Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Economic and Financial Determinants of Gold ETF Price Volatility on the U.S. Futures Market (COMEX)

The price of gold ETFs on the COMEX market in the USA is influenced by both domestic and international economic and political factors. In our study, we focus on domestic economic variables as key drivers of gold ETF prices, using the Newey-West estimator to assess their impact, particularly in the presence of significant autocorrelation. Our analysis of domestic determinants over the past 15 years revealed noteworthy insights. CPI, the US dollar exchange rate, interest rates, and crude oil prices negatively affect gold prices. However, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate and the U.S. Economic Policy Uncertainty index had a positive impact. Gold remains a safe haven in times of economic uncertainty, but our model displayed some weaknesses with strong positive autocorrelation and heteroscedasticity in residuals. To address these issues, we constructed an alternative model, focusing on the most recent five years. Since 2017, we've observed a shift where inflation and interest rates no longer significantly affect gold prices. Recent interest rate hikes and high inflation had minimal impact, especially during stock market declines. Gold does not appear to act as a hedge against bear markets as it did during the Global Financial Crisis; instead, the US dollar may fulfill this role. Given the unprecedented economic disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, further research is needed to explore the effects of domestic financial and economic KPIs on gold prices and their interconnections and spillover effects.
Exploring the Impact of Personality Traits on Investment Decisions of Immigrated Global Investors with Focus on Moderating Risk Appetite: A SEM Approach

The study investigates the impact of the personality traits of immigrant global investors on their long-term and short-term investment decisions while moderating the impact of risk appetite. By analysing how traits such as extraversion, conscientiousness, openness, agreeableness, and emotional stability intersect with risk tolerance, this research aims to provide a nuanced understanding of how individual characteristics interact to shape investment decisions. The data was collected through a structured questionnaire. PLS-SEM was applied to test the developed hypothesis. The study insinuates that personality traits do have a positive impact on short-term as well as long-term investment decisions, except agreeableness and conscientiousness, in context to long-term and short-term investment decisions. The study also suggests that risk tolerance does not have a high moderating impact on the relationship between personality traits and investment decisions, except conscientiousness, which has a negative moderate relationship between personality traits and investment decisions. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first study in which an individual’s personality traits have been studied in relation to long-term and short-term investment decisions with moderating the effect of risk tolerance in SMART PLS based on the reflective-reflective model.
Prevalence and Risk Factors of MASLD and Liver Fibrosis amongst the Penitentiary Population in Catalonia: The PRISONAFLD Study

Background and Aims: The prevalence of chronic non-communicable diseases, particularly metabolic syndrome (MetS), has increased among the prison population. Nevertheless, we have limited data on metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the hepatic manifestation of this syndrome. We aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of MASLD and MASLD-associated liver fibrosis in the penitentiary population in Catalonia, Spain. Method: A cross-sectional observational study involving eight penitentiary centers. Participants had at least one metabolic disorder and were at a closed-regimen penitentiary. Individuals with concomitant liver diseases and/or alcohol risk consumption were excluded. Significant fibrosis and MASLD were defined as liver stiffness ≥8 kPa and a controlled attenuation parameter ≥275 dB/m by vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE), respectively. After exclusions, metabolic inmates with VCTE were analyzed. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of MASLD and MASLD-associated significant fibrosis. Results: Out of the 4338 inmates studied, 1290 (29.7%) had metabolic disorders, and 646 (14.9%) underwent VCTE. The mean age was 48.0 years (SD 12.1), and 89.5% were male. MASLD prevalence was 33.9%. Significant fibrosis and MASLD-associated significant fibrosis were found in 16.4% and 9.4% of inmates, respectively. In the multivariate analysis, T2D, waist circumference, MetS, and higher ALT values were identified as independent risk factors for MASLD and MASLD-associated significant fibrosis amongst the prison population. Conclusions: Metabolic disorders including MASLD are highly prevalent among inmates. The prevalence of significant fibrosis seems notably higher than that of the general population, underscoring the need for targeted screening programs and therapeutic interventions in the incarcerated population.
Migrant Achievement Penalties in Western Europe. What Role for Educational Systems

This paper presents a comparative examination of educational underachievement of second-generation immigrants in Western Europe near the end of compulsory schooling, based on the 2006-2009 waves of the PISA survey. We propose a measure for migrant educational penalty revealing the relative position of migrant children within the achievement distribution of natives with the same socio-economic background. We find that migrant specific disadvantage is severe in most Western European countries. We then analyze how this measure varies across countries and find it negatively related to the effect of socio-economic background on natives’ achievement. Hence, migrant penalties and socio-economic penalties come forth as two distinct dimensions of educational inequalities. By means of recursive partitioning methods, we explore whether features of educational systems account for cross-country differences in migrant-specific penalties. We find that institutional dimensions theoretically related to educational careers of children of immigrants – entry age into (pre)school and degree of marginalization in low-performing schools –matter, in spite of the more or less comprehensive character of the secondary school systems.
Toxic Metal Residues in Gills and Muscles of Freshwater Fishes: Implications for Chronic Noncarcinogenic Risk Assessment

