Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulation of the stress response by social buffering: A review across species

This review presents a critical reading of the literature on social buffering in human and non-human animals. The term social buffering has been coined to refer to an attenuation of stress responses by the presence of conspecifics. Evidence shows that the buffer seems to be specific for each stage of development, being the mother the factor that attenuates the stress responses during early development and conspecifics of the same age, later in life. An animal model of scarcity of resources revealed that when being reared by a stressed mother, the social buffering effect does not occur. The literature reviewed allows us to approach a key factor related to stress and its effects in the different stages of ontogeny.
Working for Your Bread: The Labor Supply Effects of SNAP

Net income is calculated by subtracting the following deductions: the standard deduction meant to allow for routine unavoidable costs (in 2020, the standard deduction for a household with 1-3 members was $167), the earnings deduction of 20% of any earnings, the dependent care deduction for expenses on child or dependent care required for the recipient to work, the child support deduction for child support payments, the medical expense deduction for medical expenses exceeding $35 a month for elderly or disabled members, and finally an excess shelter deduction. The excess shelter deduction is the amount of housing costs that surpass net income after applying all other disregards. This amount has an upper-limit determined by the federal government. Shelter deductions are a function of countable income and shelter expenditures, which can include housing payments, rent, and utility payments. The countable income for a case is calculated by combining unearned income with earned income (after applying the 20% disregard) and all deductions besides the shelter deduction (i.e., CntInc = UnErnInc + 0.8ErnInc−OtrDed). The shelter deduction is then calculated as any excess shelter costs above half of the countable income up to some cap (SheltDed = min [ Cap, ShelCosts− CntInc 2 ] ). Next, net income is simply countable income after the shelter deduction is applied (NI = CntInc − SheltDed). Finally, benefits are calulated as follows: Benefits = max [MaxBenefit− 0.3 ∗NI,MinBenefit]. There is also a gross income limit of 130% of the Federal Poverty Guideline, which is rarely binding, and does not apply in some states using rules called Broad-Based Categorical Eligibility. During the years of the data, Oregon used Broad Based Categorical Eligibility to raise the gross income test to 185% of the federal poverty line, while Colorado eliminated an asset test (not discussed here) and left the gross income test at 130%.
The Role of Organizational Culture and Decision Making in Achieving Organizational Innovative Capability and Performance: The Moderating Role of Allocentrism

This study strives to investigate factor influence on organization innovative capability and performance with an integrated research model underlying factors such as organizational culture, decision making and allocentrism. For research design, researcher has opted quantitative research approach under positivist paradigm. Sample size is computed with prior-power analysis. Using convenience sampling approach 299 valid responses were retrieved. Data were analyzed with latest statistical approach namely structural equation modeling (SEM). Results indicate that newly developed research model has substantial variance ( 79.7%) in organizational innovative capability. Theoretically, findings of this study enrich organizational culture and decision making style literature. Practically, this research suggests that policy makers should focus on factors like allocentrism, culture adaptability and culture consistency in order to enhance performance.
Ornithogenic vegetation: How significant has the seabird influence been on the Aleutian Island vegetation during the Holocene?

Abstract In the Aleutian Islands during the Holocene, terrestrial predators were actually absent; as a result, large seabird colonies thrived along the coasts or across entire islands. Bird guano enriches the soil with nitrogen, which can lead to the formation of highly modified ornithogenic (bird‐formed) ecosystems. For a more detailed investigation of avian influence, we reconstructed more than 10,000‐year‐old vegetation dynamics of the coast of Shemya Island (Near Islands) by pollen analysis. At the initial stages of vegetation development (10,000–4,600 cal year BP), sedge–heather tundra grew in the studied area. A seabird colony existed on Shemya from 4,600 to 2,400 cal year BP according to stable isotope analysis. During a period of at least 2,200 years, nitrogen enrichment led to the development of ornithogenic herb meadows with a high presence of Apiaceae. A long‐term increase in δ15N above 9–10‰ led to radical shifts in vegetation. Noticeable reduction of seabird colonies due to human hunting led to grass‐meadows spreading. After a prolonged decrease δ15N below 9–10‰ (2,400 cal year BP to present), there was a shift toward less productive sedge‐tundra communities. However, the significant enrichment of guano affected only the coastal vegetation and did not alter the inland Shemya Island.
BAWLD-CH4: A Comprehensive Dataset of Methane Fluxes from Boreal and Arctic Ecosystems

