study is a hermeneutic multi-method study, which consists of a review of former research, a case study and a survey. It starts with theoretical background based on earlier research with the aim to identify initiatives to ensure the use of operational knowledge in building design. Hereafter the paper present, analyse and discuss two studies: A case study of current practices at a university campus organisation and a survey of five swimming facilities. All cases are from Denmark. Findings: 31 initiatives to enable use of operational knowledge in building design were initially identified. In the case study, 11 additional initiatives were found. The case study and the survey of swimming facilities show different degrees of implementation, varying from 18 to 31 initiatives implemented. However, the studies show that introducing the initiatives is not sufficient; it takes deliberate actions to get the initiatives well implemented. Within the building client organization, three main actors should care for implementing the initiatives: Top management, Building client division and Operation division. Originality/value: Research-based literature on practices in relation to knowledge transfer from operation to design is limited. This paper provides insights into deliberate efforts on transferring knowledge from operation to design among Danish building clients.
Combined Assessments of Multi-panel Biomarkers for Diagnostic Performance in Coronary Artery Disease: Case-Control Analysis

Background: Understanding the etiopathology of coronary artery diseases (CAD) has directed studies towards the evaluation of novel serum biomarkers as potential diagnostic tools for the clinical setting. In addition to the current gold standard cardiac troponin-I (TnI), several other biomarkers had been studied for diagnosis, prediction, and prognosis of CAD. Of these biomarkers, N-terminal-proatrial natriuretic peptide (NT-ProANP), Cystatin-C (CyC), and highly-sensitive C-reactive protein (HSCRP). Aim of Study: Evaluation of the diagnostic performance of combined multiple biomarkers in patients with CAD Subjects and methods: the study included 136 patients diagnosed as CAD by cardiologists and 44 healthy group. All participants underwent echocardiographic examinations and LVEF % 40%. Moreover, hematological tests for creatinine, urea, total lipid profile, TnI, NT-ProANP, CyC, and HSCRP within the first 24 h of admission were done. An angiographic study was completed by expert interventional cardiologists. Biostatistical scrutiny was finalized with SPSS Version-25, and GraphPad Prism 8.0. 2. ROC study performed for all four markers to evaluate their, diagnostic accuracy for CAD. Pairwise assessment of ROC for the analytic ability of the multi-biomarkers was also performed using MedCalc 19.3. 1 software. Results: There were no significant differences regarding serum creatinine, urea nitrogen, and BMI between two study groups. The incidence of diabetes, hypertension, lipid profile components, and smoking were significantly higher in CAD patients. There was a significant difference between patients and control groups concerning mean LVEF%, however, only 1/4th of the CAD patients had an echocardiographic finding of LVSD. There were significantly higher concentrations of all four markers in CAD than in controls. ROC curves revealed that AUCs of TnI, NT-ProANP, CyC and HSCRP were, respectively, 0.93 (p-0.001), 0.69 (p-0.001), 0.82 (p-0.4) and 0.69 (p-0.001); the highest was for TnI. There was no statistically significant difference between the diagnostic performance power (differences in AUC) of NT-ProANP and HSCRP. Nevertheless, TnI has the highest AUC followed by CyC. Pairwise comparison of the combined biomarkers of TnI and HSCRP appeared to perform best in predicting CAD (P-0.0001). The next best performing couple is the addition of TnI and NT-ProANP (P-0.001). Using HSCRP with TnI and NT-ProANP in a three-markers panel, or a four-markers panel with CyC yielded no further diagnostic value (results not shown). Combining either CyC or HSCRP and NT-ProANP, provided no extra information in the diagnosis of CAD than it would if either were studied uncoupled
Fatty and amino acid profile of mealworm larvae (Tenebrio molitor L.)

The yellow mealworm (Tenebrio molitor L., Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) is an edible insect, distributed worldwide and a convenient candidate for industrial-scale production. Mealworms could be commercially used for the substitution of conventional protein sources. In our previous study, it was found that T. molitor larvae predominantly contained crude protein (55.83%) and crude fat (25.19%), as well as low content of nitrogen-free extract (based on dry weight). Mealworm specimens were maintained in an incubator under controlled conditions in plastic containers. Insects were sieved and put into the container with boiling water and cooked for 180 seconds. Moisture content was determined as weight loss after drying of larvae. Amino acids were determined on an Agilent Technologies 1260 series HPLC system. Fatty acid composition was determined on a Thermo Scientific TRACE 1300 gas chromatograph equipped with a flame ionization detector using TR-FAME column. The results showed that the content of unsaturated fatty acid is very high, i.e. oleic acid (C18:1) formed the major lipid component in 40.83%, which was followed by linoleic acid (C18:2, omega-6 fatty acid) with 29.80% and linolenic acid (C18:3) with 1.08%. The essential amino acids are highly represented in the samples (in % dry matter). This primarily refers to isoleucine (4.12), tyrosine (3.86), phenylalanine (3.06), leucine (2.96), lysine (2.67) and methionine (1.76). The differences in essential fatty and amino acid content between our results and discussed literature data, could be the consequence of different substrates used for rearing of insects. After everything stated above, the biological value of T. molitor larvae proves that it could be suitable as animal feed.
Effects on the bycatch of eulachon and juvenile groundfish by altering the level of artificial illumination along an ocean shrimp trawl fishing line

