Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DIFFERENCES IN CARCASS TRAITS OF THREE BREEDS OF SWINE AND CROSSES AT FIVE STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT

Carcass measurements from 249 pigs representing all possible two-breed crosses of Minnesota No. 1 (M), Pietrain (P), and Yorkshire (Y) breeds were recorded following slaughter at five developmental stages (35 days of age, 22.5 kg, 45.0 kg, 67.5 kg, and 90.0 kg liveweight). The objectives were to determine how advancing maturity affected reciprocal differences and heterosis, to examine breed differences, and to calculate growth curves for these measurements. Three distinct patterns were observed for reciprocal differences. The first was an increase in magnitude, the second parabolic, and the third a decrease in magnitude. Statistically significant heterosis estimates were too few to allow for an examination of trends associated with advancing maturity. The following breed differences were found: (M = Y)>P for carcass length, M>(P = Y) for mean backfat thickness, P>Y>M for loin eye area, ham weight, boned ham weight, semitendinosus weight, biceps femoris weight, and semimembranosus weight, (P = Y)>M for loi.
The use of thermography on the slaughter-line for the assessment of pork and raw ham quality

The left and right hams of forty heavy pig carcasses were thermographed to evaluate whether surface temperature differences were related to meat and ham quality. Thermal imaging analysis showed no differences in average surface temperature among classes of pH or of L* colour co-ordinate nor among classes of ham defects such as veining and red skin. However, hams with a lower fat cover displayed a significantly warmer average temperature surface. Infrared thermography seems to be a practical and non-invasive method to detect hams with a fat cover below the minimum requested to be submitted to the dry-curing process.
Embryonic and Early Post-Hatching Growth Patterns of Dwarf Broiler-Type Chickens

Abstract Dwarf (dw) chicks were significantly heavier at hatching and had significantly more unabsorbed yolk material than nondwarf chicks of the same sex from the same sized eggs. Body weight minus yolk did not differ between the two groups within sex. In a separate trial where no adjustments for egg weight differences or sex were made, hatching weight of dwarf and normal chicks did not differ, but body weight minus yolk was significantly reduced in dwarfs. As a result of these differences, residual yolk sac weight was again significantly larger in dwarfs. No significant difference in leg length between dwarf and normal chicks at hatching was observed. The regressions of body weight at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 weeks of age on weight of the egg from which the chick hatched were highly significant for females in a dwarf broiler-type population. In contrast, the regressions were significant only through six weeks of age in males. Phenotypic correlations between body weight and egg weight exhibited a similar pattern. No significant quadratic regressions were observed between these two variables.
Fruit consumption by carnivores in Mediterranean Europe

1We reviewed patterns of fruit consumption amongst 10 species of mesocarnivores: red fox Vulpes vulpes, weasel Mustela nivalis, stoat Mustela erminea, polecat Mustela putorius, stone marten Martes foina, pine marten Martes martes, Eurasian badger Meles meles, common genet Genetta genetta, Egyptian mongoose Herpestes ichneumon and wildcat Felis silvestris in Mediterranean Europe. 2The 65 reviewed studies recorded 79 different fruits eaten by carnivores, 58 of which were identified to species. Most records (63%) were of fleshy fruits with high pulp content. The frequency of occurrence of fruit items varied widely amongst species and regions. Four of the carnivore species (red fox, stone marten, badger and common genet) included more than 30 fruit species in their diet. 3A longitudinal pattern was detected in the consumption of fruit in the Mediterranean region, with the frequency of occurrence of fruit consumption increasing towards the east.
On the structure of the lower jaw in dipnoans: with a description of an early Devonian dipnoan from Canada, Melanognathus canadenis gen. et sp. nov.

The lower jaw in Melanognathus gen. nov. and several other Devonian dipnoans is described and compared with that in Neoceratodus. It is a most conservative structure, which apart from the effect of the retrogressive development of the skeleton has hardly changed since Devonian times. A new interpretation of the sensory canal bones is given. With respect to these elements and the structure of the lower jaw as a whole, the dipnoans differ fundamentally from the rhipidistid crossopterygians, tetrapods and aetinopterygians. Several resemblances to the lower jaw in holocephalians are demonstrated. The results confirm the view that the Dipnoi comprise an early specialized and isolated group, perhaps more closely related to the elasmo-branchiomorphs than to the teleostomes and tetrapods.
The biochemical effects of potassium chloride on the silkworm, (Bombyx mori L.)

