Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Personality and resilience: Enhancing well-being and reducing negative emotions among working mothers

Abstract Working mothers experience a range of emotions associated with parenting while employed. Like all parents, working mothers experience both positive and negative emotions, often existing side-by-side. Despite considerable research into the struggles experienced by working mothers, little is known about negative emotions and their consequences for women. Feelings of employment-related guilt and regret over the decision to become a mother may arise when work and family responsibilities are demanding. However, individual resources may play a role in how mothers deal with negative emotions. The aim of the current study was to examine the role of resilience as a mediator between personality traits and negative emotions, psychological health, and well-being among working mothers. Participants of the study consisted of 320 working mothers with a mean age of 39.6. A proposed model was tested using path analysis in AMOS 21. According to the results of the present study, extraversion, neuroticism, and openness to experience are related to resilience; resilience is related to regret, depression, and life satisfaction. Resilience helps working mothers to deal with negative emotions related to well-being including stress, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction.
A DFT Study on the Excited Electronic States of Cyanopolyynes: Benchmarks and Applications

Highly unsaturated chain molecules are interesting due to their potential application as nanowires and occurrence in interstellar space. Here, we focus on predicting the electronic spectra of polyynic nitriles HC2m+1N (m = 0–13) and dinitriles NC2n+2N (n = 0–14). The results of time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations are compared with the available gas-phase and noble gas matrix experimental data. We assessed the performance of fifteen functionals and five basis sets for reproducing (i) vibrationless electronic excitation energies and (ii) vibrational frequencies in the singlet excited states. We found that the basis sets of at least triple-ζ quality were necessary to describe the long molecules with alternate single and triple bonds. Vibrational frequency scaling factors are similar for the ground and excited states. The benchmarked spectroscopic parameters were shown to be acceptably reproduced with adequately chosen functionals, in particular ωB97X, CAM-B3LYP, B3LYP, B971, and B972. Select functionals were applied to study the electronic excitation of molecules up to HC27N and C30N2. It is demonstrated that optical excitation leads to a shift from the polyyne- to a cumulene-like electronic structure.
Socio – economic Factors Influencing Access to Agricultural Extension Services among Smallholder Farmers in Western Uganda

The low agricultural productivity reported in both cash and food crops across Uganda is attributed to inadequate skills on modern agriculture. Consequently, many studies have recommended that farmers should be trained on modern agriculture through extension service provision. Strikingly, majority of the farmers do not have access to extension services, a situation which contributes to low returns on investment in agriculture. The study determined the number of farmers with access to extension services, compared them against their counterparts without access to extension services and finally determined the factors affecting access to agricultural extension services using primary data collected from 200 farmers in western Uganda. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test, Chi – square test and Binary logistic regression model. From the results, 42.5% of the farmers had access to extension services, those who had access to extension services reported higher crop yields than their counterparts. The significant factors affecting access to agricultural extension services included age (P<0.05), gender (P<0.05), education (P<0.01), distance to the extension areas (P<0.01), membership to agricultural associations (P<0.10) and access to credit (P<0.05). The policy recommendations include; supporting farmers through quick loans at low interest rates, strengthening and increasing the number of adult literacy programs, increasing the number of extension agents and encouraging farmers to join agricultural associations.
The Innovative Employee: The Assessment of Reward Equity on the Predisposition to Make Creative Contributions through Literature Review