We examined how catches of ocean shrimp (Pandalus jordani), eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus), and juvenile groundfish could be affected by altering the level of artificial illumination along the fishing line of an ocean shrimp trawl. In the ocean shrimp trawl fishery, catches of eulachon are of special concern, as the species’ southern Distinct Population Segment is listed as “threatened” under the US Endangered Species Act. Using a double-rigged trawl vessel, with one trawl illuminated and the other unilluminated, we compared the catch efficiencies for ocean shrimp, eulachon, and juvenile groundfish between an unilluminated trawl and trawls illuminated with 5, 10, and 20 LED fishing lights along their fishing line. The addition of artificial illumination along the trawl fishing line significantly affected the average catch efficiency for eulachon, rockfish (Sebastes spp.), and flatfish, with the three LED configurations each catching significantly fewer individuals than the unilluminated trawl without impacting ocean shrimp catches. For Pacific hake (Merluccius productus), the ten LED-configured trawl caught significantly more fish than the unilluminated trawl. For the five and 20 LED configurations, mean Pacific hake catches did not differ from the unilluminated trawl. This study contributes new data on how artificial illumination can affect eulachon catches (and other fish) and contribute to their conservation.
Genotypic and Phenotypic Path Analysis for Flower Yield in Chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelve)

Flowers and flowering plants are fascinating part of our life. Among them, chrysanthemum (chryos golden; anthos flower) called as “Queen of the East” is a most interesting and popular flower crop of commercial importance. It ranks third in the International cut flower trade next to rose and carnation in demand and popularity. Chrysanthemum is native to China, belonging to the family Asteraceae which is the most phylogenetically advanced dicotyledonous family. The inflorescence is called as capitulum or head consisting of large number of tiny florets closely mounted on a flattened stem end, which gives a false appearance of single bloom. Garden chrysanthemum which was previously known as Chrysanthemum morifolium (Ramat) and now it is called as Dendranthema grandiflora (Tzvelev) Kumbar et al., (2017) In India chrysanthemum commercially cultivated in states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Ten genotypes of chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelve) were assessed for 12 quantitative and qualitative traits to study the path analysis of different parameters with yield components and their direct and indirect effects on flower yield. Genotypic path coefficient analysis revealed that flower yield per plant was directly and positively influenced by number of flowers per plant, individual flower weight, days to flower bud initiation and shelf life of flowers. Whereas, negative direct influence by days taken for fifty per cent flowering, number of primary branches and duration of flowering were noticed. Further, the path coefficient analysis (phenotypic) revealed that flower yield per plant had positive direct effect from number of flowers per plant, individual flower weight, days taken for flower bud initiation, flower diameter and shelf life of flowers; whereas, negative direct effect through days taken for fifty per cent flowering was noticed. Hence, selection for these traits would be effective for flower yield improvement in chrysanthemum. K e y w o r d s
Teaching K-12 Science and Engineering During a Crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic is resulting in widespread and ongoing changes to how the K-12 education system functions, including disruptions to science teaching and learning environments. Students and teachers are all figuring out how to do schooling differently, and districts and states are working overtime to reimagine systems and processes. This is difficult and stressful work in the middle of the already stressful and sometimes traumatic backdrop of the global pandemic. In addition, students with disabilities, students of color, immigrants, English learners, and students from under-resourced communities have been disproportionately affected, both by the pandemic itself and by the resulting instructional shifts. Teaching K-12 Science and Engineering During a Crisis aims to describe what high quality science and engineering education can look like in a time of great uncertainty and to support practitioners as they work toward their goals. This book includes guidance for science and engineering practitioners - with an emphasis on the needs of district science supervisors, curriculum leads, and instructional coaches. Teaching K-12 Science and Engineering During a Crisis will help K-12 science and engineering teachers adapt learning experiences as needed to support students and their families dealing with ongoing changes to instructional and home environments and at the same time provide high quality in those experiences. © 2020 by the National Academy of Sciences.
Cultural adaptation is maximised when intelligent individuals rarely think for themselves

