Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization and Release Kinetics Study of Active Packaging Films Based on Modified Starch and Red Cabbage Anthocyanin Extract

Active packaging films were prepared by adding red cabbage anthocyanin extract (RCAE) into acetylated distarch phosphate (ADSP). This paper investigated the influence of the interaction relationship between RCAE and the film matrix on the structure, barrier, antioxidant and release properties of active films. Sixteen principal compounds in RCAE were identified as anthocyanins based on mass spectroscopic analysis. Micromorphological observations indicated that the RCAE distribution uniformity in the films decreased as the RCAE content increased. When the concentration of RCAE was not higher than 20%, the moisture absorption and oxygen permeability of films decreased. The stability of RCAE in the films was enhanced by the electrostatic interaction between RCAE and ADSP with the formation of hydrogen bonds, which facilitated the sustainability of the antioxidant properties of films. The release kinetics of RCAE proved that the release rate of RCAE in active films was the fastest in distilled water, and Fickian’s law was appropriate for portraying the release behavior. Moreover, the cytocompatibilty assay showed that the test films were biocompatible with a viability of >95% on HepG2 cells. Thus, this study has established the suitability of the films for applications in active and food packaging.
An Experimental Study Related to School Adjustment of Children in the Preschool Period

The study aimed to support the resolution of problems experienced due to preschool children not adjusting to school at the start of first schooling. Thus, problems leading to school rejection and many other probable issues will be prevented. The experimental study about orientation problems occurring in students newly starting preschool used a semi-experimental method with implementations to ensure school adjustment. The study included 53 students with ages between 60-72 months with frequent school absenteeism due to a variety of reasons. Parents of selected students were given information and the general lines of the Designed Adjustment Program (DAP) were explained. The study applied to the students who could not adapt to the school and have experienced school refusal included a preparation phase for a maximum of 1 week. Afterwards, it covers a minimum of 8 and a maximum of 12 days of application. Accordingly, all students in the experimental group to whom DAP implemented adjusted to school, while 66.7% of students in the placebo group and 61.5% of students in the control group were identified to adjust to school. In conclusion, it was identified that the parental training about duties falling to parents during school adjustment provided positive results, individual studies actively including parents, school and teachers were more effective, peer acceptance was important for adjustment to school, there was a need to use social skill acquirements, and girls were more successful at adjustment to school compared to boys.
Concentrations of Ciprofloxacin in the World’s Rivers Are Associated with the Prevalence of Fluoroquinolone Resistance in Escherichia coli: A Global Ecological Analysis

Background: Extremely low concentrations of ciprofloxacin may select for antimicrobial resistance. A recent global survey found that ciprofloxacin concentrations exceeded safe levels at 64 sites. In this study, I assessed if national median ciprofloxacin concentrations in rivers were associated with fluoroquinolone resistance in Escherichia coli. Methods: Spearman’s regression was used to assess the country-level association between the national prevalence of fluoroquinolone resistance in E. coli and the median ciprofloxacin concentration in the country’s rivers. Results: The prevalence of fluoroquinolone resistance in E. coli was positively correlated with the concentration of ciprofloxacin in rivers (ρ = 0.36; p = 0.011; n = 48). Discussion: Steps to reducing the concentrations of fluoroquinolones in rivers may help prevent the emergence of resistance in E. coli and other bacterial species.
The Operationalizing and Influencing Factors of Internal Audit Effectiveness

This study has carried out a systematic literature review to examine the metrics that have been applied in the prevailing literature to operationalise or quantify the effectiveness of internal auditing, as well as to determine the factors that are thought to have impact on the influence of the internal auditing. With predefined exclusion and inclusion criteria, this research has finally selected a total of 33 primary studies that were published between 2000 and 2019. This study has identified a total of eleven indicators will used to measure the effectiveness of auditing. These indicators have further grouped into two categories: objectively assessed effectiveness; and perceived effectiveness. The indicators in the perceived group have dominance in the prevailing literature, and therefore this study argues that the indicators used for measuring the effectiveness in objective way generally demonstrates the strides assumed by the internal auditors. Additionally, this study has identified a total of twenty factors that have been considered as the influencing factors in terms of the influence of internal audit. These twenty factors have been further grouped into two categories: factors on supply side and factors on demand side.
Are Robots stealing jobs? Empirical evidence from 10 developing countries