Abstract. Methane (CH4) emissions from the Boreal and Arctic region are globally significant and highly sensitive to climate change. There is currently a wide range in estimates of high-latitude annual CH4 fluxes, where estimates based on land cover inventories and empirical CH4 flux data or process models (bottom-up approaches) generally are greater than atmospheric inversions (top-down approaches). A limitation of bottom-up approaches has been the lack of harmonization between inventories of site-level CH4 flux data and the land cover classes present in high-latitude spatial datasets. Here we present a comprehensive dataset of small-scale, surface CH4 flux data from 540 terrestrial sites (wetland and non-wetland) and 1247 aquatic sites (lakes and ponds), compiled from 189 studies. The Boreal-Arctic Wetland and Lake Methane Dataset (BAWLD-CH4) was constructed in parallel with a compatible land cover dataset, sharing the same land cover classes to enable refined bottom-up assessments. BAWLD-CH4 includes information on site-level CH4 fluxes, but also on study design (measurement method, timing, and frequency) and site characteristics (vegetation, climate, hydrology, soil, and sediment types, permafrost conditions, lake size and depth, and our determination of land cover class). The different land cover classes had distinct CH4 fluxes, resulting from definitions that were either based on or co-varied with key environmental controls. Fluxes of CH4 from terrestrial ecosystems were primarily influenced by water table position, soil temperature, and vegetation composition, while CH4 fluxes from aquatic ecosystems were primarily influenced by water temperature, lake size, and lake genesis. Models could explain more of the between-site variability in CH4 fluxes for terrestrial than aquatic ecosystems, likely due to both less precise assessments of lake CH4 fluxes and fewer consistently reported lake site characteristics. Analysis of BAWLD-CH4 identified both land cover classes and regions within the Boreal and Arctic domain where future studies should be focused, alongside methodological approaches. Overall, BAWLD-CH4 provides a comprehensive dataset of CH4 emissions from high-latitude ecosystems that are useful for identifying research opportunities, for comparison against new field data, and model parameterization or validation. BAWLD-CH4 can be downloaded from https://doi.org/10.18739/A27H1DN5S.
Immunostimulatory Effect of Phoenix Dactylifera Supplemented Diet on Aeromonas hydrophila Infected Clarias gariepinus

Background: Phoenix dactylifera fruit has been widely repor ted for its effective anti-inflammatory properties. Therefore, the effect of P. dactylifera on immune responses was evaluated in Aeromonas hydrophila infected Clarias gariepinus. Methods: P. dactylifera fruit powder was used as feed inclusion at 0 (control), 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0% concentrations to the pelleted fish diet of C. gariepinus juveniles. A total of 75 fish were divided into four groups (n=15) . The fish were fed with the formulated feed twice a day (08:00 h and 17:00 h), and terminated 24 h before the commencement of the microbial inoculation with inactivated Aeromonas hydrophila bacteria. The fish were later challenged with active Aeromonas hydrophila after seven weeks of experimental feeding. Blood samples were collected from fish while haemagglutination and phagocytic assays were used to determine the antibody titres and phagocytic action of the immune cells, respectively. Then, the micronucleus assay was used to determine the chromosomal damage effect of Aeromonas hydrophila pathogen on exposed C. gariepinus. Results: After the challenge, the groups fed with 0.5 and 2.0% date showed significantly (p˂0.05) elevated level of immune responses with antibody titres of 231.49±77.06 and 257.18±51.37, and phagocytic activity values of 0.07±0.01 and 0.04±0.00, respectively. The clastogenic effect of A. hydrophila on theperipheral blood of infected C. gariepinus was observed, this was significantly reduced in 2% P. dactylifera fed group. Also, increase white blood cell count was observed in the C. gariepinus group fed with 0.5% date supplement. A higher lymphoid organ index was also observed in fish fed with the supplemented diet, as compared to the control. Conclusions: These results indicate that P. dactylifera fruit powder enr iched diet showed an immune-boosting and reduction of the DNA damaging effect in bacteria-infected C. gariepinus
Experimental Studies and Analysis on Mobilization of the Cohesionless Sediments Through Alluvial Channel: A Review