Abstract Abstract Humans are remarkable in their reliance on cultural inheritance, and the ecological success this has produced. Nonetheless, we lack a thorough understanding of how the cognitive underpinnings of cultural transmission affect cultural adaptation across diverse tasks. Here, we use an agent-based simulation to investigate how different learning mechanisms (both social and asocial) interact with task structure to affect cultural adaptation. Specifically, we compared learning through refinement, recombination or both, in tasks of different difficulty, with learners of different asocial intelligence. We find that for simple tasks all learning mechanisms are roughly equivalent. However, for hard tasks, performance was maximised when populations consisted of highly intelligent individuals who nonetheless rarely innovated and instead recombined existing information. Our results thus show that cumulative cultural adaptation relies on the combination of individual intelligence and ‘blind’ population-level processes, although the former may be rarely used. The counterintuitive requirement that individuals be highly intelligent, but rarely use this intelligence, may help resolve the debate over the role of individual intelligence in cultural adaptation.
On the local transformed based method for partial integro-differential equations of fractional order

In the present work, a localized Laplace transform based numerical scheme is constructed for fractional partial integro-differential equations with weakly singular kernels. By application of the Laplace transform the time variable is eliminated and the spatial derivatives are approximated by RBF which transformed the problem into a linear system of equations. The resultant system lead to differentiation matrices which are sparse contrary to large global collocation matrices. The inverse Laplace transform is then computed numerically using contour integration to recover the solution. The efficiency and accuracy of the method is demonstrated by several numerical experiments. The results obtained by the present method are compared with analytical solutions and other numerical methods. 2010 Mathematics Subject Classification: 65R10; 65R20
EFFECT OF THE POSTPARTUM DAYS ON THE PREGNANCY RATE OF COWS SUBMITTED TO FIXED-TIME EMBRYO TRANSFER

The present study aimed to analyze the influence of the postpartum period on the pregnancy rate of cows submitted to fixed-time embryo transfer (FTET). It was used one hundred thirty-one crossbreed embryo recipient cows, on the 79.35 ± 28.0 days postpartum and BCS between 2.75 to 3.0. The cows received a hormonal protocol initiated on a random day of estrus cycle (D0), beginning with an intravaginal device containing 1.9 g of progesterone and intramuscular administration (IM) of 2 mg of estradiol benzoate. In D8, the intravaginal device was removed, and it was administered a 0.15 mg D-cloprostenol, 0.5 mg estradiol cypionate and 300 IU eCG IM. TheFTET of Senepol IVP embryos was performed on D17, without previous estrus observation. The recipient cows were divided into two experimental groups: until the seventh day postpartum (N = 70) and after the seventh day postpartum (N = 61). The pregnancy diagnosis was performed by transrectal ultrasonography (Mindray DP2200, 7.5 Mhz) on the 23 day after ET. The pregnancy rate of the recipient’s cows was 52% (68/131) and there was no difference (p>0.05) on the pregnancy rate of the recipient’s cows regarding the embryo development stage, neither the postpartum period. In conclusion, the use of calving cows as embryos recipients may be a viable alternative, resulted in adequate pregnancy rates, optimizing the use of this animal category in embryo transfer programs.
Reconciling Changes in Wage Inequality with Changes in College Selectivity Using a Behavioral Model

We estimate a structural dynamic Roy model of education, labor supply and earnings on the 1979 and 1997 cohorts of males taken from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) and evaluate to what extent changes in education and labor supply decisions across cohorts have been explained by changes in i) the college premium, ii) the utility of attending higher education, iii) grade progression standards, and iv) the value of non-market time. We quantify the evolution of the relative and absolute qualities of both college graduates and college attendants (associates). We find that it is impossible to rationalize changes in observed schooling decisions without appealing to a large increase in intrinsic taste for education, despite a doubling of the cost of college and its impact on debt-load. The population distribution of the college premium has shifted to the right, going from 50% to 58%, while the premium of actual college graduates has shifted to the left, going from 72% to 54%, thereby pointing toward a reduction of the relative quality of college graduates. The absolute quality (human capital) of college graduates has however remained stable. For college attendants (associates), both relative and absolute quality dropped. One implication of the relative flattening of age earnings profiles is the removal of the negative effect of late college graduation on early life-cycle wages. Our estimates indicate it moved from a 4% penalty per year of delay to an insignificant quantity by the early 2000's.
Efficacy of Supplemental Irrigation and Nitrogen Management on Enhancing Nitrogen Availability and Urease Activity in Soils with Sorghum Production