We determined the concentrations of metals in gills and muscles of fish species from Ezu River and associated noncarcinogenic risk from the exposure. The following fish species; Clarias gariepinus, Trachurus trachurus, Parachana africana and Heterotis niloticus were collected from potential contamination hotspots of the river and analysed for zinc (Zn), arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb). Concentrations of the metals ranged between Cu: 0.01-0.03 mg kg-1, Cd: 0.02-0.12 mg kg-1, Zn: 0.13-0.22 mg kg-1, Hg: 0.02-0.07 mg kg-1, As: 0.02-0.25 mg kg-1, and Pb: 0.01-0.03 mg kg-1, and Cu: 0.01-0.02 mg kg-1, Cd: 0.02-0.2 mg kg-1, Zn: 0.10-0.27 mg kg-1, Hg: 0.01-0.07 mg kg-1, As: 0.08-0.45 mg kg-1 and Pb: 0.01-0.02 mg kg-1 in gills and muscles, respectively. Zn and As were higher in the muscles and gills of the sampled fish species. Concentrations of Cu, Hg Cd, and Pb appeared similar in both the gills and muscles. Metal concentration gradient across hotspots was evident in all the sections of the river. Ugbenu and Ugbene had high concentrations of Zn and As with the concentration of As being above limit by the Codex (FAO/WHO). The noncarcinogenic risk evaluation showed negligible effects from oral exposure to the metals examined. While the risk of health impact from oral exposure is negligible under the conditions of current study, the elevated levels of the heavy metals in the examined fish species are indicative of metal enrichment of the river and thus call for a regulatory control to safeguard the aquatic resources of the river.
Are foreshocks distinctive? Evidence from the 1966 Parkfield and the 1975 Oroville, California sequences

Foreshock activity preceded both the ML = 5.5 June 28, 1966 Parkfield, and the ML = 5.7 August 1, 1975 Oroville, California earthquakes. The PZ source displacement amplitude spectrum (0.5 Hz < f < 10 Hz) recorded at Priest Valley, California (Δ = 25 km) for an ML = 2.6 immediate Parkfield foreshock appears distinctive, characterized by a corner frequency f o = 2.5 Hz and an ω−1 higher-frequency spectral dependence; spectra for another immediate Parkfield foreshock ( ML = 3.1), two nearby Parkfield aftershocks ( ML = 3.0 and 2.9), and three nearby “normal” Parkfield earthquakes ( ML = 2.6, 2.6, and 3.1) are all higher frequency with f o ≧ 10 Hz. PZ and SZ signals (0.4 Hz ≦ f ≦ 10 Hz) recorded at Whiskeytown, California (Δ = 150 km) for an immediate ML = 3.8 Oroville foreshock have similar corner frequencies ( f o ≅ 2 to 4 Hz) and marginally smaller high-frequency roll-off rates than the corresponding phases for four nearby 3.6 ≦ ML ≦ 4.1 Oroville aftershocks; an analogous comparison failed to discriminate an earlier (June 28, 1975) ML = 3.5 Oroville foreshock from the same five aftershocks. This exercise in attempted foreshock identification, using high-quality data and the two largest central California earthquakes in many years, points up the extreme subtlety of any unique properties in radiated body waves and the resulting difficulty in characterizing foreshocks.
Sampled-Data Secure Group Consensus for Nonlinear Multi-Agent Systems in Fixed/Switching Topologies

In this article, under fixed and switching topologies, the secure group consensus problems are addressed for nonlinear multi-agent systems with replay attacks, where only sampling output is available. First, in place of introducing a compensator system, the control signals are provided by outputs of the agent and its neighbors at current and a finite number of past sampling instants, which alleviates computational burden effectively. Second, based on these control signals, two novel distributed sampled-data secure control protocols with gain are designed in fixed and switching topologies, which avoids uninterrupted communication and control updates, thereby reducing communication burden and saving system resources. Further, the secure group consensus is achieved successfully meanwhile compensating for replay attacks by the proposed control protocols, the gain control method and the Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional method. Finally, two simulations are performed to illustrate the validity of the results.
Students’ perceptions of teacher assessment practices in foreign language emergency remote teaching during Covid-19 in Finland