There is a necessity for new-fangled formulae of innovation that take hold of unaccompanied encounters such as competitors, unskilled, uncreative, unin-ventive, and ageing employees. Motivated and innovative employees are the essential procedure for survival organizations must follow. Thus, an organization must initiate an environment that allows and advocates innovation. This research emphasized the innovative employee: the assessment of reward equity on the predisposition to make creative contributions. This study used secondary data. Secondary data was collected online using different search engines, and related journals. Relevant textbooks were consulted to support the study. The findings of this study are that an employee who is motivated by equity reduces the organization’s profitability to the extent that an asymmetrical and disorganized equity-driven employee has no impact on the organization’s costs, balanced energy levels, or higher profits. Even though financial rewards are the best motivating factor for most employees it does not motivate certain employees as they are motivated by intrinsic rewards.
Evaluation of a Supervised Adapted Physical Activity Program Associated or Not with Oral Supplementation with Arginine and Leucine in Subjects with Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: In patients with obesity and metabolic syndrome (MetS), lifestyle interventions combining diet, in particular, and physical exercise are recommended as the first line treatment. Previous studies have suggested that leucine or arginine supplementation may have beneficial effects on the body composition or insulin sensitivity and endothelial function, respectively. We thus conducted a randomized controlled study to evaluate the effects of a supervised adapted physical activity program associated or not with oral supplementation with leucine and arginine in MetS-complicated patients with obesity. Methods: Seventy-nine patients with obesity and MetS were randomized in four groups: patients receiving arginine and leucine supplementation (ALs group, n = 20), patients on a supervised adapted physical activity program (APA group, n = 20), patients combining ALs and APA (ALs+APA group, n = 20), and a control group (n = 19). After the baseline evaluation (m0), patients received ALs and/or followed the APA program for 6 months (m6). Body composition, MetS parameters, lipid and glucose metabolism markers, inflammatory markers, and a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) were assessed at m0, m6, and after a 3-month wash-out period (m9). Results: After 6 months of intervention, we did not observe variable changes in body weight, body composition, lipid and glucose metabolism markers, inflammatory parameters, or quality of life scores between the four groups. However, during the CPET, the maximal power (Pmax and Ppeak), power, and O2 consumption at the ventilatory threshold (P(VT) and O2(VT)) were improved in the APA and ALs+APA groups (p < 0.05), as well as the forced vital capacity (FVC). Between m6 and m9, a gain in fat mass was only observed in patients in the APA and ALs+APA groups. Conclusion: In our randomized controlled trial, arginine and leucine supplementation failed to improve MetS in patients with obesity, as did the supervised adapted physical activity program and the combination of both. Only the cardiorespiratory parameters were improved by exercise training.
Assessing and priming pre-service teachers’ attitudes about online privacy and their protection strategies for social networks, email and cloud storage

ABSTRACT With the ubiquity of digital media, managing personal data has become part of our daily lives. Teachers have to manage not only their own data, they also manage students’ sensitive data and furthermore have to teach data protection to students. In Switzerland, teacher education colleges have hence started to educate students about privacy and data protection. To do this effectively, it is important to understand pre-service teachers’ attitudes about online privacy and to assess their knowledge about protection strategies. Therefore, we tested whether existing scales for attitudes (perceived severity, perceived vulnerability, self-efficacy) about online privacy in social networks can be applied to pre-service teachers and be extended to e-mail and cloud storage. We then explored how these attitudes relate to protection strategies. Except for perceived vulnerability regarding social networks, we succeeded in reliably measuring the three different attitudes in the three domains. Priming did not change the attitudes. However, we did find that self-efficacy was related to the degree to which students report using data protection strategies. This suggests that to motivate pre-service teachers to engage in data protection, teaching them these strategies is more effective than making them more aware of their vulnerability and the severity of data breaches.
Quantum diffusion and lack of universal one-parameter scaling in one-dimensional disordered lattices with long-range coupling

It is generally believed that all eigenstates in one-dimensional disordered lattices are localized provided disorder is uncorrelated. We show that this statement fails for a one-dimensional Anderson model with a special type of long-range inter-site interaction, resulting in a specific, non-parabolic quasi-particle energy dispersion. Remarkably, the states appearing to be delocalized belong to the tail of the band.
Product Representation of Belief Spaces in Planning under Partial Observability

We present a product representation of belief spaces for planning under partial observability. In earlier work we investigated backward plan construction based on a combination operation for belief states. The main problem in explicit construction of belief states is their high number. To remedy this problem, we refrain from representing individual belief states explicitly, and instead represent parts of the belief space in a factored form. The factorization is induced by the division of the state space to observational classes, each consisting of observationally indistinguishable states. Finally, we show that the representation leads to a simple planning algorithm that is competitive with other algorithms for planning under partial observability.
Characterization of nanostructures of TiO2 used as bioreceptor to immobilize laccase enzyme for detection of gallic acid

The derived materials obtained from the sol-gel process have been used in various technological applications, such as solar cells, intelligent coatings, catalysis, and, more recently, the fabrication of bioreceptors. The objective of this study was to develop a bioreceptor consisting of a titania-based nanostructure, which was synthesized using the sol-gel method. This nanostructure was immersed in a solution containing laccase and Nafion and integrated into a graphite-based electrode (TiO2/NAF/LAC). This device is called a bioreceptor and is used to detect gallic acid. The nanostructure was characterized by x-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Particle size was measured using a nanosizer. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) tests were performed on a bioreceptor. In this study, the predominant phase of TiO2 was anatase, and the obtained nanoparticles had an average size of 66 nm. The CV tests of the bioreceptor showed an oxidation response that increased as the concentration of gallic acid in the solution increased, with a detection limit of 0.125 μM, as well as a wide linear range that varied from 0.125 to 175 μM and a factor correlation of 0.9968. As a result, it was possible to develop a bioreceptor capable of immobilizing laccase to detect gallic acid.
Taxation of the Digital Economy and Direct Digital Service Taxes: Opportunities, Challenges, and Implications for African Countries