Abstract The supplementation with 50, 100 and 150 αg/mL potassium chloride to the fifth instar larvae of the silkworm Bombyx mori on fat body glycogen, protein, total lipids and haemolymph protein and trehalose were analyzed. The fat body glycogen and protein and haemolymph protein were increased significantly in all the treated groups; whereas fat body total lipids increased only in 100 and 150 αg/mL and haemolymph trehalose increased only in 150 αg/mL potassium chloride‐treated groups when compared with those of the corresponding parameters of the carrier controls.
The internationalisation of supermarkets and the nature of competitive rivalry in retailing in southern Africa1

ABSTRACT In the past two decades, southern African countries have experienced rapid growth and spread of supermarket chains. This paper assesses the internationalisation of supermarkets and potential reasons for the uneven outcomes seen in different countries in the region. Several factors account for the spread, including rising urbanisation, increasing per capita income, greater economies of scale and scope, and more efficient procurement and distribution systems. However, the current literature does not adequately consider the importance of culture, proximity to suppliers and impact of policy objectives of national governments on the success of supermarkets in host countries, especially in developing countries. It also does not consider the nature of competitive rivalry between supermarkets and how this affects internationalisation. This paper highlights the importance of these factors in understanding the outcomes in selected southern African countries.
Morphology of Monhystera Coomansi Sp.N. From Algeria (Nematoda: Monhysteridae)

The morphology of Monhystera coomansi sp.n. , a free-living benthic species from Algeria, is described in detail. The new species is characterised by the presence of the longest spicules (135-220 μm) hitherto found in the genus and a gubernaculum with two plate-like, lateral apophyses and a median horsehead-shaped apophysis. The female of M. coomansi sp.n. is characterised by the following combination of characters: numerous ovoid and hyaline cells associated with the uterus, one pair of double, postvulval, granulated cells, tail longer than vulva-anus distance ( > 1.2) and the occurrence of vivipary. Copulatory, cloacal, rectal and vaginal gland cells are also reported in the new species. SEM photographs of M. coomansi sp.n. demonstrate the occurrence of many perioral platelets. This newly discovered structure is found to be characteristic for the genera Monhystera and Eumonhystera within the Monhysteridae. Two forms of this species were found at a second Algerian locality. The first form is larger than, but similar to the type population; the second form has a differently-shaped amphideal fovea, indistinct postvulval gland cells and almost indiscernible gubernaculum apophyses.
Genetic variation in water-soluble carbohydrate concentration in diverse cultivars of Dactylis glomerata L. during vegetative growth

The water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) content of Dactylis glomerata L. (cocksfoot) during vegetative growth is lower than that of other temperate grasses. Variation in the WSC content of vegetative growth among cultivars was measured in order to assess the potential to improve forage quality. There were significant differences among cultivars for WSC content (P < 0.01) in all maturity groups. Average WSC content of the late (L) maturity group was higher than that of the early (E) and medium (M) maturity groups. Variation in the WSC content was largest among group L cultivars and smallest in group M. The WSC content of cultivars in groups M and L was consistent across 2 years (interactions between cultivars and years were not significant). Brown stripe infection was shown to reduce WSC content in susceptible cultivars. As a result of multiple regression analysis with WSC content as the dependent variable, dry matter content, heading date, thickness of stems, and resistance to brown stripe were selected as independent variables that were correlated with WSC. Therefore, variation for these traits must also be monitored in any program to increase WSC content in orchardgrass.
Effects of warming procedures on the survivability of in vitro matured buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) oocytes vitrified by Cryotop