The soil nitrogen (N) availability and urease activity (UA) in a humid ecosystem with variable rainfall distribution and poor soil fertility are not well understood. A complete appreciation of N cycling in the soil–water–plant continuum is needed to better manage N and water in regions that will be strongly affected by climate change. A sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) study located in Florence, South Carolina, USA, was conducted using a variable-rate pivot system. We hypothesized that supplemental irrigation (SI) and N would enhance UA and N uptake while minimizing the concentration of N in porewater (TINW). The aim of the study was to assess the impact of SI (0, 50, and 100%) and N fertilization (0, 85, and 170 kg N ha−1) on: UA; total N (TNS); total inorganic N (TINS); TINW; and N uptake of sorghum. Results support our research hypothesis. The greatest UA was from 0% SI and 170 kg ha−1 (18.7 µg N g−1 ha−1). Porewater N (mg L−1), when averaged across SI and N showed a significantly lower concentration at lower soil depth (9.9 ± 0.7) than the upper depth (26.1 ± 2.4). The 100% SI had the greatest biomass N uptake (NUPB) of 67.9 ± 31.1 kg ha−1 and grain N uptake (NUG) of 52.7 ± 20.5 kg ha−1. The greatest NUPB (70.9 ± 30.3 kg ha−1) and NUG (55.3 ± 16.5 kg ha−1) was from the application of 170 kg N ha−1. Overall, results showed that proper use of water and N enhanced soil N dynamics, and improved biomass productivity and N uptake of sorghum.
Identification of a ‘mild’ strain of sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus and impact on titres of co-infecting SPFMV

The first indication of evolution in Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV) was obtained when sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) plants of cv Kampala white from Busia district, eastern Uganda were shown to be infected with only SPCSV that induced mild symptoms in Ipomoea setosa. The objective of the study was to understand why the SPCSV isolate in Busia was not co-infected with SPFMV. ‘Mild’ SPCSV-infected plants were used to plant a field trial. The quantity of Sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) was measured, using quantitative PCR (qPCR), in plants of I. setosa and cv Kampala white infected with SPFMV, ‘mild’ SPCSV + SPFMV or wild type SPCSV + SPFMV. The RNase3 and p22 genes of ‘mild’ SPCSV were sequenced and compared with those in the gene bank. qPCR assays were done to determine the titres of RNA1 (on to which RNase3 and p22 are found) and RNA2. ‘Mild’ SPCSV reduced yield by up to 50%. SPFMV titre was greatest in co-infections of SPFMV and wild type SPCSV; followed by co-infections of SPFMV and ‘mild’ SPCSV; and least in single SPFMV infections. The RNase3 of ‘mild’ SPCSV showed amino acid changes at position 34 (G to D) and 159 (H to Y), but p22 seemed normal. RNA1 was less expressed (though RNA2 continued to be ‘normally’ expressed) in the ‘mild’ SPCSV infection, than in the wild type SPCSV infection. This is the first example of a virus downgrading part of its genome to ensure that it alone benefits from RNA silencing suppression. The resulting improvement in its competiveness makes this strain likely to spread and become more important. Keywords : p22, RNase3, SPCSV, sweetpotato
Whole-genome-based phylogeny of African swine fever virus

Aim: A genome-scale phylogenetic analysis was used to infer the evolutionary dynamics of Asfarviridae – African swine fever virus (ASFV) – and better define its genetic diversity. Materials and Methods: All complete ASFV genomes from NCBI’s resource as of March 2020 were used. The phylogenetic analysis used maximum likelihood and neighbor-joining methods. The evolutionary models detection was done with the help of the package of programs MEGA-X. Algorithms were used to build phylogenetic trees for type B DNA polymerases of ASFV (n=34) and HcDNAV (n=2), as an external group. Results: An expedient categorization of the Asfarviridae family uses five clades. Genotype 1 (except for LIV 5/40 virus isolate) as well genotype 7 are assigned to the alpha clade; genotype 2 to the beta clade; genotypes 8, 9, and 10 to the gamma clade; genotype 5 to the delta clade; and genotypes 3, 4, and 20, as well as genotype 22 and the LIV 5/40 isolate to the epsilon clade. Branch lengths on the phylogenetic tree are proportional to genetic distance along the branch. Branches at the phylogenetic tree of Asfarviridae are much shorter than branches for Baculoviridae. Shorter branches in ASFVs population suggest that Asfarviridae evolved relatively recently and remain more closely related. Conclusion: We suggest applying more robust standards using whole genomes to ensure the correct classification of ASFV and maintain phylogeny as a useful tool.
Mediating role of poverty in the association between environmental factors and cognitive performance in preschoolers

TThe association between environmental factors and cognitive performance during childhood could be mediated by poverty (i.e., households with Unsatisfied or Satisfied Basic Needs). This study explored such mediating roles in preschoolers from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Tasks to assess executive attention, working memory, inhibitory control, planning, and fluid reasoning were administered to 250 children aged 4 and 5 years. The results suggested that poverty mediated the effects of family composition, child health, health risk factors, children and adults at home, maternal age, and literacy activities on the performance of executive attention, fluid reasoning, and inhibitory control. These results contribute to our understanding of the relationship between environmental factors and cognitive development through the identification of the mediating role of poverty.