Digitalization has intensified globalization and economic interactivity between countries both developed and developing, increasing the complexity and lack of transparency in economic activities. The increase in digital transactions poses a remarkable challenge for tax authorities yet the digital economy is slowly replacing traditional commercialization and transactions. Conventional international tax legislation has not kept abreast with the growth and complexity of the digital economy and its accompanying challenges with respect to taxation. In view of the infant nature of digital tax legislation in African countries as well as the auspicious possibility of increasing tax revenue to fund public expenditure together with the probability of contradictory outcomes of digital tax policy, through a critical literature review this paper assesses digital taxation through direct digital service taxes (DSTs) in Africa. The findings were mixed. While the possibility of tax revenue maximization and improved economic growth were persuasive, the arguments pointing to negative externalities emanating from poor digital service tax policy design were equally pragmatic.
Genetic diversity and population structure of modern Bulgarian and foreign durum wheat based on microsatellite and agronomic data

Abstract The genetic variation and population structure of a panel of 90 durum wheat (Triticum durum desf.) consisting of 62 varieties and breeding lines originating from two agro-ecological zones in Bulgaria (Northern and Southern Bulgaria) and 28 introduced varieties from South–western, Central and Eastern Europe, and the USA were determined by 34 microsatellite markers (SSR). The genetic diversity in the modern durum wheat was 0.5612 with 6.88 alleles per locus. Model-based population STRUCTURE analysis identified two sub-populations (K = 2) separating the South Bulgarian varieties (SP1) from all others (SP2), including South-Western, Central-Eastern European and North Bulgarian ones. Subsequent genetic structure analysis at K = 4 revealed an additional division of each sub-population into two (SP1-2, SP1-4, SP2-1, SP2-3). DAPC analysis and UPGMA dendrogram based on SSR data were in excellent agreement with the Subpopulations defined by STRUCTURE analysis. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) revealed that among the studied 5 agronomically important traits the correlation between grain yield and plant height was the highest and distinguished 10 varieties and advanced breeding lines from Southern Bulgaria (SP1-2 and SP1-4) as most promising in regard to yield stability. This study showed a good relationship between the genetic and phenotypic population structures according to the division of the genotypes by their agro-geographical origin. It will be useful for both breeders and farmers and could serve as a fundament for durum wheat improvement programs under drought prone environmental conditions.
Anti-Restriction Gene Homologs Are Highly Represented in Methicillin-Resistant and Multidrug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST239 and ST398: Implications for Resistance Gene Acquisitions

Multidrug resistance is commonly acquired by transferring DNA from one bacterium to another. However, the mechanisms that enhance the acquisitions of foreign genes are poorly understood, as well as the dynamics of their transmission between hosts in different environments. Here, genomic approaches were applied to evaluate the enrichment of the S. aureus chromosome with resistance traits in groups of genomes with or without anti-restriction genes and to analyze some evolutionary aspects of these acquisitions. Furthermore, the role played by an anti-restriction gene in improving multiresistance in MRSA was investigated by molecular cloning. A strong association was observed between the presence of anti-restriction gene homologs and patterns of multidrug resistance. Human isolates, mainly ST239-SCCmecIII, carry ardA-H1, and from animal sources, mainly CC398, carry ardA-H2. Increased DNA transfer was observed for clones that express the ardA-H1 allele, corroborating its role in promoting gene transfer. In addition, ardA-H1 was expressed in the dsDNA format in the BMB9393 strain. The evolution of successful multidrug-resistant MRSA lineages of the ST239 and ST398 was initiated not only by the entry of the mec cassette but also by the acquisition of anti-restriction gene homologs. Understanding the mechanisms that affect DNA transfer may provide new tools to control the spread of drug resistance.
Hall effect in a ballistic flow of two-dimensional interacting particles

In high-quality solid-state systems at low temperatures, the hydrodynamic or the ballistic regimes of heat and charge transport are realized in the electron and the phonon systems. In these regimes, the thermal and the electric conductance of the sample can reach abnormally large magnitudes. In this paper, we study the Hall effect in a system of interacting two-dimensional charged particles in a ballistic regime. We demonstrated that the Hall electric field is caused by a change in the densities of particles due to the effect of external fields on their free motions between the sample edges. In one-component (electron or hole) systems the Hall coefficient turns out to one half compared with the one in conventional disordered Ohmic samples. This result is consistent with the recent experiment on measuring of the Hall resistance in ultra-high-mobility GaAs quantum wells. In two-component electron-hole systems the Hall electric field depends linearly on the difference between the concentrations of electrons and holes near the charge neutrality point (the equilibrium electron and hole densities coincide) and saturates to the Hall field of a one-component system far from the charge neutrality point. We also studied the corrections to magnetoresistance and the Hall electric field due to inter-particle scattering being a precursor of forming a viscous flow. For the samples shorter than the inter-particle scattering length, the obtained corrections govern the dependencies of magnetoresistance and the Hall field on temperature.
Foundations of a New Democracy: Schooling, Inequality, and Voting in the Early Republic