ABSTRACT This research study aims, therefore, to examine the impacts of the adoption of new technology on jobs and employment in developing countries. Using ordered-probit regression model estimations from a survey of multinational firms in 22 industrial sectors from 10 selected developing countries, our results show that the probability of employment is found to decrease if a firm considers it important to adopt new technology. A relationship between the introduction of robots and the disappearance of jobs was found among firms in Brazil, China, India, Nigeria, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and Turkey. Sector-wise, information technology (IT) seems to be the only sector in which a positive relationship was found between higher employment within firms and new technology adoption. Other sectors exhibited an opposite relationship (higher technology adoption causes a decrease in employment). This indicates that talented and highly skilled labourers seem less likely to be replaced by robots and automation. Therefore, governments in developing countries should act to enhance the quality of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education to support workers in learning and using new technology and to provide upskill/reskill training programmes for workers so that they can work in tandem with new technology.
Interventional Endoscopy for Palliation of Luminal Gastrointestinal Obstructions in Management of Cancer: Practical Guide for Oncologists

Self-expanding metal stents placed during endoscopy are increasingly the first-line treatment for luminal obstruction caused by esophageal, gastroduodenal, and colorectal malignancies in patients who are not candidates for definitive surgical resection. In this review, we provide a practical guide for clinicians to optimise patient and procedure selection for endoscopic stenting in malignant gastrointestinal obstructions. The role of endoscopic stenting in each of the major anatomical systems (esophageal, gastroduodenal, and colorectal) is presented with regard to pre-procedural patient evaluation, procedural techniques, clinical outcomes, and potential complications, as well as post-procedure aftercare.
Widely Tuneable Composition and Crystallinity of Graded Na1+xTaO3±δ Thin Films Fabricated by Chemical Beam Vapor Deposition

Combinatorial approach has been widely recognized as a powerful strategy to develop new-higher performance materials and shed the light on the stoichiometry-dependent properties of known systems. Herein, we take advantage of the unique features of chemical beam vapor deposition to fabricate compositionally graded Na1+xTaO3±δ thin films with −0.6 < x < 0.5. Such a varied composition was enabled by the ability of the employed technique to deliver and combine an extensive range of precursors flows over the same deposition area. The film growth occurred in a complex process, where precursor absolute flows, flow ratios, and substrate temperature played a role. The deviation of the measured Na/Ta ratios from those predicted by flow simulations suggests that a chemical-reaction limited regime underlies the growth mechanism and highlights the importance of the Ta precursor in assisting the decomposition of the Na one. The crystallinity was observed to be strongly dependent on its stoichiometry. High under-stoichiometries (e.g., Na0.5TaO3−δ) compared to NaTaO3 were detrimental for the formation of a perovskite framework, owing to the excessive amount of sodium vacancies and oxygen vacancies. Conversely, a well-crystallized orthorhombic perovskite structure peculiar of NaTaO3 was observed from mildly under-stoichiometric (e.g., Na0.9TaO3−δ) to highly over-stoichiometric (e.g., Na1.5TaO3+δ) compositions.
Differences in Determinants Influencing Self-Rated Oral Health in Korean and American Adults

This study aims to identify the differences in the determinants that influence self-rated oral health (SROH) among Korean and American adults aged 20 years or older and the differences in objective oral health status between Korea and the United States. It included 13,068 Koreans and 5569 Americans who participated in the seventh Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and the 2017–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. All analyses were conducted using the SPSS 25 program. The 39% of Koreans and 27.7% of Americans rated their oral health as “poor”. The mean SROH score was lower in Korea (2.66) than in the US (3.15). Conversely, objective oral health was better among Koreans. Further, an analysis of the differences in the predictors of SROH between the two countries confirmed that there were significant differences in age, household income, education level, insurance type (none), type of smoking, self-rated health, and decayed teeth index. Government-led projects or policy-based changes that can improve objective oral health status are needed to boost SROH in Korea, and subsequent studies should examine other objective oral health indices (e.g., periodontal disease) as well as differences in sociocultural backgrounds between countries.
Anticancer Activity of Nanoemulsions Loading Biomaterial Amomum kravanh Oil against Oral Cancer Cells

Several biomaterial presented anticancer activities including volatile oil. Interestingly, the volatile oil from Amomum kravanh has been reported as anticancer activity. Nevertheless, the utilization in native oil might be barrier to apply its as anticancer agent because of the limitation of their water solubility. One of the solutions to this challenge is to use nanoemulsions as a carrier for delivery A.kravanh oil (AMO) into oral cancer cell. In this research, the phase inversion temperature method was used to prepared nanoemulsions containning AMO. The physical and anticancer property of various nanoemulsions were comparatively evaluated. The 8AMO:2Soybean oil (SBO) illustrated spherical and small oil droplet around 80 nm. It also presented good physical stability after temperature cycling test. Regarding anticancer property, the 8AMO:2SBO can considerably arrest oral cancer cells with dose dependent manner at IC50 of 0.76% v/v, and the nuclear fragmentation that was remarkable feature of apoptosis was also found in 8AMO:2SBO group. This discovery demonstrated that the AMO loaded nanoemulsions system can be consider to alternative choices for oral cancer prevention and treatment.
Hybridization of freeze drying and impacts on drying kinetics and dried product quality of kedondong fruits

