Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Individual-based modeling to project viability of gopher tortoise populations under alternative management scenarios: A case study with two Alabama Wildlife Management Areas

Population projection models are applied tools for considering the potential effects of land and population management alternatives. Incorporating spatially explicit processes and individual dynamics into these models can be important when assessing viability for relatively small populations in patchy habitats. We developed a spatially explicit, individual-based population simulation model (IBM) for gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) incorporating demographic rates from published studies throughout the range of the species. We then demonstrated this approach’s utility for evaluating potential viability under projected forest management with and without tortoise population augmentation on two areas of state-managed property in southern Alabama. Under all scenarios, projected populations declined to local extinction within 100–200 years. The IBM projected sharper declines compared to projections from a non-spatial, stochastic, stage-structured model, potentially indicating the importance of considering spatial dynamics and individual interactions in this context. The IBM approach is especially useful when dealing with actual management units because it identifies projected hotspots of consistent occupancy and important habitat connections on the landscape.
Measurement of Gamma Radiation in an Automobile Mechanic Village in Abuja, North Central, Nigeria

Environmental radiation measurement was carried out in an automobile mechanic village, Apo, Abuja, Nigeria. An in-situ measurement approach was adopted using RDS-200 Universal Survey Meter and a handheld Global Positioning System (Garmin GPS 76S) equipment. It was observed that the dose equivalent varied from 0.04 μSv/h to 0.22 μSv/h with a mean of 0.10± 0.03 μSv/h which is below the standard background radiation of 0.133 μSv/h The study also revealed that the average annual effective dose rate is approximately 0.20±0.06 mSv/yr which is lower than the value of 1.0 mSv/yr averaged over five consecutive years according to the dose limit placed by the Basic Safety Standards (BSS) SCHEDULE II and the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) REPORT 60. This indicates that the automobile technicians, craftsmen and the people living and working within the area are safe and are not exposed to high doses of radiation as a result of activities in the Apo Automobile Mechanic Village. Keywords : Radiation Measurement; Apo Automobile Mechanic Village; Background Radiation; DoseEquivalent; Annual Effective Dose; Automobile Technicians
Characterization of polypropylene pulsating heat stripes: effects of orientation, working fluid, and loop geometry

A parametric analysis of the thermal performance of flat polyprpylene pulsating heat pipes (PHPs) is presented. In particular, the thermal performance was charachterized for pulsating heat pipes with different number of turns of the serpentine channel, different orientations with respect to gravity, and containing different heat transfer fluids. The dependence of polymeric PHPs performance on design parameters is poorly understood to date. The development of polymeric PHPs charachterized by high mechanical flexibility will have significant impact on thermal management of smartphones, portable electronics, and deployable systems such as cube satellites. Several prototype PHPs with different number of turns of the serpentine channel were fabricated bonding together three polypropylene sheets by selective transmission laser welding, after cutting out a serpentine channel in the central sheet. The thermal performance of the devices was charachterized by supplying an ascending/descending stepped thermal power ramp to the evaporator, and measuring the corresponding equivalent thermal resistance between the evaporator and the condenser.
Molecular Phylogeny of Pacific Archigregarines (Apicomplexa), Including Descriptions of Veloxidium leptosynaptae n. gen., n. sp., from the Sea Cucumber Leptosynapta clarki (Echinodermata), and Two New Species of Selenidium

Although archigregarines are poorly understood intestinal parasites of marine invertebrates, they are critical for understanding the earliest stages in the evolution of the Apicomplexa. Previous studies suggest that archigregarines are a paraphyletic stem group from which other lineages of gregarines, and possibly all other groups of apicomplexans, evolved. However, substantiating this inference is difficult because molecular phylogenetic data from archigregarines, in particular, and other gregarines, in general, are severely limited. In an attempt to help fill gaps in our knowledge of archigregarine diversity and phylogeny, we set out to discover and characterize novel lineages of archigregarines with high-resolution light and scanning electron microscopy and analyses of small subunit (SSU) rDNA sequences derived from single-cell (SC) PCR techniques. Here, we describe two novel species of Selenidium, namely Selenidium idanthyrsae n. sp. and S. boccardiellae n. sp. , and demonstrate the surface morphology and molecular phylogenetic position of the previously reported species S. cf. mesnili. We also describe a novel genus of archigregarine, Veloxidium leptosynaptae n. gen., n. sp. , which branches with an environmental sequence and, together, forms the nearest sister lineage to a diverse clade of marine eugregarines (i.e. lecudinids and urosporids). This molecular phylogenetic result is consistent with the hypothesis that archigregarines are deeply paraphyletic within apicomplexans, and suggests that convergent evolution played an important role in shaping the diversity of eugregarine trophozoites.
Assessment of the commercial stock of Distant Scallop (Bractechlamys vexillum, Reeve 1853) in Asid Gulf, Philippines