Entrainment of river bed particles by turbulent flow is a core matter of study in river hydrodynamics. It is of great interest to river engineers to evaluate the shear stress for initiating river bed motion. The main objective is to calculate transport rates for bed load, to predict changes in bed level which are scoured or aggraded and to design a stable channel. Forces acting upon the particle especially fluid forces which give a major role in the incipient motion of the particle on the rough boundary. For calculation generally use shield’s diagram but some other modified methods and approaches are discussed. Modeling criteria are discussed for the hydraulically smooth and rough boundary depending on Reynolds number. In the past, experimental studies on tractive shear stress have been done by many researchers but consideration of lift force to analyze the movement of sediment is very limited. For suspended load transport, a detailed analysis of lift force is required. Based on the study it has been observed that shear stress depends on channel slope not only due to gravitational force but also many other factors like drag force, lift force, friction angle, fluctuations, velocity profile, etc. Complete analysis of these factors provides slope dependency over shear stress. To improve past studies, some factors have been discussed, to give a more correct force balance equation. This is very difficult task to analyze more and more variable’s dependency on the slope. Consideration of the possible number of variable holds complete analysis of experimental study. This paper also reviews the effect of particle Reynolds number and relative submergence over critical shield stress. Doi: 10.28991/cej-2021-03091700 Full Text: PDF
Effects of Heat Transfer through the Walls of a Catholic Church in Semarang Indonesia Simulated with Psi-Therm Software and OTTV

Verifying the effects of heat transfer towards the rise of temperature in certain spaces which impact air control and conditioning. Climate change affects the rise of environmental temperatures, with the humid and tropical Indonesia not exempt from its effects. Many church buildings in Semarang, Indonesia, of which were previously partial to natural ventilation, have now opted to rely on Air Conditioning in order to cool their indoor temperatures. As a result, electrical consumption is now at an all-time-high, with the absence of proper adjustments needed to anticipate heat transfer from the outdoors from entering these buildings. Aside from skyrocketing expenses spent on electrical bills, the rise in energy consumption is also partial to uncontrollable energy waste. This research aims to provide a guide in designing the walls of church buildings, in order to reduce massive electrical consumption. Methods used in this research are calculations done through the software Psi-Therm as well as making considerations regarding Overall Thermal Transfer Value (OTTV) in order to provide the big picture of controllable thermal conductivity through church wall design. Research results entail a design model of heat transfer flow obstruction which will be beneficial for future church designs.
Dynamic Aggregation for Heterogeneous Quantization in Federated Learning

