Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The frequency of ingested plastic debris and its effects on body condition of Short-tailed Shearwater (Puffinus tenuirostris) pre-fledging chicks in Tasmania, Australia

Abstract In recent years, there have been increasing reports of ingestion of marine plastic debris in seabirds. Our aim was to assess the frequency and effects of ingested plastic debris in pre-fledging Short-tailed Shearwaters (Puffinus tenuirostris) in Tasmania. We conducted necropsies of 171 Shearwater chicks, confiscated after illegal poaching, to determine the presence of plastic debris in the proventriculus and ventriculus. We also examined whether there was a correlation between body condition (based on body mass and fat-scores) and quantity of plastic ingested (by count and weight). We recorded 1032 ingested plastic particles, consisting of industrial plastic (31%) and user plastic (69%). Most of the Shearwater chicks (96%) contained plastic debris with a mean of 148.1 mg per bird (s.e. 8.1). Most plastic was found in the ventriculus. Light-coloured plastic dominated (63.8%), with the rest medium (22.1%) and dark (14.1%) plastics. We found that total mass of ingested plastic was not significantly related to body condition, or fat-scores or mass individually. Our study highlights the prevalence of plastic pollution in apparently healthy Shearwater chicks and underscores concern regarding the effects of increasing marine pollution on a global scale.
A new platanistoid, Perditicetus yaconensis gen. et sp. nov. (Cetacea, Odontoceti), from the Chattian–Aquitanian Nye Formation of Oregon

The Platanistoidea is a large superfamily of odontocetes whose sole surviving member is Platanista gangetica, the Ganges river dolphin. Despite the diversity of the Platanistoidea, it remains poorly understood and in need of revision. As one of the earliest-diverging clade of crown odontocetes, understanding their distribution, morphology, and phylogeny is crucial to understanding the radiation of archaic odontocetes in the late Oligocene to the middle Miocene. Here we describe an archaic odontocete, named Perditicetus yaconensis, gen. et. sp. nov., from the latest Oligocene–earliest Miocene Nye Formation in Oregon. Perditicetus yaconensis, represented by the holotype USNM 335224, possesses several synapomorphies of the Platanistoidea. Intriguingly, strong morphological similarities exist between P. yaconensis and other archaic odontocetes in the ‘Chilcacetus clade’ especially in the vertex and pterygoid region. However, the results of our phylogenetic analyses failed to capture any phylogenetic relationships between Perditicetus and Chilcacetus. In this analysis, P. yaconensis is sister taxon to the clade Allodelphinidae + Squalodelphinidae + Platanistidae and we consider that P. yaconensis is one of the basal-most derived platanistoids. The type locality of the holotype specimen, in the Nye Formation, provides a window into the diversity of archaic odontocetes, especially platanistoids, during the latest Oligocene to earliest Miocene. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:9B370DA2-8035-4A12-929C-D8FCA84438AE
Volunteerism influences on student resilience and gratitude

We assessed the relative impact of volunteerism on the resilience and gratitude of students based on participation. A convenience sample of 80 students (female = 53.75%; age range = 18-25 years) participated in the study, of which 38 (47.50%) had volunteer experience. The students completed measures of self-report for volunteer work hours, the Brief Resilience Scale, and the Gratitude Questionnaire. Following linear regression analysis, results indicated that volunteers reported significantly higher resilience and gratitude scores than peers who were non-volunteers. No notable interaction effect emerged after controlling for age, sex, and family monthly income. Among those with volunteer experience, results indicated that the more hours they spend volunteering, the higher their sense of resilience and gratitude. Findings suggest volunteerism is important in improving students’ well-being.
Islam and Dormant Citizenship: Soft Religious Ethno-Nationalism and Minorities in Aceh, Indonesia

ABSTRACT This article aims at examining the recent (re)construction of citizenship in Aceh, which is based on sharia as well as on ethno-religious nationalism, and the impact of this (re)construction on minority rights in the province. Because sharia has become a cultural, social, political and legal fact in Aceh, the province has gradually created its own notion of civic belonging, which departs from national citizenship, defined by religion and protected by religious ethno-nationalism. It is argued that such religious ethno-nationalism has created what we call dormant citizenship, in which citizens of Aceh are divided on the basis of religious affiliation into ‘ummatic citizens’, who are considered as the ‘hosts’ of the sharia land with their full rights, and non-ummatic citizens, who are considered as ‘guests’ with only partial rights provided by the ‘hosts’. We shall also argue that dormant citizenship is a synthesis between four political traditions: Islamic, ethnic, Indonesian, and Western. At the end of this article, we shall outline some conditions that might enable non-Muslims to enjoy much broader rights.
EVALUATION OF ORAL PREGABALIN IN TREATMENT OF PREMATURE EJACULATION

