Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Alpine restoration: planting and seeding of native species facilitate vegetation recovery

Vegetation recovery in severely disturbed alpine ecosystems can be accelerated through active restoration measures. This study evaluated the short‐term effects of two restoration treatments, planting of propagated native Salix (willow) shrubs in three different densities (1, 2.5, and 4 plants/m2) and seeding of the native grass Festuca ovina (sheep fescue), in a disturbed alpine heathland. We evaluated natural vegetation recovery (i.e. vegetation cover, vascular plant species richness, and Salix recruitment) in permanent plots, 5 years after the implementation of restoration measures. The results showed that both treatments had positive but different effects on vegetation recovery; Salix plantings (with densities ≥2.5 plants/m2) increased vascular plant species richness and recruitment of Salix seedlings, whereas seeding of F. ovina increased bottom and field layer cover. Our results also show the importance of soil conditions for vegetation recovery, as moister plots with a higher percentage of fine soil substrate had a higher vegetation cover and vascular plant species richness. This study shows that different restoration treatments can work complementary and also highlights the importance of considering different indicators of vegetation recovery when evaluating the effectiveness of restoration measures.
Calibration of an Existing Creep Model for Analysis of Aluminium Members Exposed to Constant Temperature

SUMMARY The paper presents the development of a creep model applicable for the analysis of aluminium members exposed to a constant temperature. The model is intended as a base for defining a creep model in a transient heating regime. The behaviour of aluminium members exposed to the transient heating regime is a relatively unexplored topic in the scientific community. There is a need for defining an advanced creep model for aluminium, which should cover any heating regime to model the influence of creep on members exposed to fire. A comparison of results between the existing experimental data and the built-in creep models from commercial software ANSYS 16.2 for specific temperature and stress levels is provided. The experimental data used was extracted from previous tests carried out on coupons of aluminium alloy EN 6082 AW T6 and fitted in the aforementioned ANSYS models which serve as a base for defining the representative advanced creep model.
Modeling the Impact of Climate and Fertilizer on Barley Production

Agriculture is a confirmed path to success. No region of the world has developed a diverse, modern economy without first establishing a successful foundation in agriculture. Food security is an enduring critical challenge in Ethiopia. The 2015 El Nino drought is one of the strongest droughts that have been recorded in Ethiopian antiquity. The study aims to evaluate the impacts of climate change and fertilizers applied on barley yield per hectare from 1987 to 2017 using an autoregressive distributed lag to cointegration approach. The mean barley yield was 11.47 quintal per hectare. The Long run bounded test for cointegration among the variables show signal of a long-run relationship with a short run among climate change, fertilizers applied and barley yield per hectare. Based on the value of adjusted R2, the explanatory variables explained almost 76% of the variation in the yield of barley. In the long run estimates every 1% rise in current average dap decrease the yield per hectare of barley by 28.76% at citrus paribus and a 1% rise in current precipitation and rainfall increase the yield of barley by 2.768% and 0.41% respectively keeping the effect of one variable to the other constant. The speed of adjustment is -0.381557 which is highly significant indicating the speed of the adjustment back to the long run equilibrium after a short run shock.
Are Local Authorities Building Their Capacity to Plan for Reduced Climate Impact? A Longitudinal Analysis of Swedish Comprehensive Plans

Spatial planning conducted by the local authorities has been identified as a key part of shaping carbon-neutral societies. Nevertheless, the question of whether local authorities are building their institutional capacity for integrating climate change mitigation aspects into spatial planning remains under-researched. This paper aims to fill this gap while also analysing the role of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in facilitating organisational learning. The methods employed were a longitudinal document analysis of Comprehensive Plans belonging to eight municipalities in Stockholm County, complemented by a focus group interview. A significant difference was identified, as the recently adopted Comprehensive Plans included more strategies for climate change mitigation and, to a greater extent, linked these strategies to reduced climate impact or energy efficiency than previously adopted Comprehensive Plans. However, numerous additional strategies could have been given further consideration in each studied Comprehensive Plan. Thus, this calls for more continuous and cyclical comprehensive planning processes to facilitate capacity building, primarily by being a vehicle for mobilising political support. Lastly, the findings indicate that SEA can lead to organisational learning of both single-loop and double-loop nature, where the latter can enable SEA to shape the planning process in a more profound and sustainability-oriented manner.
EFFECTS OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) ON FINANCIAL AND NON-FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM HIGHER EDUCATIONAL SECTOR OF PAKISTAN

