Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Techno-economic analysis of oxidative coupling of methane

The oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) process, which uses natural gas as a raw material for ethylene production and has been widely investigated since the 80’s, is an alternative to conventional processes based on naphtha cracking. However, many authors have shown that its viability is hampered by the low yields that can be currently achieved during the OCM reaction. In this work, the performance of the OCM reactor and its impact on the overall OCM plant have been quantified from a techno-economic point of view. It has been proven that a very high ethylene price (above 1500 €/ton C2H4) is obtained with the current OCM technology, which corresponds to a C2 reactor yield of around 15%. The sensitivity analysis of the OCM process has revealed that the best reactor performance does not necessarily imply the lowest ethylene price, but there are instead other factors affecting it. With the simulation of the overall plant it has also been demonstrated that a C2 reactor yield of at least 25-30% is the target to obtain an ethylene cost lower than 1000 €/ton C2H4. Finally, it has been shown that, based on the forecast of costs for natural gas and naphtha, the gap between the ethylene price obtained with conventional technologies and the one obtained with the current OCM state of the art is expected to progressively become smaller, forecasting OCM to be competitive with the traditional technologies in around 20 years.
Potential Impact of Ginsenoside Rg1 on Treatment of Paclitaxel-Induced Neuropathic Pain by TNF-α Inhibitory Action

Ginsenoside Rg1 (GRg) is a major bioactive of a ginseng plant. It is a flavonoid type of natural medicine. In this research work investigated to find the therapeutic action of GRg on paclitaxel (PT) associated neuropathic pain and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) regulatory action. The injection of PT (2 mg/kg, i.p.) for 5 days enhances the progression of neuropathic pain. The GRg dose 5 and 10 mg/kg; intravenous (i.v.) and pregabalin (5 mg/kg; i.v.) were administered for 10 consecutive days. The algesic responses were assessed by pinprick and plantar tests in paw dorsal surface; tail-flick test; and tail pinch test. These tests were assessed at days 0, 4, 8, 12 and 16. The biomarker changes i.e. superoxide anion, myeloperoxidase, and TNF-α protein level were estimated in sciatic nerve tissue. Further, the level of TNF-α was estimated in the serum sample and expression of TNF-α proteins studied in sciatic nerve tissue along with changes of histopathology slides. Treatment of GRg and pregabalin ameliorated the chemotherapeutic agent i.e., PT associated pain response with the control of biomarkers changes like superoxide anion, myeloperoxidase, and TNF-α protein levels and histopathological changes. GRg has potential ameliorative actions against PT induced neuropathic pain due to its free radical scavenging, anti-inflammatory; and TNF-α inhibitory actions.
FACTORS AFFECTING REPRODUCTIVE TRAITS IN SEVERAL BREEDS OF DAIRY CATTLE IN IRAQ

This study aimed to investigate the factors affecting reproductive traits using records collected during two calving seasons (2016-2017) and (2017-2018) from three herds of dairy cattle bred at Erbil-Iraq, and includes 323 lactation period (LP), 159 age at first calving (AFC) and 159 calving interval (CI). GLM within SAS used to diagnose the significance effects of the available factors affecting the studied traits. Repeatability of LP also estimated. Overall mean of LP, AFC and CI for the three breeds in all herds were 300.14 days, 27.709 months, and 360.26 days respectively. Simmental recorded significantly (p<0.01) higher LP (302.95 days) comparing with Friesian (296.81 days) and Bokane (293.24 days). Differences in LP due to the herd were significant (p<0.01). LP decline significantly (p<0.01) from 306.05 days in the 1 parity to 290.22 days in the 4 parity. Effects of year and season of calving on LP were not significant. Cows calved females had significantly longer LP (299.39 days) than cows calved males (295.95 days). Regression of LP on AFC (0.207 day/mo.) was not significant, while regressions on body weight of cow at calving (0.088 day/kg) and on birth weight of their calfs (1.661 day/kg) were significant. Repeatability estimate for LP was 0.55. Differences in AFC due to the breed were highly significant, while the effect of herd, year and season of birth were not significant. Regression of AFC on their body weight at calving was not significant (-0.01 day/kg). Differences among the breeds, herds and parities in their CI were not significant. Cows calved in winter and spring recorded significantly shorter CI as compared with those calved in summer and autumn. Regression coefficient of CI on AFC (0.692 day/mo.) was not significant, while the regression on body weight of cow at calving (0.151 day/kg) was highly
Genetic Diversity of South African Bottle Gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl.] Landraces Revealed by Simple Sequence Repeat Markers