The study investigated the growth, mortalities, recruitment, yield-per-recruit and exploitation rates of the commercially important Distant scallop (Bractechlamys vexillum) in Asid Gulf, Philippines as basis for interim management. The fishery is economically valuable because it produces the highest yield of scallop in the country on a per unit area basis. Optimum total monthly length frequency data (n=3,987) were collected from April 2018 to March 2019. Using an objective fishery software to analyze the data, the growth (K) was revealed to be 0.65/year attaining an asymptotic shell height (SH∞) of 7.98 cm. Recruitment pattern was continuous and bimodal with minor and major peaks in April and August, respectively. The total instantaneous mortality (Z) is 3.18/year with fishing (F) and natural mortality (M) of 2.637 and 0.543, respectively. Current exploitation ratio (Ecurr) of 0.83 is higher than the biological reference point (BRP) E10 (0.816) and E50 (0.428). However, Ecurr is lower than the estimated exploitation at maximum sustainable yield (Emax = 0.907). Relative to the estimated Emax, the present result is a good indicator that the stock has the potential for recovery from an overexploited state. This may be due to the reduced fishing effort, increase in length at first capture (L50), size restriction by traders and the existing close season ordinance in the Municipality of Cawayan. Nevertheless, strict management measures must be put in place to prevent future collapse of the stock. The fast growth and the availability of recruits encourage prospects for mariculture.
Effects of Retroreflector Placement on the Nighttime Conspicuity of Pedestrians: An Open-Road Study

While considerable data indicate that positioning retroreflective markings on a pedestrian's extremities can dramatically enhance nighttime conspicuity, most relevant safety devices (vests) limit coverage to the torso. We asked 120 participants to press a button whenever they recognized that a pedestrian was present during a short drive at night. A test pedestrian wearing different configurations of retroreflective markings was positioned on the left shoulder of an unilluminated two-lane roadway. Compared to an ANSI class-II vest alone, response distances were significantly greater when the vest was supplemented with ankle markings and when a full biological motion configuration was worn. Conspicuity was also greater when the pedestrian was walking and when facing the approaching test vehicle. Relative to a full eleven-element biological motion configuration, adding just two retroreflective ankle straps to a conventional safety vest is considerably more practical while still providing substantial conspicuity benefits.
GROWTH PROFIT MARGIN PERFORMANCE OF PRIVATIZED SOEs: A MEAN COMPARISON APPROACH

Privatization as a reform policy package has been adopted by both developed and developing countries’ economies. Nigeria as a developing country has large public enterprises. These enterprises performed below expectation due to multiple problems. Technical committee was set up to privatize these enterprises. The paper used secondary data sourced from the companies’ financial reports. The data has been analyzed by using mean comparison technique. The gross profit margin (GPM) model 45 percent out of the sampled privatized SOEs had their mean difference increased after privatization and six companies had their mean difference increase above the average.
Gestational Weight Gain Among Pregnant Women in the Mexico–US Border City of Tijuana, Mexico Ganancia Excesiva de Peso Gestacional entre Mujeres Embarazadas en la Ciudad Fronteriza de Tijuana, México

1 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. ajimenez@uabc.edu. mx 2 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. montserrat.bacardi@uabc.edu. mx 3 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México , enrique.martinez9@uabc.edu. mx 4 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México, paulnewellmorison@hotmail.com 5 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. isp201208@gmail.com 6 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. calzada28@gmail.com 7 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. marice.mora@uabc.edu. mx 8 Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. michelle.dagnino@hotmail.com
FACTORS INFLUENCING THE ONLINE SHOPPING BEHAVIOR VIA SOCIAL NETWORKS OF CHINESE CUSTOMERS IN SHANGHAI, PRC