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of Finnish general upper secondary students of teacher assessment practices in foreign language emergency remote teaching (ERT). A total of 251 students answered an online survey, and both quantitative and qualitative methods were used in the analysis of the data. The results show that students found essays, listening comprehension tests, and self-assessments to be the most suitable practices for ERT, while learning diaries, peer assessments, and portfolios were deemed the least suitable. Differences were detected in students’ perceptions in terms of their previous course grades. Most students expressed positive views about their language teachers’ assessment practices in ERT. The results pave the way for expanding and developing current assessment practices in foreign language ERT.
Trace Fossil Rhizocorallium From The Middle Triassic Of The Betic Cordillera, Southern Spain: Characterization And Environmental Implications

Abstract A detailed characterization of Rhizocorallium assemblages from the Middle Triassic sediments (Ladinian, Muschelkalk facies) of the Betic Cordillera, Spain, and their paleoenvironmental interpretation are provided. Rhizocorallium jenense shows variable U-shaped structures: straight and short, slightly arcuate or sinuous, and fan-shaped. Spreiten are protrusive, and vertically retrusive forms are frequent. Scratches are very abundant, more or less continuous and parallel on the marginal tubes, and more prominent and shorter on the spreiten. Rhizocorallium shows a major orientation at 121°E. Rhizocorallium irregulare is scarce and occurs as long, straight-to-slightly-sinuous or arcuate U-shaped forms and usually exhibits scratch marks. The dominance of R. jenense and its orientation, similar to that of gutter casts, reveal colonization during high-energy regimes, mainly related to storm phases. The presence of R. irregulare reflects comparatively quieter intervals, probably interstorm phases. Trace-fossil features reveal firm-ground consistency and Glossifungites ichnofacies. The occurrence of dominant, suspension-feeding R. jenense and scarce, deposit-feeding R. irregulare reflects a high concentration of nutrients in the water column and comparatively organic-poor sediments. The high concentration of Rhizocorallium indicates a large population of trace makers and, probably, opportunistic behavior. Size-frequency curves, however, are coherent with steady-state populations (taphonomic bias? ) and with a single generation. Scratch-mark casts could suggest crustaceans as producers, with some appendages in continuous contact with the substrate.
Sex differences evident in elevated anxiety symptoms in multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, and rheumatoid arthritis

Introduction Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMID), such as multiple sclerosis (MS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have high rates of elevated anxiety symptoms. This can may worsen functioning and increase IMID disease burden. The rate of and factors associated with elevated anxiety symptoms may differ between males and females, which, in turn can affect diagnosis and disease management. We evaluated whether the frequency and factors associated with comorbid elevated anxiety symptoms in those with an IMID differed by sex. Methods Participants with an IMID (MS, IBD or RA) completed two anxiety measures (HADS, GAD-7). We used logistic regression to investigate whether sex differences exist in the presence of comorbid elevated anxiety symptoms or in the endorsement of individual anxiety items in those with an IMID. Results Of 656 participants, females with an IMID were more likely to have elevated anxiety symptoms compared to males (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.05; 95%CI: 1.2, 3.6). Younger age, higher depressive symptoms and income were also associated with elevated anxiety symptoms in IMID. Lower income in males with an IMID, but not females, was associated with elevated anxiety symptoms (aOR: 4.8; 95%CI: 1.5, 15.6). No other factors demonstrated a sex difference. Males had nearly twice the odds of endorsing restlessness on the GAD-7 (OR = 1.8, 95%CI: 1.07, 3.15) compared to females. Discussion We found evidence for sex differences in the factors associated with experiencing elevated anxiety symptoms in those with an IMID. These findings could be helpful to sensitize clinicians to monitor for comorbid anxiety symptoms in males with an IMID.
GPs’ Perspective on a Multimodal Intervention to Enhance Guideline-Adherence in Uncomplicated Urinary Tract Infections: A Qualitative Process Evaluation of the Multicentric RedAres Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common reasons patients seeking health care and antibiotics to be prescribed in primary care. However, general practitioners’ (GPs) guideline adherence is low. The RedAres randomised controlled trial aims to increase guideline adherence by implementing a multimodal intervention consisting of four elements: information on current UTI guidelines (1) and regional resistance data (2); feedback regarding prescribing behaviour (3); and benchmarking compared to peers (4). The RedAres process evaluation assesses GPs’ perception of the multimodal intervention and the potential for implementation into routine care. We carried out 19 semi-structured interviews with GPs (intervention arm). All interviews were carried out online and audio recorded. For transcription and analysis, Mayring’s qualitative content analysis was used. Overall, GPs considered the interventions helpful for knowledge gain and confirmation when prescribing. Information material and resistance were used for patient communication and teaching purposes. Feedback was considered to enhance reflection by breaking routines of clinical workup. Implementation into routine practice could be enhanced by integrating feedback loops into patient management systems and conveying targeted information via trusted channels or institutions. The process evaluation of RedAres intervention was considered beneficial by GPs. It confirms the convenience of multimodal interventions to enhance guideline adherence.
Propagação in vitro e in vivo de Hippeastrum aulicum (Ker-Gawler) Herb. (Amaryllidaceae)