Bottle gourd [ Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl. ] landraces are widely grown in South Africa, and genetic diversity analysis is necessary to identify promising genotypes for breeding or systematic conservation. Sixty-seven diverse bottle gourd landraces were genotyped using 14 selected simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. The number of alleles detected per marker ranged from 4 to 11, with a total of 86 putative alleles being ampliﬁed. Allele sizes ranged from 145 to 330 base pair (bp). Number of effective alleles ( N e ) ranged from 1.58 to 6.14 with a mean of 3.10. Allelic richness varied from 3.00 to 8.90 with a mean of 5.23. Expected heterozygosity ( H e ) values ranged from 0.37 to 0.84 with a mean of 0.65. The mean polymorphic information content (PIC) was 0.57. Jaccard’s coefﬁcient of similarity values ranged from 0.00 to 1.00, with a mean of 0.63. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed that 79%, 17%, and 4% of the variation in bottle gourd landraces was attributable to among landraces, within landraces, and between populations, respectively. The study established the existence of considerable genetic diversity among South African bottle gourd landraces. Unique landraces such as BG-4, BG-6, BG-8, BG-9, and BG-15 from cluster I; BG-55, BG-42, BG-57, and BG-58 from cluster II; BG-28, BG-23, BG-29, and BG-34 from cluster III were selected based on their highest dissimilarity index. These could be useful for bottle gourd breeding and systematic conservation.
Experimental results and population response for selected chemicals

In this report we present the experimental campaigns carried out to develop a comparison between contaminant thresholds at several levels focusing on population level, as well as the campaigns carried out to assess the speciation of a contaminant and hence on their on their bioavailability for the two selected metals in Thresholds: Cd and Hg. Due to some delays in the experimental phase (shifting of campaigns) as well as in the analysis of samples, in some cases the results are still at a preliminary stage. Therefore, improvements in this Deliverable are expected as the analytical results will be available at the laboratories of the Thresholds’ partners. It is expected that these new results will be included in the Synthesis deliverable (D4.1.5). These experimental results also support the development of integrated fate and an effects model that allows the estimation of the main fluxes between compartments, i.e. air/water/sediments as well as the simulation of scenarios that could produce reaching a threshold (see D2.6.2). Under this approach, the role of the air-water interface and the biota (phytoplankton and bacteria) is being examined. This will help to determine levels of emissions that could produce a threshold point be reached.
Atmospheric blocking in an aquaplanet and the impact of orography

Abstract. Many fundamental questions remain about the roles and effects of stationary forcing on atmospheric blocking. As such, this work utilizes an idealized moist general circulation model (GCM) to investigate atmospheric blocking in terms of dynamics, geographical location, and duration. The model is first configured as an aquaplanet, then orography is added in separate integrations. Block-centered composites of wave activity fluxes and height show that blocks in the aquaplanet undergo a realistic dynamical evolution when compared to reanalysis. Blocks in the aquaplanet are also found to have similar life cycles to blocks in model integrations with orography. These results affirm the usefulness of both zonally symmetric and asymmetric idealized model configurations for studying blocking. Adding orography to the model leads to an increase in blocking. This mirrors what is observed when comparing the Northern Hemisphere (NH) and Southern Hemisphere (SH), where the NH contains more orography and thus more blocking. As the prescribed mountain height increases, so do the magnitude and size of climatological stationary waves, resulting in more blocking overall. Increases in blocking, however, are not spatially uniform. Orography is found to induce regions of enhanced block frequency just upstream of mountains, near high pressure anomalies in the stationary waves, which is poleward of climatological minima in upper-level zonal wind, while block frequency minima and jet maxima occur eastward of the wave trough. This result matches what is observed near the Rocky Mountains. Finally, an analysis of block duration suggests blocks generated near stationary wave maxima last slightly longer than blocks that form far from or without orography. Overall, the results of this work help to explain some of the observed similarities and differences in blocking between the NH and SH and emphasize the importance of general circulation features in setting where blocks most frequently occur.
Effect of Structure and Nutritional Quality of Litter on Abundances of Litter-dwelling Arthropods