Abstract The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of different warming procedures on the survivability of buffalo in vitro matured oocytes vitrified by the Cryotop (CT) method. In vitro matured oocytes were vitrified in a final solution of 20 % ethylene glycol (EG), 20 % of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and 0.5 M sucrose. In Group A oocytes (n = 111) were warmed in 1.25 M sucrose for 1 min and then exposed to decreasing concentrations of the sugar (0.625, 0.42 and 0.32 M for 30 sec). In Group B, oocytes (n =122) were warmed into a 0.25 M sucrose solution for 1 min, and then exposed to a 0.15 M sucrose solution for 5 min. Oocytes were rinsed and allocated into the in vitro maturation (IVM) drops for 2 h and then fertilized in vitro. The survival rate was significantly higher in Group A compared to Group B both at 2 h post-warming (92.8 vs 83.6 %; P<0.05) and at 20 h post-warming (85.6 vs 50 %; P<0.01). Cleavage rate was also significantly increased in Group A compared to Group B (55.3 vs 36.3 %; P<0.01) whereas no differences were observed in the blastocyst yield between groups (7.8 % vs 6.9 %).
The ‘Usual Suspects’

Abstract A key issue in contemporary criminology is the role that social status, and particularly race, plays in legal processes. Previous research suggests that criminal justice proceedings-including arrest, conviction, and sentencing rates-are influenced by victim and offender race, but rarely examines the role of race in reporting events to the police. The following research uses data from the rape sub-sample of the National Crime Victimization Survey of households 1992-2001; logistic regression analyses are conducted to determine how victim and offender race influence reporting of rape to the police, controlling for other incident characteristics. The findings suggest that rapes with a Black perpetrator are much more likely to be reported to police, regardless of whether the victim is white or Black.
The invasive zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha in Lake Trasimeno (Central Italy): Distribution and reproduction

Monthly monitoring over one year (June 2003–May 2004) allowed us to evaluate the distribution of the Eurasian invader Dreissena polymorpha along the shores of Lake Trasimeno (Central Italy) and to shed light on the reproduction of these zebra mussels. Sampling was carried out on 12 study sites, 10 with hard substrata and 2 with soft sediments. The mollusk colonized different substrata, a feature that affected its density: from 40 on wooden boat keels to 200,000 individuals/m2 on concrete. In all months, gonad and gamete development was investigated by means of histological examination. The gonad of both sexes consisted of a single Y‐shaped organ, which increased in volume during maturation until it occupied the whole visceral mass in ripe individuals. Only one period of successful reproduction seemed to exist, and the gonadal development of males and females coincided fairly closely. Gamete development seemed to depend on a rapid increase in water temperature (from 4.3°C to 13.4°C). Inactive gonads were observed in a small percentage of individuals (18%). Females and males constituted 38% and 44% of the population, respectively (sex ratio of 1:1.16). No hermaphrodites were found. This investigation provides additional information on the invasive zebra mussel, a non‐native organism that has established a self‐sustaining population in Lake Trasimeno, and may be useful for management and control of the establishment and spreading of invasive species.
DOES WRITING ABOUT THE BEREAVEMENT LESSEN GRIEF FOLLOWING SUDDEN, UNINTENTIONAL DEATH?

Writing about traumatic events produces improvement in an array of areas including physical and psychological functioning. To see if these improvements extended to improved bereavement recovery after the accidental or homicidal death of a loved one, 64 undergraduates (51 women, 13 men) began, and 44 completed, a writing project. At pretest, they completed measures of depression, anxiety, grief, impact, and nonroutine health visits. Then, they were randomly assigned to write about either the bereavement experience (profound condition), or innocuous topics (trivial condition). They wrote for 15 minutes a day for four days, then completed the same measures a second time (posttest). Six weeks later, they were mailed the same measures again (follow-up). A 2 (Condition: Profound versus Trivial) X 3 (Time: Pre -, Post -, or Follow-up) MANOVA yielded a significant main effect for time, but no main effect for condition and no interaction. Follow-up ANOVAs indicated that, across conditions, from pretest to follow-up testing participants reported less anxiety and depression, less impact, greater grief recovery, but about the same health center visits. A 2 (Condition) X 4 (Writing Day) MANOVA and follow-up tests indicated that those in the profound condition reported less subjective distress from Day 1 to Day 3, compared to those in the trivial condition. Combined with Kovac and Range (1999), present results suggest that writing projects may be more beneficial to those experiencing the unique bereavement of suicidal death, rather than those experiencing the nonintentional death of a loved one by accident or homicide.
Surface Structure of Amyloid-β Fibrils Contributes to Cytotoxicity