Democratic theorists have long argued that states can create more resilient democracies through education. Educational investments are thought to produce more economic equality and instill in citizens greater capacity and responsibility to participate in politics. Using a geographic regression discontinuity design and township-level data from Antebellum New York State, we examine whether state funding for common schools led to higher voter turnout as well as higher earnings and lower inequality. Our estimates support the view that a participatory democratic culture emerged not only because of initial favorable endowments but also because of subsequent government decisions to fund education. New York townships that received more school funding later had higher median earnings, lower earnings inequality, and higher levels of voter turnout. Our findings support the view that maintaining democracy requires active investments by the state, something that has important implications for other places and other times—including today.
Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 (HSV-2) and Cytomegalovirus (CMV) among Women with Macerated Stillbirth: A Cross-Sectional Hospital-Based Study from Mwanza, Tanzania

Background Stillbirth adversely affects pregnancy outcomes in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Viral infections have been implicated as one of the causes of stillbirths. Despite high rates of stillbirths and high viral prevalence in LMICs, there is limited information regarding their association. This study investigated the magnitude of herpes simplex 2 virus (HSV-2) and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) among women with macerated stillbirth. Methods A cross-sectional hospital-based study was conducted involving 279 women with macerated stillbirth between July and August 2018 at different health facilities in Mwanza, Tanzania. Detection of HSV-2 was done by immunochromatographic test while that of HCMV was done using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Descriptive data analysis was done using STATA version 13. Results A total of 28 (10.04%, 95% CI: 6.8-13.9) tested positive for HSV-2 IgG antibodies with only 4 (1.43%, 95% CL: 0.3-2.8) testing positive for HSV-2 IgM antibodies. HCMV IgG antibodies were detected in 131 (77.98%, 95% CI: 71-84) of 168 women tested. By multivariate logistic regulation analysis, advanced age (OR: 0.93, 95% CI: 0.87-0.99, p = 0.025) was significantly associated with negative HSV-2 IgG antibodies. By log multinomial regression analysis, only urban residence (RRR.4.43: 95% CI 1.53-12.80, p = 0.006) independently predicted HCMV IgG seropositivity among women with stillbirth. Twenty-one (30.9%) of women with positive HCMV IgG antibodies had low avidity index (<40%) indicating recent infection. Conclusion Significant proportion of women with macerated stillbirth residing in urban and with low age have HCMV and HSV antibodies, respectively. This calls for the need to consider introducing screening of these infections in the Tanzanian antenatal package and further studies to explore the role of these viruses in causing stillbirth in Tanzania.
Simultaneous equations for discrete outcomes: coherence, completeness, and identification

This paper studies simultaneous equations models for two or more discrete outcomes. These models may be incoherent, delivering no values of the outcomes at certain values of the latent variables and covariates, and they may be incomplete, delivering more than one value of the outcomes at certain values of the covariates and latent variates. We revisit previous approaches to the problems of incompleteness and incoherence in such models, and we propose a new approach for dealing with these. For each approach, we use random set theory to characterize sharp identification regions for the marginal distribution of latent variables and the structural function relating outcomes to covariates, illustrating the relative identifying power and tradeoffs of the different approaches. We show that these identified sets are characterized by systems of conditional moment equalities and inequalities, and we provide a generically applicable algorithm for constructing these. We demonstrate these results for the simultaneous equations model for binary outcomes studied in for example Heckman (1978) and Tamer (2003) and the triangular model with a discrete endogenous variable studied in Chesher (2005) and Jun, Pinkse, and Xu (2011) as illustrative examples.
The Limits of Acute Anemia

For many years, physicians’ approach to the transfusion of allogeneic red blood cells (RBC) was not individualized. It was accepted that a hemoglobin concentration (Hb) of less than 10 g/dL was a general transfusion threshold and the majority of patients were transfused immediately. In recent years, there has been increasing evidence that even significantly lower hemoglobin concentrations can be survived in the short term without sequelae. This somehow contradicts the observation that moderate or mild anemia is associated with relevant long-term morbidity and mortality. To resolve this apparent contradiction, it must be recognized that we have to avoid acute anemia or treat it by alternative methods. The aim of this article is to describe the physiological limits of acute anemia, match these considerations with clinical realities, and then present “patient blood management” (PBM) as the therapeutic concept that can prevent both anemia and unnecessary transfusion of RBC concentrates in a clinical context, especially in Intensive Care Units (ICU). This treatment concept may prove to be the key to high-quality patient care in the ICU setting in the future.