Communication is widely known as the primary bottleneck of federated learning, and quantization of local model updates before uploading to the parameter server is an effective solution to reduce the communication overhead. However, prior literature always assumes homogeneous quantization for all clients, while in reality, devices are heterogeneous and support different levels of quantization precision. This heterogeneity of quantization poses a new challenge: fine-quantized model updates are more accurate than coarse-quantized ones, and how to optimally aggregate them at the server is an open problem. In this paper, we propose FedHQ – Federated Learning with Heterogeneous Quantization – that allocates different aggregation weights to different clients by minimizing the convergence rate upper bound as a function of the heterogeneous quantization errors of all clients, for both strongly convex and non-convex loss functions. To further accelerate the convergence, the instantaneous quantization error is computed and piggybacked when each client uploads the local model update, and the server dynamically calculates the weight accordingly for the current aggregation. Numerical experiment results demonstrate the performance advantages of FedHQ over both vanilla FedAvg with standard equal weights and a heuristic aggregation scheme, which assigns weights linearly proportional to the clients’ quantization precision.
Devianct Behavior of Employees and Job Performance - Evidence From Selected Agricultural Research Institutes in Nigeria

This study determined the effects of workplace deviance on employees' job performance in selected Research Institutes in Oyo State, Nigeria. A multistage random sampling technique was used to sample two hundred and fifty five (255) respondents. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire and were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical tools. Results revealed that mean age of respondents was 36.9 years and that majority (53.7%) of the respondents were male. The hierarchical regression analyses results indicated that overall job performance was significantly related to political deviance (b1 = -2.015, p < 0.05), personal deviance (b1 = -2.531, p < 0.05) and production deviance (b1 = 1.734, p < 0.05) This study concluded that despite various forms of workplace deviance identified in the study area, employees still perform better in their respective job assigned to them but not up to the maximum level expected. Finally, the study recommended that measure should be put in place to tame this act in other to achieve organizational goals. It was however recommended that conducive work environment be put in place to reduce work deviant behaviors. So also, training and workshops for the employees, both local and international level that can enhance their performance should also be put in place to reduce work place deviance.
Thermal degradation of polypropylene reprocessed in a co-rotating twin-screw extruder: kinetic model and relationship between Melt Flow Index and Molecular weight

Thermo-mechanical degradation of polypropylene (PP) during reprocessing causes significant changes in its properties and presents a challenge to recycling. In this study, PP was reprocessed multiple times (1 to 5 cycles, at 240, 260, or 280 °C), and the physical and structural properties of the reprocessed material were evaluated. In comparison to virgin PP, the reprocessed polymer presented a higher carbonyl index, higher melt flow index, lower average molecular weight, and narrower polydispersity. Changes in these parameters became more pronounced as the processing time and temperature increased. Additionally, two different behavior regions were identified, the first one spanning between 240 - 260 °C, and the second one comprising higher temperatures (280 °C). Moreover, a kinetic model that calculates the Mw of PP reprocessed at different temperatures was evaluated. Finally, adjusted parameters for the relationship between MFI and Mw were obtained, and the MFI of reprocessed PP was also calculated.
Effective Length for Web Members in Circular Tubular Trusses

This paper describes a method for the out-of-plane buckling analysis of circular tubular trusses with unstiffened tube-to-tube joints which includes not only the combined non-linear behavior of members but also the stiffness deterioration of joints due to the axial forces of web members. The buckling loads evaluated by our method agree well with experimental results. Effective column lengths are computed for a number of tubular trusses with various dimensions by using the method herein described. From these numerical results, effective column lengths for web members are found to be represented by a simple formula.
Determinants of Access to Electronic Banking among Agro-Entrepreneurs in Obio/Akpor L.G.A, Rivers State, Nigeria

This study investigated the determinants of access to electronic banking among agro-entrepreneurs in Obio-akpor Local Government Area in Rivers State. The specific objectives were to describe the socio-economic characteristics of Agroentrepreneurs, identify the various electronic banking products accessed by Agro-entrepreneurs, examine the determinants of access to electronic banking among agro-entrepreneurs, examine constraints to accessing electronic banking products among agro-entrepreneurs in the study area. A two-stage sampling procedure was employed in the selection of 80 Agro-entrepreneurs who were accessing electronic banking products and 80 who were not accessing. Data were analysed with descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression. The result showed that 55.8% were females while 44.2% were male, married individuals (56.7%) were the majority in the study. Most respondents attained secondary education (55.0%). The study also revealed that majority of E-banking products accessed by agro-entrepreneurs were ATM/Debit card, SMS alert and Balance inquiry.The binary logit regression result on the determinants of access to Electronic banking showed thatEase of use, internet access, reliability, Business experience and perceived security risk were significant factors that influence access e-banking products. Constraints to accessing electronic banking products and services include Long queue at ATM, ATM not dispensing cash all the time and poor internet access. The study recommends that money should be readily available on the ATM to reduce the problem of ATM not always dispensing cash at moments when customers need to access these funds.
Analisa Pengaruh Kepatuhan Wajib Pajak Kendaraan Bermotor Kabupaten Wonogiri