Purpose: This research explores the causal linkage between TQM and financial performance or non-financial performance within the higher education sector of Pakistan. In this regard, the link between each element of total quality management, including tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy, was explored and empirically analyzed concerning financial and non-financial performance. Methodology: The regression and correlation statistical measures, using SPSS version 20.0, were used to study the linkage of TQM with financial and non-financial performance. The study utilized a quantitative research approach for data collection purposes, and data was gathered from 220 employees of well-established higher educational institutes of Islamabad and Rawalpindi with the help of a directly administered survey approach. Results: The results support the causal linkage between TQM and financial or non-financial performance. The findings indicate that TQM has a significant positive link with the financial and non-financial performance of service organizations within the higher education sector of Pakistan. Applications of this study: The higher education industry is the backbone of every nation, especially the developing countries. The higher education sector of developing countries, such as Pakistan, has been facing issues of quality, and hence the implementation of TQM practices can have a considerable effect on its improvement. This study provides valued insights for higher education practitioners to revise policies for the positive growth and development of this sector. The Novelty of this study: The contribution of this research is the investigation of TQM practices on financial and non-financial performance of higher educational institutes of a developing nation, i.e. Pakistan, where it is relatively a new concept. It was found that TQM practices have a significant impact on financial and non-financial performance.
Pattern-Type Separation of Triacylglycerols by Silver Thiolate×Non-Aqueous Reversed Phase Comprehensive Liquid Chromatography

Triacylglycerols (TAGs), as the main components of edible oils and animal fats, are responsible for the nutritional value, organoleptic features and technological properties of foods; each lipid matrix shows a unique TAG profile which can serve as fingerprint to ensure the quality and authenticity of food products. The high complexity of many foodstuffs often makes untargeted elucidation of TAG components a challenging task; thus, more efficient separation techniques may be mandatory. In this research, the TAG profile of a borage (Borago officinalis) seed oil was obtained by two-dimensional comprehensive liquid chromatography (LC×LC), by the coupling of silver thiolate and octadecylsilica monodisperse materials. A total 94 TAG compounds were identified by ion trap-time of flight detection, using atmospheric pressure ionization, with the degree of unsaturation varying from 0 to 9, and partition values ranging from 36 to 56. The group-type separation afforded by this analytical approach may be useful to quickly fingerprint TAG components of oil samples.
Stepping carefully on sacred ground: religion and spirituality in psychotherapy

ABSTRACT This article explores the significance of religious/spiritual approaches to existential issues in psychotherapy in Norway, with its secular, Western-European society. A content analysis of eight semi-structured interviews with psychologists who are experienced in the intersection of psychotherapy and religion/spirituality confirms the perceived therapeutic benefit of addressing religion/spirituality. Participants reported “sacred moments” in therapy and the significance of religion/spirituality for their therapeutic identities. Religious/spiritual self-disclosure and ethical borders emerged as challenging topics. As core competencies, the interviewees named existential sensitivity, self-reflection, and self-disclosure management. The article discusses what is needed to create safe spaces for existential/religious/existential issues in secular psychotherapy.
Evaluating carbohydrate fractions and degradation kinetics of maize silages on different storage periods and the estimates of milk production