China is the world's largest and most dynamic e-commerce market, with 854 million online shoppers and a penetration rate of 61.2% in June, 2019 (CNNIC, 2019). Therefore, the researcher is interested in studying the online shopping behavior via social networks of Chinese customers in Shanghai, PRC, including its influencing factors. This study collected data from 102 respondents using a questionnaire. Data was analyzed by using descriptive statistics. Hypotheses were tested by using Chi-square (X2-test) and correlation analysis. The findings revealed that customers in Shanghai from different demographic profiles (e.g. gender, age and monthly income) are likely to be differed in their online shopping behavior (e.g. average shopping time, monthly shopping frequency). It is also found that there is a significant relationship between online perceived risk, marketing mix strategy(4PS) and the online shopping behavior (buyer's shopping time and number of purchases), at significant level of 0.05. This result can be used as guidelines to improve the marketing strategies of online sellers via social network in Shanghai, and probably other provinces in future.
Modelling of single-phase nonuniform transmission lines in electromagnetic transient simulations

An exponential single-phase line model is introduced to represent nonuniform transmission lines. When the line parameters are assumed to vary exponentially, a set of two-port equations can be formed in the frequency domain, which contain frequency-dependent functions. These functions are then synthesized with rational functions of the minimum-phase-shift type. Utilizing a fast recursive convolution technique, the time-domain equations of the proposed model reduce to a form similar to those in Bergeron's method. Plus, the model is compatible with general electromagnetic transients programs such as the EMTP. Time-domain simulations with the proposed model show good agreement with published experimental results, and with those produced by a cascade multi-section model where the line is divided into many short sections of uniform transmission lines.
CUE309-EARNINGS MANAGEMENT DURING FINANCIAL CRISES IN LATIN AMERICA Autoria

Changes in economic environment have an impact on the firm‟s propensity to engage in earnings management practices, affecting earnings quality. The aim of this study is verify the relationship between financial crises and earnings quality of public companies in Latin America, considering the effects of financial constraints. We investigated if GDP variation affects differently earnings management practices in Latin American firms financially constrained and unconstrained from 2001 to 2016 by Panel Data Regressions. The results provided evidences of a decrease of earnings management practices during crises years in Latin American firms, improving quality information. An incremental analysis evidenced that financially constrained firms suffer more with financial crises, increasing earnings management practices. Some firm-level variables influenced earnings quality, as firm size, leverage and performance. We further evidenced that some institutional factors play an important role in earnings management practices, demonstrating that enforcement law decreases earning management practices, contributing to improve accounting quality information. This study contributes to demonstrate that earnings management practices are sensitive to change in economic conditions and financial constraints in Latin American firms.
Enhanced dark current generation in proton-irradiated CMOS active pixel sensors

The dark current increase due to proton-induced displacement damage is studied in a standard and a radiation-hardened CMOS active pixel sensor (APS). Several devices have been irradiated with protons of different energies and fluences. The influence of the proton energy and fluence on the mean dark current increase and the dark current nonuniformity is investigated. Dark current density histograms are obtained by the theory based on collision kinematics. They are determined by the number of elastic and inelastic collisions and the damage these interactions create in the pixel sensitive volume. It is shown that field enhanced emission has to be taken into account to predict accurately the distribution of the dark current density increase. We also compare the results with data found in literature for charge coupled devices (CCD) and charge injection devices (CID).
EUROPEAN ACADEMIC RESEARCH, VOL

Commitment is often described as the intention to work on the relationship and feel psychologically attached to it (Rusbult, 1983). It can appear from within the individual i.e. personal dedication or it stems from the internal or external aspects of the relationship (children, money, investments in terms of time, sacrifices) i.e. constraint commitment. The present study aimed to examine the nature of commitment in Indian marriages through its demographic correlates gender and duration of marriage. Data from 268 married individuals showed that out of two kinds, constraint commitment stood out both in gender as well as duration of marriage. Men were high on constraints, specifically on morality of divorce. Men showed a sense of moral obligation to continue the relationship irrespective of the obstacles that come in between. With respect to duration of marriage, constraint commitment in first five years of marriage was less than both the categories of duration i.e. 5-10 years and 10-15 years of marriage. On the other hand, a statistical significant difference was found only among gender on personal commitment. Specifically, women showed a greater relationship agenda than men, i.e. a personal desire to continue the relationship. Both the genders aimed to continue the relationship but in different t forms of commitment. The findings Sabeen Rizvi, Meena OsmanyRelational Commitment across Gender and Duration of Marriage EUROPEAN ACADEMIC RESEARCH Vol. IV, Issue 9 / December 2016 7456 reveal an important facet of marital relationships in Indian context that can certainly be worked for a healthy and prolonged marriage.
Changes to telehealth practices in primary care in New Brunswick (Canada): A comparative study pre and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background During the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth technologies were used in the primary health care setting in New Brunswick as a means to continue providing care to patients while following public health guidelines. This study aimed to measure these changes and examine if they improved timely access to primary care. A secondary goal was to identify which telehealth technologies were deemed sustainable by primary care providers. Methods This was a comparative study on the use of telehealth technology before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Between April 2020 and November 2020, 114 active primary care providers (family physicians or nurse practitioners) responded to the online survey. Results The findings illustrated an increase in the use of telehealth technologies. The use of phone consultations increased by 122%, from 43.9% pre-pandemic to 97.6% during the pandemic (p < 0.001). The use of virtual consultation (19.3% pre-pandemic vs. 41.2% during the pandemic, p < 0.001), emails and texts also increased during the pandemic. Whereas the more structural organizational tools (electronic medical charts and reservation systems) remained stable. However, those changes did not coincide with a significant improvement to timely access to care during the pandemic. Many participants (40.1%) wanted to keep phone consultations, and 21.9% of participants wanted to keep virtual consultations as part of their long-term practice. Interpretation The observed increase in the use of telehealth technologies may be sustainable, but it has not significantly improved timely access to primary care in New Brunswick.
External validation of the PAR-Risk Score to assess potentially avoidable hospital readmission risk in internal medicine patients