Abstract Hybridization of freeze drying was carried out by incorporating hot air and infrared drying in a two-stage drying process with aims to investigate the drying kinetics and impacts on dried product quality of kedondong fruits (Spondias dulcis). The hybridization consisted of the first stage freeze drying (FD duration = 6 hours or 12 hours) and second stage hot air (HA temperature = 60 °C) or infrared (IR temperature = 60 °C) drying. Drying kinetics showed that drying rates improved drastically by 34-72% once it transitioned from the first stage freeze drying to the second stage hot air or infrared drying. Time saving of 16.7-37.5 hours were observed in all hybrid drying trials with reference to freeze drying alone due to the improved drying rates. Color measurement showed that FD12IR samples resulted in minimal total color change (ΔE) and no significant difference (p > 0.05) was observed with reference to freeze dried samples. In terms of total polyphenols content (TPC) and antioxidant capacities (DPPH and ABTS), hybrid drying was able to improve significantly (p < 0.05) retention of TPC as compared to hot air drying especially for FD12IR (5.45 mg GAE/g dry solid) and FD12HA (4.52 mg GAE/g dry solid) samples. The same set of samples (FD12IR and FD12HA) also showed significantly higher antioxidant capacities (p < 0.05) (DPPH = 119.62 − 121.42 mg AA/100g dry solid and ABTS = 8.75 − 9.55 μM Trolox equivalent/100g dry solid) as compared to those dried using a shorter duration of first stage freeze drying (FD6HA and FD6IR) (DPPH = 63.31-84.49 mg AA/100g dry solid and ABTS = 6.31-6.86 μM Trolox equivalent/100g dry solid). In overall, sensory evaluation concluded that FD12IR samples showed the best acceptance among all the dried samples in terms of Just About Right (JAR) scores for kedondong notes and aroma as well as comparable to freeze dried samples for browning and sourness attributes.
Only Low Effects of Water Filters on the Enteric Carriage of Gastrointestinal Pathogen DNA in Colombian Indigenous People

Water filtration is a common strategy of water sanitation in resource-poor tropical settings. Here, we assessed the intermediate term effect of this preventive procedure including specific filter-related as well as general hygiene training on the molecular detection of enteric pathogens in stool samples from Colombian Indigenous people. From a total of 89 individuals from an Indigenous tribe called Wiwa, stool samples were assessed by real-time PCR for enteropathogenic microorganisms prior to the implementation of water filtration-based infection prevention. Three years after the onset of the preventive strategy, a follow-up assessment was performed. A significantly beneficial effect of water filtration could be shown for Ascaris spp. only (p = 0.035) and a tendency (p = 0.059) for Hymenolepis nana. No hints for effects on the gastrointestinal shedding of Giardia duodenalis, Entamoeba histolytica, Cryptosporidium spp. , Campylobacter spp. , Shigella spp. /enteroinvasive Escherichia coli, Necator americanus, Strongyloides stercoralis, Trichuris trichiura, and Taenia spp. were seen. In conclusion, the study indicates that water filtration can only be an element of a multi-modal hygiene concept to reduce enteric pathogen carriage in inhabitants of resource-poor tropical settings in spite of tendencies of beneficial effects.
Significant Factors Causing Delay in the Cambodian Construction Industry

The construction sector is one of the essential sectors in the world; it aids in developing all the countries in the world because it is the foundation of other industries. However, delays in construction projects are a common issue that has been found in all global construction projects. This research aims to understand the issues that lead to construction project delay, ranking the ten most significant causes of construction delay and providing instructive recommendations to overcome the discussed issue in the construction sector. The first ten substantial delay factors are poor planning and scheduling, late delivery of material, change of scope by owners during the construction phase, poor site management and supervision, insufficient finances of contractors or sub-contractors, lack of experience of the contractor’s team, delay due to design error, low productivity of labor, delay in process payment by the owner, and delay in the decision making of the owners and consultants. Subsequently, it was discovered that the contractors, consultants, and owners must cooperate and collaborate in all aspects to improve the construction industry.
A Posteriori Random Forests for Stochastic Downscaling of Precipitation by Predicting Probability Distributions

This work presents a comprehensive assessment of the suitability of random forests, a well‐known machine learning technique, for the statistical downscaling of precipitation. Building on the experimental and validation framework proposed in the Experiment 1 of the COST action VALUE—the largest, most exhaustive intercomparison study of statistical downscaling methods to date—we introduce and thoroughly analyze a posteriori random forests (AP‐RFs), which use all the information contained in the leaves to reliably predict the shape and scale parameters of the gamma probability distribution of precipitation on wet days. Therefore, as opposed to traditional random forests, which typically provide deterministic predictions, our AP‐RFs allow realistic stochastic precipitation samples to be generated for wet days. Indeed, as compared to one particular implementation of a generalized linear model that exhibited an overall good performance in VALUE, our AP‐RFs yield better distributional similarity with observations without loss of predictive power. Noteworthy, the new methodology proposed in this paper has substantial potential for hydrologists and other impact communities which are in need of local‐scale, reliable stochastic climate information.
The geopolitical orientations of ordinary Belarusians: survey evidence from early 2020