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of maize (Zea mays L.) carbohydrate contents and the estimates of milk production on different storage periods. The experimental design was completely randomised, with four treatments (storage time), each replicated four times. We observed a reduction in non-fibrous carbohydrates and an increase in the fibrous fraction, whereas starch plus soluble fibres (B1) showed a quadratic behaviour. As for the degradation kinetic parameters of the silages, an increase in gas production and degradation rate (B) was observed, whereas the fraction (A) decreased; the other parameters were not affected by the lengthening of storage time. The dietary simulation showed a reduction in protein, metabolisable energy and average daily gain (ADG), requiring more storage time to gain a point in the body condition score. The in vitro digestibility of dry matter (IVDMD) and total digestible nutrients (TDN) showed quadratic responses, whereas the digestibility of neutral detergent fibre and the milk production estimates were not affected by the storage time of maize silages. It is recommended to store maize silages for up to 221 days, because after this period there is a reduction in the digestibility of silages.
Micronutrients availability in soil–plant system as influenced by long-term integrated nutrient management under rice–wheat cropping

Abstract The present field study was conducted on loamy sand soil at the Research Farm, Department of Soil Science, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India under a rice–wheat cropping system to study the influence of long-term integrated nutrient management (INM) involving chemical fertilizers and organic amendments viz. farmyard manure (FYM), green manure (GM), and straw incorporation (SI) on the availability of micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Mn and Cu), yield and uptake of nutrients by crop in rice–wheat system. The experiment comprised 9 treatment combinations comprising control, 50% RDF (Recommended dose of fertilizer)+FYM, 50% RDF + GM, 100% RDF, 100% RDF (P to wheat), 100% RDF + FYM, 100% RDF + GM, 100% RDF + SI and 150% RDF. Results revealed that continuous use of chemical fertilizers along with organic amendments in rice–wheat cropping system (RWCS) for 19 years has resulted to an increase in the availability of micronutrient cations (Zn, Fe, Mn and Cu). Build-up of soil organic carbon and decrease in soil pH has resulted in the increase of bio-available forms of micronutrients. The transfer coefficient (TC) value did not vary significantly among the treatments except for Cu in both rice and wheat crop. Low soil recovery coefficient (SRC) values of Zn, Cu, Fe, and Mn indicated that long-term INM can meet their plant nutritional requirement in rice–wheat cropping system. This study concludes that long-term integration of FYM with NPK fertilizers has an edge over GM and SI in regulating the supply of micronutrients in soil–plant system and correcting the micronutrients deficiencies in rice–wheat cropping system.
Rectifiability of RCD(K,N) spaces via δ-splitting maps

In this note we give simpliﬁed proofs of rectiﬁability of RCD( K, N ) spaces as metric measure spaces and lower semicontinuity of the essential dimension, via δ -splitting maps. The arguments are inspired by the Cheeger–Colding theory for Ricci limits and rely on the second order diﬀerential calculus developed by Gigli and on the convergence and stability results by Ambrosio– Honda
Abiotic and biotic processes controlling travertine deposition: Insights from eight hot springs in Japan