Penelitian yang dijalankan mempunyai tujuan guna mendeteksi pengaruh pengetahuan perpajakan, kualitas pelayanan, tingkat penghasilan serta sanksi perpajakan pada kepatuhan wajib pajak kendaraan bermotor di Kabupaten Wonogiri. Metode penelitian yang dipakai ialah pendekatan kuantitatif melalui jenis penelitian yang dipakai yakni studi kausal komparatif serta sumber data yang dipakai merupakan data primer. Populasi serta sampel yang digunakan merupakan wajib pajak yang ada pada kawasan Kabupaten Wonogiri dengan tehnik pengambilan sampel berupa purposive sampling melalui menetapkan beberapa kualifikasi tertentu melalui sebaran kuesioner. Tehnik analisis data yang dipakai ialah analisis regresi liner berganda. Hasil dari penelitian ini memperlihatkan mengenai variabel pengetahuan perpajakan serta kualitas pelayanan mempunyai pengaruh secara signifikan pada kepatuhan wajib pajak kendaraan bermotor dan variabel tingkat penghasilan serta sanksi perpajakan tidak mempunyai pengaruh pada kepatuhan wajib pajak kendaraan bermotor. Pengaruh secara simultan menunjukkan bahwa seluruh variabel bebas mempengaruhi dengan cara bersamaan pada ketaatan wajib pajak kendaraan bermotor.
OUTCOME OF TOTAL LARYNGECTOMY IN MANAGEMENT OF LARYNGEAL CANCER IN PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA

Introduction: The larynx is the voice box responsible for voice production when air passes through it. The glottis is the commonest subregion of the larynx where malignancy occurs. Laryngeal cancer contributes about 25% of all head and neck cancers, and 2% of all cancers in the body. Laryngectomy is a surgical procedure done to remove the larynx, and a total laryngectomy is usually done in advanced disease. This study was aimed at highlighting the outcome of total laryngectomy done in patients diagnosed with laryngeal cancer in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Methods: This was a retrospective study of 16 patients diagnosed with laryngeal cancer, out of which 12 subjects consented to and had total laryngectomy. The study was carried out in the ENT department of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital within the period of January 2002 and December 2019. Clinical records were obtained from the Medical records department of the hospital. Data obtained was presented in tables, figures and percentages. Results: The study noted that all 16 patients diagnosed with laryngeal cancer were males, age range of subjects were 45-73 years, and only 12 had total laryngectomy because some patients were lost to follow-up after diagnosis. Pharyngo-cutaneous fistula was the commonest complication noted in this study and highest number of subjects had survival rate of 2-5 years. Conclusion: Laryngeal cancer is treatable if diagnosed early, late presentation with advanced disease worsens prognosis and increases the predisposition to total laryngectomy. Advanced disease also increases the chances of residual tumour or tumour recurrence while decreasing survival rate following surgery. Recommendation: More enlightenment should be carried out to improve awareness of laryngeal cancer and its treatment, this may improve early presentation to hospital. Ordinarily, treatment of cancer is financially cumbersome on patients paying out of pocket for healthcare. So the adverse effect of poverty on the management of cancers, can be alleviated if an established source of funding can be created by government to aid treatment of cancers.