Field manipulations of forest litter were conducted to measure effects of litter structure on abundances of forest floor arthropods in natural and artificial leaf litter. Artificial litter was made of nondecomposable vinyl. Both artificial and natural litter occurred in three structural treatments: flat, natural and complex. Using this design we could compare the interacting effects of litter as a trophic base and as a spatially heterogeneous environment on litter arthropods. In 1 of 4 months of the study, microAraneae were significantly (p< 0.05) more abundant in litter with complex structure: both natural and artificial. In contrast, Collembola and Acari abundances were unaffected by structural complexity of litter but were significantly (p<0.05) higher in natural leaves compared to artificial leaves. Abundances of dominant macroarthropod predators (Araneae) increased significantly (p<0.05) with increased litter structural heterogeneity in 1 of 4 study-months. Non-Araneae predators showed weak or no responses to litter complexity. Diplopods and isopods were more abundant in natural litter, while other nonpredatory macroarthropods were equally abundant in natural and artificial litter. INTRODUCTION Comparison of litter-dwelling arthropods from different forests shows arthropod abundance increased with increased litter depth and complexity (Lowrie, 1948; Luczak, 1963; Duffey, 1966; Berry, 1967; Huhta, 1971, 1976; Jocque, 1973; Uetz, 1975, 1976; McBrayer et al., 1971; Seastedt and Crossley, 1981; Bultman et al., 1982). Unfortunately, interpretation of these correlative studies is hampered because forests with structurally complex litter (composed of curly and twisted leaves rather than flat ones) tend also to have deep litter. [This correlation, however, does not always hold; litter of beech-maple forests is structurally simple (being primarily flat beech leaves) but often quite deep. ] As a consequence of this general trend between litter depth and complexity, effects of these litter parameters on arthropod abundance were confounded. Further, effects of changes in litter depth on arthropod abundance may be caused by factors associated with litter depth, such as the habitat space or nutritional base available to arthropods. In sum, from previous work we cannot determine whether abundances of litter-dwelling arthropods are affected by the depth, structural complexity or nutritional quality of litter. To elucidate effects of litter complexity and nutritional quality on arthropod abundance, we conducted field experiments using natural and artificial leaves of varied structure and constant depth. Artificial, nonnutritive leaves provided a control for litter acting as a trophic base for the arthropod community; thus, influences of structure and nutritional content could be separated. We compared arthropod faunas inhabiting artificial leaves of varied structure (flat, natural and complex) to those of natural leaves of identical structural regimes.
Transparency, Regulation and Economic Performance in Africa

The paper examines the effect of regulation on income inequality for 26 Sub-Sahara African countries over the 1970-2005 period. The study’s results based on GMM estimations show that that transparency, investment, and regulation are positive and significantly correlated with economic growth, while general government final consumption expenditure and the financial depth variables (money and quasi money) are not significantly correlated with economic growth. The results of the study indicate that international programmes like the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative and Publish What You Pay framework are helping to promote good governance, as the openness enhances accountability and therefore reduces the “resource curse” problem in many of the countries.
Soybean Oil Meal and Sunflower Seed Oil Meal in Rations for Broad-Breasted Bronze Turkeys