Background Readmission prediction models have been developed and validated for targeted in-hospital preventive interventions. We aimed to externally validate the Potentially Avoidable Readmission-Risk Score (PAR-Risk Score), a 12-items prediction model for internal medicine patients with a convenient scoring system, for our local patient cohort. Methods A cohort study using electronic health record data from the internal medicine ward of a Swiss tertiary teaching hospital was conducted. The individual PAR-Risk Score values were calculated for each patient. Univariable logistic regression was used to predict potentially avoidable readmissions (PARs), as identified by the SQLape algorithm. For additional analyses, patients were stratified into low, medium, and high risk according to tertiles based on the PAR-Risk Score. Statistical associations between predictor variables and PAR as outcome were assessed using both univariable and multivariable logistic regression. Results The final dataset consisted of 5,985 patients. Of these, 340 patients (5.7%) experienced a PAR. The overall PAR-Risk Score showed rather poor discriminatory power (C statistic 0.605, 95%-CI 0.575–0.635). When using stratified groups (low, medium, high), patients in the high-risk group were at statistically significant higher odds (OR 2.63, 95%-CI 1.33–5.18) of being readmitted within 30 days compared to low risk patients. Multivariable logistic regression identified previous admission within six months, anaemia, heart failure, and opioids to be significantly associated with PAR in this patient cohort. Conclusion This external validation showed a limited overall performance of the PAR-Risk Score, although higher scores were associated with an increased risk for PAR and patients in the high-risk group were at significantly higher odds of being readmitted within 30 days. This study highlights the importance of externally validating prediction models.
Dietary status with demographic and anthropometric variables and some health affecting risk factors in people of Southeastern Iran: A population-based study (KERCADRS)

Background: Dietary pattern is influenced by lifestyle, genetic, cultural, and socioeconomic factors. We investigated the status of prudent (PDP) and imprudent (IDP) dietary patterns and their relationship with demographic and anthropometric variables and health conditions in an urban population of Southeastern Iran. Methods: The study was conducted on 9997 people aged 15-80 years randomly selected using one-stage cluster sampling. Demographic and anthropometric measurements were recorded through face-to-face interview, and their nutritional status was assessed by the food frequency questionnaire. PDP and IDP were identified based on scoring to the type and daily/weekly frequency of foods consumed and their production methods. Results: Fifty nine percent of the participants were females. PDP participants reported daily intake of whole grains (99.5%), fruits (66.5%), and unsaturated oil (88.6%). Daily intake of sweets and high fat dairy products were 55.7% and 46%, respectively. Women (64.8% vs 35.2 %) and people with diabetes (p<0.001), hypertension (p<0.01), and higher BMI (p<0.02) had healthier dietary status. People with lower education, cigarette smokers and opium users had a higher rate of IDP (all p<0.001). The dietary pattern improved with aging (AOR of IDP decreased from 1 in 15-24 years to 0.20 for 65-75 years) (p<0.001). Conclusion: Younger people, men and those with lower education had unhealthier dietary pattern. It seems that dietary behavior is more related to the individuals' tendencies and taste preferences. Modification of nutritional behaviors of the population and leading young people, men, and those with lower education to improve their dietary pattern is recommended.