Amyloid β (Aβ) toxicity has been hypothesized to initiate the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The characteristic fibrillar morphology of Aβ-aggregates, that constitute the main components of senile plaque, has long been considered to account for the neurotoxicity. But recent reports argue against a primary role for mature fibrils in AD pathogenesis because of the lack of a robust correlation between the severity of neurological impairment and the extent of amyloid deposition. Toxicity from the soluble prefibrillar intermediate entity of aggregates often called oligomer has recently proposed a plausible explanation for this inconsistency. An alternative explanation is based on the observation that certain amyloid fibril morphologies are more toxic than others, indicating that not all amyloid fibrils are equally toxic. Here, we report that it is not only the β-sheeted fibrillar structure but also the surface physicochemical composition that affects the toxicity of Aβ fibrils. For the first time, c.
Behavioural evidence of methyl‐2,6,10‐trimethyltridecanoate as a sex pheromone of Euschistus heros (Het., Pentatomidae)

Abstract: Males of the Neotropical brown stink bug, Euschistus heros, were attractive to conspecific females in bioassays. A synthetic stereoisomeric mixture of methyl‐2,6,10‐trimethyltridecanoate, previously identified and presumed as the male‐produced pheromone, was confirmed to attract females. A 24 h bioassay showed the presence of a diel periodicity, where the females respond to males from noon to midnight. A still‐air olfactometer assembled from commercially available food containers was used to test the attractants from E. heros.
Body size, female reproduction and sexual dimorphism in the lizard Ameiva ameiva (Teiidae) in a restinga of southeastern Brazil

Neste estudo foram analisados 57 especimes do lagarto teiideo Ameiva ameiva (Linnaeus, 1758) (22 femeas e 35 machos) coletados na restinga de Barra de Marica, no estado do Rio de Janeiro, sudeste do Brasil, para investigar alguns aspectos reprodutivos das femeas e o dimorfismo sexual nessa populacao. O estudo visou responder as seguintes questoes: 1) Qual o comprimento corporeo minimo das femeas na maturidade nesta populacao? 2) Qual o tamanho medio (numero de ovos produzidos) da ninhada? 3) Ha relacao entre o tamanho corporeo das femeas e o tamanho da ninhada (numero de ovos)? 4) Ha dimorfismo sexual no tamanho do corpo e da cabeca? O comprimento rostro-cloacal (CRC) medio dos machos adultos de A. ameiva (124,2 ± 17,8 mm) foi significativamente maior que o das femeas adultas (96,5 ± 23,1 mm de CRC). A massa corporea dos machos (71,3 ± 27,3 g) foi significativamente superior aquela das femeas (26,7 ± 20,9 g). Analisamos a relacao entre o tamanho corporeo das femeas sobre o tamanho da ninhada produzida. O tamanho medio da ninhada das femeas de A. ameiva foi de 6,7 ± 2,1 ovos, estando positiva e significativamente relacionado com o CRC da femea. Os dados sugerem que, a despeito da sazonalidade do ambiente na restinga Barra de Marica, A. ameiva parece possuir uma atividade reprodutiva extensa e que a selecao intra-sexual parece ter atuado nas femeas para produzir maiores ninhadas e, nos machos, resultando em um maior tamanho do corpo e da cabeca, devido as vantagens associadas aos machos de maiores tamanhos terem acesso favorecido a femeas em encontros agonisticos entre machos.
Coincidences of structural and molecular characters in evolutionary lines of cyanobacteria