Contributions of abiotic and biotic processes on travertine deposition are still not well‐understood due to technical difficulties, despite that the travertines draw attention as analogues for ancient microbial carbonates and oil reservoirs. To evaluate their contributions, this study examined eight hot springs in Japan. Water chemistry analyses showed common downstream trends: a decrease in CO2 concentration and increases in CO32− concentration and pH. Mineralogical analysis showed that the constituent minerals of travertines at six hot springs were both calcite and aragonite, while one was just calcite and another only aragonite. Microscopic observations of travertine surfaces indicated the dominance of cyanobacteria secreting extracellular polymeric substances without a detectable amount of carboxyl groups. Small particles were sometimes entangled/covered by these cyanobacteria. Microelectrode measurements showed the occurrence of abiotic CaCO3 precipitation and photosynthetic induction/inhibition of CaCO3 precipitation, the extent of which was different at each site. By integrating these results, the contributions of abiotic and biotic processes were evaluated. Cyanobacteria inhabiting travertine surfaces were generally not calcified regardless of an ambient high CaCO3 saturation state; instead, they contributed to creating pore spaces and trap/bind suspended particles. Downstream CO2 degassing increased the CaCO3 saturation state by shifting carbonate chemical equilibrium and caused abiotic CaCO3 precipitation. Suspended particles trapped by cyanobacteria increased the surface area for crystal growth to further accelerate precipitation. The contribution of photosynthesis‐induced CaCO3 precipitation was low because of several factors, including variable cyanobacteria populations and photosynthetic inhibition of CaCO3 precipitation. The average contributions of photosynthesis‐induced CaCO3 precipitation, Ca2+ adsorption and abiotic precipitation in the eight hot springs were 16%, 3% and 81%, respectively, indicating predominance of the abiotic process for travertine deposition. Mineralogical composition of travertines significantly correlated with concentrations of SO42− and Mg2+, much more than with Mg/Ca ratio and water temperature, suggesting their importance for controlling CaCO3 polymorphs in travertines.
The Relationship in Accrual Earnings Management and Real Earnings Management in Context of Pakistan.

: This study focus on trade-off decision between earnings management strategies. For this purpose AEM measured through the modified jones model (1991) and Kathoriet al.,(2005)model and REM is captured through four measurements of Roychowdhury model (2006). The sample is based on non-financial firms that are listed on PSX from 2007 to 2018 that further divided and adopt those firms that suspects to enjoying EM incentives. For analysispurpose we use panel data and our model is Zang (2012) model. The findingsapprove that AEM have no switching relationship with any measurement of earnings management except abnormal production cost. The unexpected REM measurement of production cost showsa substitution effect. But, in this model also IFRS adoption does not play a role to control switching choices between EM strategies. Overall, not all, but a few factors such as; firm status, financial health of company and marginal tax rate show predicted directional relationship in AEM models.
Comparison of space weathering features in three particles from Itokawa

The return of samples from S‐type asteroid 25143 Itokawa have enabled significant improvements in our understanding of space weathering on asteroids and the link between S‐type asteroids and ordinary chondrites. We report on three new particles, providing details on space weathering of adjacent grains within a particle and several different phases. The features we observe are consistent with formation via irradiation from the solar wind, as opposed to micrometeoroid bombardment. We also see differences in the degree of weathering for grains collected from the two different touchdown locations on the asteroid. Continued analysis of new grains from Itokawa allow us to draw a more complete picture of the variety of space weathering features and the processes that lead to their formation on Itokawa and other airless bodies.
Accurate Open Channel Flowrate Estimation Using 2D RANS Modelization and ADCP Measurements

Boat-mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCP) are commonly used to measure the streamwise velocity distribution and discharge in rivers and open channels. Generally, the method used to integrate the measurements is the velocity-area method, which consists of a discrete integration of flow velocity over the whole cross-section. The discrete integration is accomplished independently in the vertical and transversal direction without assessing the hydraulic coherence between both dimensions. To address these limitations, a new alternative method for estimating the discharge and its associated uncertainty is here proposed. The new approach uses a validated 2D RANS hydraulic model to numerically compute the streamwise velocity distribution. The hydraulic model is fitted using state estimation (SE) techniques to accurately reproduce the measurement field and hydraulic behaviour of the free-surface stream. The performance of the hydraulic model has been validated with measurements on two different trapezoidal cross-sections in a real channel, even with asymmetric velocity distribution. The proposed method allows extrapolation of measurement information to other points where there are no measurements with a solid and consistent hydraulic basis. The 2D-hydraulic velocity model (2D-HVM) approach discharge values have been proven more accurate than the ones obtained using velocity-area method, thank to the enhanced use of the measurements in addition to the hydraulic behaviour represented by the 2D RANS model.
Can Environmental Regulations Promote Greenhouse Gas Abatement in OECD Countries? Command-and-Control vs. Market-Based Policies