FLORES, Patricia Silva. In vitro and in vivo propagation of Hippeastrum aulicum (Ker-Gawler) Herb. (Amaryllidaceae). 2003. 137 f. Dissertation (Master in Vegetable Genetical Resources) – Post Graduation Program in Vegetable Genetical Resources, Agrarian Sciences Center. Federal University of Santa Catarina State, Florianopolis City. Brazil is a rich country in native plant species with an ornamental potential. However, the little knowledge about the species and the lack of a suitable propagation system has limited its use in floriculture. Hippeastrum aulicum (Ker-Gawler) Herb. (Amarillydaceae) is a native specie from Altantic Forest whose commercial value is recognized in other countries, but it is practically unknown in Brazil. Studies about species propagation were not found, however, in greenhouse, it has been found that few bulbs per plant are produced, making unpracticable the natural multiplication as a propagation method in commercial scale. In this context, this study had as purpose to analyze methodologies for propagation of Hippeastrum aulicum specie through seed germination, bulb scales cuttings, micropropagation of floral part segments and bulb scales and callus induction in immature embryos and in plantlets segments in vitro. Results of these studies indicated that the seeds of H. aulicum have a high germinative potential, reaching 100% of germination when they were sowed in absence of light and at temperatures ranging from 25 oC to 35 oC. For bulb scales cutting it was verified that it is not necessary the utilization of neither ANA nor AIB for the rooting and the scales withdraw from central area of the bulb was the most indicated as material for bulb scale cutting. Twin-scalin explants were most suitable for micropropagation than floral parts explants due to the high in vitro oxidation of the last ones. With the utilization of 1 μM ANA and 4 μM BAP the best results were obtained for callus and bulbs induction with bulb scale explants. With the utilization of 4 μM or 10 μM of 2,4–D and proximal segments of embryo explant with embryonic axis with less than 1 mm length has reached the greater percentages of embryos with friable callus.
Formal and informal support for Croatian and Serbian people with disabilities and their families: A scoping review

Introduction. Formal and informal support are important for quality of life of people with disabilities and their families. Objective. The aim of this paper was to (a) identify types of and satisfaction with support for Croatian and Serbian people with disabilities (PWD) and their caregivers and (b) summarise the effects of support reported by PWD and/or their caregivers in Croatia and Serbia. Methods. A systematic search was conducted, followed by eligibility screening of the peer-reviewed articles published from 2000 to June 2020. EBSCOhost, Hrčak, and the Serbian Citation Index [Srpski Citatni Indeks] databases were searched. We also searched the grey literature using Google Scholar and employed backward reference searching. The authors scanned articles and extracted the data related to the country, study's aim, study's design, sample, methodology, and findings. Twenty seven studies were included in this review. Results. Croatian and Serbian PWD and their caregivers received informational, emotional, practical, and financial support at different degrees. They were most satisfied with informal support, while the degree of satisfaction with formal support varied. They highly valued support programs. Conclusion. Croatia and Serbia, in general, lack a formal support system, and informal support is the most prevalent for PWD and their caregivers. There is a need for more support programs for families of PWD.
Intermittent criticality on a regional scale in Bhuj

SUMMARY The statistics of the Bhuj earthquake population are examined to investigate the proximity of the system to the critical state, defined through an entropy‐energy relationship based on the tools of statistical mechanics. The results are compared with a theoretical model corresponding to a Boltzmann probability density distribution of degenerate microscopic energy states of the form p(E) ∝ E −B−1 e −E/θ . The data exhibit fluctuations in characteristic energy θ at a constant B
Measuring Social Interaction and Community Cohesion in a High Density Urban Renewal Area: The case of Green Square

Positive social interactions and social cohesion are central to the success of large-scale residential redevelopments. Significant research effort internationally has recognised this in focusing on developing research tools to measure social interaction and cohesion in urban renewal sites dominated by social housing properties, typically in suburban areas. Less attention has been given to these issues in areas dominated by private housing, or in areas with high-density housing. This is a significant omission given the promotion of compact city policies around the world. Local and state governments have an interest in understanding, and benchmarking, social interaction and social cohesion in new private high-density residential areas, but have few appropriate tools available. Information collected in a tailored survey of social interaction and social cohesion could inform local land use planning, community development interventions, infrastructure investment and open space and public domain planning. This paper discusses the development of a survey tool designed to measure social interaction and cohesion in a high-density urban renewal area in Sydney, and presents selected results of a pilot of that tool. Conclusions are drawn about the potential implications of the survey findings for the effective planning of service provision for residents living in high-density brownfield urban renewal areas in Australia.