The traditional system of cyanobacteria based on morphological characters is in agreement with the molecular phylogenetic tree derived from 16S rRNA sequencing only in complicated, morphologically clearly diversified groups (heterocytous orders). The molecular evaluations of simple cyanobacteria yield a mixture of coccoid and filamentous (oscillatorialean) strains indicating the more complicated relations and heterogeneity of these groups. The evaluation of phenotype and molecular markers resulted in several conclusions: (i) The basic fine structures (thylakoidal patterns) are more or less in agreement with clusters derived from molecular sequencing; (ii) the coccoid types are particularly heterogeneous, and different groups of unicellular and colonial strains are more related to different consequent clusters of filamentous cyanobacteria than mutually one to another; (iii) it means, that several phylogenetically separated lines exist in cyanobacteria with more or less congruent type of cell structure; and (iv) each of these lines contains both special coccoid and simple trichal types. The taxonomic classification should be re-evaluated according to mentioned criteria.
Ethos Reinforced, Government Endorsed? Comparing Pre-entry and Post-entry Values, Motivations, Sector Perceptions, and Career Preferences of MPA Students in Asia

Abstract This article compares pre-entry and post-entry personal values, job motivations, sector perceptions, and career preferences of two cohorts of professional Master of Public Administration (MPA) students in Asia. The study triangulates data from surveys, focus groups, and exit interviews in a quasi-experimental setting. On the one hand, findings confirm that MPA programs attract students whose job motivations and sector perceptions are already skewed toward the public sector, particularly those enrolling directly from the public sector. On the other hand, overall appreciation of values associated with and preference for public sector employment goes down during the program, while preference for private sector employment goes up. Students with pre-enrollment public sector careers, however, have significantly higher levels of public service motivation at the moment of graduation than those with pre-enrollment careers outside government. The article concludes with implications of these findings for the study and practice of public administration education.
The Tongue Can Paint: Understanding Popularity in Podcasting Societies

Podcast listeners have tripled over the past 5 years to over 100 million subscribers inside the US alone. Yet, no research study has focused on obtaining insights into the growth and popularity of contents among the subscribers. In this paper, we investigate the main factors that contribute to the popularity of podcasts. Our study helps content producers, service providers, and investors to better understand the rationales behind the popularity of podcasts.
A Multinomial Naïve Bayesian (MNB) Network to Automatically Recommend Topics for GitHub Repositories

GitHub has become a precious service for storing and managing software source code. Over the last year, 10M new developers have joined the GitHub community, contributing to more than 44M repositories. In order to help developers increase the reachability of their repositories, in 2017 GitHub introduced the possibility to classify them by means of topics. However, assigning wrong topics to a given repository can compromise the possibility of helping other developers approach it, and thus preventing them from contributing to its development. In this paper we investigate the application of Multinomial Naïve Bayesian (MNB) networks to automatically classify GitHub repositories. By analyzing the README file(s) of the repository to be classified and the source code implementing it, the conceived approach is able to recommend GitHub topics. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first supervised approach addressing the considered problem. Consequently, since there exists no suitable baseline for the comparison, we validated the approach by considering different metrics, aiming to study various quality aspects.
Allometric plasticity in a polyphenic beetle

Abstract 1. Environmental conditions, such as variation in nutrition, commonly contribute to morphological variation among individuals by affecting body size and the expression of certain morphological traits; however the scaling relationship between a morphological trait and body size over a range of body sizes is generally assumed not to change in response to environmental fluctuation (allometric plasticity), but instead to be constant and diagnostic for a particular trait and species or population. The work reported here examined diet‐induced allometric plasticity in the polyphenic beetle Onthophagus taurus Schreber (1759) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae).
Biology of the Wild Silkmoth Anaphe panda (Boisduval) in the Kakamega Forest of Western Kenya

A study on the life cycle of the silkmoth Anaphe panda (Boisduval) was conducted in two different habitats of the Kakamega Forest in western Kenya: Ikuywa, an indigenous forest, and Isecheno, a mixed indigenous forest. Eggs were laid in clusters, and the incubation period ranged from 40 to 45 days. Larvae fed on Bridelia micrantha (Hochst) and passed through seven instars. The developmental period took between 83 to 86 days in the dry season and 112 to118 days in the rainy season. The pupal period ranged between 158 and 178 days in the rainy season and, on the other hand, between 107 and 138 days in the dry season. But the later caught up in development with those that formed earlier. Moths emerged from mid-October until mid-May. Longevity of adult Anaphe panda moths took between 4 and 6 days, but generally females seemed to live longer than males. The moth also seems to have higher lifespan in the indigenous forest compared to the mixed indigenous forest.