Abstract THERE is considerable evidence that high soybean oil meal diets are, in general, satisfactory for poults (Headley (1944), Brant et al. (1944), Hammond et al. (1944), Fritz et al. (1947)). It is not clear from the results obtained by these workers what supplements, if any, may be required on high soybean oil meal diets for the most rapid growth. In a detailed study Bird et al. (1948) found that, for starting and growing turkeys, diets containing soybean oil meal as the major protein ingredient, are improved by the addition of fish meal and meat meal. Furthermore, 5 percent dried cow manure or 0.2 percent dl -methionine were fed as supplements during the early stages of growth and found to be effective. Scott et al. (1948) also found that the inclusion of fish meal in a high soybean diet greatly increased early growth rate. As far as the authors are aware, there .
Synthesis of corn rootworm pheromones from commercial diols

A mixture of stereoisomers of the corn rootworm pheromones was synthesised via the Grignard coupling of protected bromohydrins with alkylcuprate as a key step. The synthesis of 8-methyldec-2-yl propanoate (I), the northern corn rootworm Diabrotica longicornis Say pheromone, was achieved from pentane-1,5-diol in four steps with an overall yield of 35.1 % and 10-methyltridecan-2-one (II), the southern corn rootworm Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi Barber pheromone, was synthesised from octane-1,8-diol as commercially available starting material in five steps with an overall yield of 28.7 %.
SHORT COMMUNICATION Reelin receptors in developing laminated brain structures of mouse and human

Reelin is an extracellular matrix protein secreted by a variety of cell types throughout the developing brain. The target cells for reelin express the cytoplasmic adapter protein Dab1, which binds to the reelin receptors VLDLR and ApoER2. In the present work, we have studied the localization of both receptors in developing mouse and human cortex, olfactory bulb and cerebellum. In mouse, some Cajal‐Retzius cells express reelin and VLDLR; in humans, all the components of the signalling pathway (Reelin, Dab1, VLDLR and ApoER2) are present in subsets of Cajal‐Retzius cells. In the mouse cortical plate, VLDLR and ApoER2 are present from E15 to postnatal stages; in human cortical plate they are most prominent at 20 gestational weeks. In mice, cerebellar Purkinje cells only express VLDLR whereas in humans they express both VLDLR and ApoER2. Mitral cells of the mouse olfactory bulb are ApoER2positive and VLDLR-negative. In sum, the receptor expression patterns are similar in the human and mouse cortical plate but differ in Cajal‐Retzius and Purkinje cells, which in humans express additional components of the reelin‐Dab1 pathway.
TOWARDS DEVELOPMENT VIA EDUCATION: ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY

Technology has been gaining popularity in many fields of life and its importance can be seen to increasing with the passage of time. Technology has also many implications in education related fields and there are several aspects that may increase the quality of education. This study has been conducted in order to study the impact of such aspects such as internet access, internet users and mobile coverage on quality of education along with two control variables, population growth and literacy rate. Data was collected for 30 years from Asian countries and was tested and scrutinized and results were obtained. The tests that were used in this study include unit root test, PCSE and GMM estimation tests. The results of these tests indicate that all the independent variables i
Tropospheric eddy feedback to different stratospheric conditions in idealised baroclinic life cycles