In response to global warming, greenhouse gas (GHG) abatement has been one of the top priorities of governments, and a large variety of environmental regulation policies have been implemented in past decades. Using panel data from 27 OECD countries over the period of 2005–2012, this study measures and compares the stringency level of command-and-control and market-based environmental regulations. The differentiated impacts and indirect effects of environmental regulations on GHG emissions are tested empirically. The results show that: (1) Both command-and-control and market-based environmental regulations have effects on GHG abatement in OECD countries, and there is a non-linear relationship between environmental regulations and GHG discharge, in which stringent command-and-control environmental regulations and mild market-based regulation policies are preferred; (2) Command-and-control environmental regulations reduce GHG emissions by improving the technological level, rather than the energy consumption structure. In contrast, market-based environmental regulations can promote GHG abatement through the intermediary effects of both technological progress and the energy consumption structure. The findings provide implications for OECD countries to further reduce GHG emissions.
Relations Between Bicultural Attitudes, Paternal Versus Maternal Acceptance, and Psychological Adjustment of Ethnic Minority Youth in Bangladesh

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of perceived paternal and maternal acceptance on the bicultural orientations and psychological adjustment of ethnic-minority young adults in Bangladesh. The study was based on a sample of 412 young adults (mean age 22 years), consisting of 40% women and 60% men from 18 tribal subgroups in Bangladesh. Measures used were Parental Acceptance–Rejection Questionnaire (PARQ), Bicultural Attitude Scale (BAS) and Personality Assessment Questionnaire (PAQ). Results showed that there are significant positive correlations between perceived parental (paternal and maternal) acceptance, heritage culture, and psychological adjustment of the respondents. Results further showed that perceived paternal acceptance has independent and stronger effect than perceived maternal acceptance on the bicultural orientations and psychological adjustment of the minority young adults in Bangladesh.
Analysis of heavy metals in soil of mechanic workshop in Onitsha metropolis

Soil samples were collected at different areas of mechanic workshops of Onitsha metropolis to assay the presence of heavy metals and their possible effects on eco system. Five areas were selected for analyses using AAS. Results show that sample B (Awada) has the highest Nickel concentration with the value as 0.9055ppm while sample A (Nkpor) has the least 0.4528ppm. For chromium sample E with value (0.8754ppm) > C (0.5081ppm) >B (0.4930ppm) > D (0.3597ppm) > A (0.3119ppm). Lead concentration in sample C was too high, is of the value of 33.2477ppm > 6.1097ppm >5 2793ppm > 3.8260ppm > 3.6036ppm for sample D, E, B and A respectively. Cadmium concentration values in A, E, D, C and B have the value of (0.0868ppm) > (0.0496ppm) > 0.0475ppm) > 0.0368ppm) > (0.0303ppm) respectively. Then for copper, sample C has the highest concentration of (2.0259ppm) > D (1.7485ppm) > E (1.6467ppm) > B (1.0446ppm) > A (6.6851ppm). The high concentrations of these Heavy Metals when compared with the WHO standard for Cu, Cr and NI (0.02), Pb (0.02) and Cd (0.05ppm) indicate danger to human health and other animals in the area.
Entrepreneurial Alertness, Innovation Modes, And Business Models in Small- And Medium-Sized Enterprises: An Exploratory Quantitative Study

Entrepreneurial alertness refers to the ability to process information and signals from the environment so that individuals can recognize business opportunities, whereas innovation modes depict the variation in firms’ approaches to innovation. Innovation modes have important implications in the way firms compete; however, little research has been done about the relationship among entrepreneurial alertness, innovation modes, and business model in firms. This study explores whether entrepreneurial alertness dimensions influence business models through their effect on firms’ innovation modes. Using survey data from analysis of 119 manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises in Mexico using structural equation modelling, this study shows that entrepreneurs’ entrepreneurial alertness dimensions have different impacts on innovation modes, which thus have different effects on the efficiency and novelty of business models