ABSTRACT Examining geopolitical orientations in a representative survey of Belarus in early 2020, we adopt a critical geopolitical perspective that highlights geopolitical cultures as fields of contestation and debate over a state’s identity, orientation, and enduring interests. We examine support among 1210 Belarusians to four foreign policy options for the country – neutrality as the best foreign policy, joining the European Union, staying in the Eurasian Economic Union, or developing close relations with both these organizations. We also analyze responses to where Belarus should be on an 11-point scale from aligned with the West to aligned with Russia. In early 2020, Belarusians indicated divided geopolitical preferences in the same way as other post-Soviet societies along demographic, ideological, and attitudinal cleavages. Lukashenka’s quarter-century dictatorship has left Belarus in a condition of nascent (geo)political polarization. The 2020 electoral crisis alone did not polarize Belarus; it was already a dividing polity.
Real-Time Detection of Flu Season Onset: A Novel Approach to Flu Surveillance

The current gold standard for detection of flu season onset in the USA is done retrospectively, where flu season is detected after it has already started. We aimed to create a new surveillance strategy capable of detecting flu season onset prior to its starting. We used an established data generation method that combines Google search volume and historical flu activity data to simulate real-time estimates of flu activity. We then applied a method known as change-point detection to the generated data to determine the point in time that identifies the initial uptick in flu activity which indicates the imminent onset of flu season. Our strategy exhibits a high level of accuracy in predicting the onset of flu season at 86%. Additionally, on average, we detected the onset three weeks prior to the official start of flu season. The results provide evidence to support both the feasibility and efficacy of our strategy to improve the current standard of flu surveillance. The improvement may provide valuable support and lead time for public health officials to take appropriate actions to prevent and control the spread of the flu.
Validation of the Portuguese Version of the Fertility Adjustment Scale

There is an urgent need to provide healthcare professionals and midwives with validated tools as to improve fertility adjustment and promote well-being of couples with infertility. The purpose of this study was to test validity of the Fertility Adjustment Scale among people undergoing assisted reproductive techniques. A cross-sectional and methodological study was conducted, and a total of 104 Portuguese adults undergoing fertility treatment were recruited through fertility-related websites. The Fertility Adjustment Scale was administered along with the Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire and the Resilience Scale for adults as a measure of concurrent validity. Scores revealed the sample’s lack of adjustment to fertility. A significant correlation with measures of resilience provided evidence of convergent validity. There was a significant association of fertility adjustment with time of consultation and the cause of infertility. A Fertility Adjustment Scale with six items is a reliable tool that offers early recognition of patients’ difficulties in adaptation to fertility problems during assisted reproductive techniques, which could be beneficial in not only an early recognition of healthcare intervention but of a more individualized approach to such patients.
Three‐port DC‐DC converter for stand‐alone PV/battery systems with four operation modes

This paper presents a three‐port DC‐DC converter for photovoltaic (PV)/battery stand‐alone systems. The converter is designed by an effective combination of quadratic boost converter and a bidirectional port with low number of components. The converter performance consists of four operation modes with similar voltage gains, which improve reliability of the converter in comparison with the reviewed converters. Battery‐alone mode is performed in the proposed configuration for the times input power of PV is equal to zero. Main advantages of the converter include its common grounded ports, operation with high voltage gain, current continuous of the input ports, utilizing low number of switch to perform four essential operation modes, and its high‐efficiency performance due to low number of used components. Three switches of the structure enable it to control input power of main source and output voltage with two duty cycles per the modes. This number of switches in a three‐port converter requires simpler driving and control systems in comparison with some of the previous presented three‐port converters. The converter is analyzed, and its main equations are obtained. To validate feasibility of the converter and investigate coordination of its performance with theory, a prototype is prepared for 120 W output power.
USE OF PROTEIN HYDROLYSATES IN ORGANIC AGRICULTURE

It is known to be a real challenge to find sustainable alternatives for the use of mineral fertilizers, especially nitrogen-based ones. This is a legal requirement in organic farming. Organic sources have a low concentration of nitrogen but have the advantage that they come from a renewable source and are found along with other compounds that have positive effects on plant nutrition. Protein hydrolysates(PHs) can improve agricultural production in terms of quality and quantity by enhancing seed germination, root development and nutrient uptake and can reduce the amount of chemical fertilizers used. This paper presents data from the literature on the use of protein hydrolysates as a source of nitrogen for crop fertilization.