Abstract. A pronounced signature of stratosphere–troposphere coupling is a robust negative anomaly in the surface northern annular mode (NAM) following sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) events, consistent with an equatorward shift in the tropospheric jet. It has previously been pointed out that tropospheric synoptic-scale eddy feedbacks, mainly induced by anomalies in the lowermost extratropical stratosphere, play an important role in creating this surface NAM signal. Here, we use the basic set-up of idealised baroclinic life cycles to investigate the influence of stratospheric conditions on the behaviour of tropospheric synoptic-scale eddies. Particular attention is given to the enhancement of the tropospheric eddy response by surface friction and the sensitivity to wind anomalies in the lower stratosphere. We find systems that include a tropospheric jet only (modelling post-SSW conditions) to be characterised by an equatorward shift in the tropospheric jet in the final state of the life cycle, relative to systems that include a representation of the polar vortex (mimicking more undisturbed stratospheric wintertime conditions), consistent with the observed NAM response after SSWs. The corresponding relative surface NAM signal is increased if the system includes surface friction, presumably due to a direct coupling of the eddy field at tropopause level to the surface winds. We further show that the jet shift signal observed in our experiments is mainly caused by changes in the zonal wind structure of the lowermost stratosphere, while changes in the wind structure of the middle and upper stratosphere have almost no influence.
Observing traveling waves in glaciers with remote sensing: new flexible time series methods and application to Sermeq Kujalleq (Jakobshavn Isbræ), Greenland

Abstract. The recent influx of remote sensing data provides new opportunities for quantifying spatiotemporal variations in glacier surface velocity and elevation fields. Here, we introduce a flexible time series reconstruction and decomposition technique for forming continuous, time-dependent surface velocity and elevation fields from discontinuous data and partitioning these time series into short- and long-term variations. The time series reconstruction consists of a sparsity-regularized least-squares regression for modeling time series as a linear combination of generic basis functions of multiple temporal scales, allowing us to capture complex variations in the data using simple functions. We apply this method to the multitemporal evolution of Sermeq Kujalleq (Jakobshavn Isbræ), Greenland. Using 555 ice velocity maps generated by the Greenland Ice Mapping Project and covering the period 2009–2019, we show that the amplification in seasonal velocity variations in 2012–2016 was coincident with a longer-term speedup initiating in 2012. Similarly, the reduction in post-2017 seasonal velocity variations was coincident with a longer-term slowdown initiating around 2017. To understand how these perturbations propagate through the glacier, we introduce an approach for quantifying the spatially varying and frequency-dependent phase velocities and attenuation length scales of the resulting traveling waves. We hypothesize that these traveling waves are predominantly kinematic waves based on their long periods, coincident changes in surface velocity and elevation, and connection with variations in the terminus position. This ability to quantify wave propagation enables an entirely new framework for studying glacier dynamics using remote sensing data.
Using Bid Rotation and Incumbency to Detect Collusion: A Regression Discontinuity Approach

Cartels participating in procurement auctions frequently use bid rotation or prioritize incumbents to allocate contracts. However, establishing a link between observed allocation patterns and firm conduct has been difficult: there are cost-based competitive explanations for such patterns. We show that by focusing on auctions in which the winning and losing bids are very close, it is possible to distinguish allocation patterns reflecting cost differences across firms from patterns reflecting non-competitive environments. We apply our tests to two datasets: the sample of Ohio milk auctions studied in Porter and Zona (1999), and a sample of municipal procurement auctions from Japan.
AVALIAÇÃO FÍSICO-QUÍMICA DO LEITE DE CABRA IN NATURA EM ALGUNS REBANHOS DE MINAS GERAIS E RIO DE JANEIRO, BRASIL

Increased production of goat milk in the southeast region of Brazil as well as the development of milk's physical-chemical quality parameters have contributed to detection of flaws in management practices and recovery of raw materials. This study evaluates both physical and chemical parameters of raw goat milk in relation to government regulations. Eleven dairy goat herds (A-K) from Minas Gerais (B, C, E, F, G, H, I and J) and Rio de Janeiro (A and D) were investigated. A total of 119 milk samples were examined for determination of acidity, fat, density, non-fat solids, and lactose. All parameters differed significantly (p<0,05) among the herds by statistical analysis (ANOVA and Tukey-Kramer tests). As regards standards set by national legislation, some of the herds did not meet minimum requirements for acidity (K), fat (C, E, F, G, H, I and J), density (H), and lactose (A). These results indicate the importance of close monitoring milk production at dairy farms to provide a better quality product to consumers.