Corresponding Author Abdulrahman Hefny Hashem 01000522257 dr.banna77@gmail.com ABSTRACT Background: Premature ejaculation (PE) is the most common form of male sexual dysfunction. Treatment modalities include behavioral therapy and medical therapy. No therapy is approved by the FDA for treatment of PE. Pregabalin exerts a negative effect on sexuality by reducing central nervous excitatory transmission via sodium and calcium channel inhibition and potassium (k) channel activation and by unbalancing dopamine serotonine ratio. The aim of this work was to assess the efficacy and safety of oral on demand pregabalin in treatment of premature ejaculation (PE). Methods: This study was conducted on 96 married male patients with primary premature ejaculation (lifelong). All patients were recruited from the andrology outpatient clinic at Al-Azhar University Hospitals (Cairo). The patients were randomly assigned to three groups: Group A: This group included 36 patients. They will receive 150 mg pregabalin 1 – 2 hours prior to sexual intercourse. Group B: This group included 30 patients. They will receive 75 mg pregabalin 1 – 2 hours prior to sexual intercourse. Group C: This group included 30 patients, all of them received identical placebo capsules. All patient will be subjected to the following:Full history: including age, baseline estimated ILET, erectile dysfunction, medical diseases and medications. Local and general physical examination. Couples were encouraged to engage in coitus twice a week and record estimated intravaginal ejaculation latency time (perceived IELT OR PIELT) every time for 2 weeks and report any side effects suspected to be drug related. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between group A, B and C regarding base PIELT. PIELT significantly increased after treatment in group A receiving 150 mg pregabalin. Patients in group B showed mild improvement in their PIELT after receiving 75 mg pregabalin. This improvement was statistically significant. There was no statistically significant difference between Base PIELT and PIELT after treatment among group C patients. There was statistically significant difference between group A and C regarding after treatment PIELT. There was no statistically significant difference between group B and C regarding PIELT after treatment. Comparing post treatment ejaculatory time in different groups, PIELT significantly improved in group A rather than placebo group. This was not present in group B. There was significant improvement in PIELT of group A rather than group B. Conclusion: This is the first report of an oral pregabalin used for the treatment of PE in men. On demand oral pregabalin 150 mg 1 – 2 hours prior to sexual relation, looks to be effective pharmacotherapy of PE. The effect of pregabalin is minimal and may be augmented with higher daily doses. Longer-term safety studies, and those comparing pregabalin with on demand tramadol and dapoxetine are essential to determine the place of pregabalin in the treatment of this distressing condition.
Systemic Risk in Vietnam Stock Market

Systemic risk is one of the issues currently being paid attention to in ensuring the stability and sustainability of the global financial system in general and the securities market of countries in particular. The paper studied the systemic risk of enterprises listed on Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange in the period from the first quarter of 2010 to the second quarter of 2017. The authors have applied the VaR and DCoVaR method to compare the loss level of businesses to the systemic risk of the whole market upon an unstable event. The study also found a disadvantage of using VaR in measuring systemic risk in that it was still "individual" and "single" and didn? t consider the spread among various entities in the market. In addition, the sensitivity of listed companies varied under normal and volatile conditions. The results showed that DCoVaR is a more suitable measure in considering the contribution level of companies to the systemic risk of the whole market. Calculated results were proposed as an indicator for investors and market managers in order to limit systemic risks in the future.
NF-κB Activates Prostate-Specific Antigen Expression and Is Upregulated in Androgen-Independent Prostate Cancer

ABSTRACT The transcription factor NF-κB regulates gene expression involved in cell growth and survival and has been implicated in progression of hormone-independent breast cancer. By expressing a dominant-active form of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase 1, by exposure to tumor necrosis factor alpha, or by overexpression of p50/p65, we show that NF-κB activates a transcription regulatory element of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-encoding gene, a marker for prostate cancer development, treatment, and progression. By DNase I footprinting, we identified four NF-κB binding sites in the PSA core enhancer. We also demonstrate that androgen-independent prostate cancer xenografts have higher constitutive NF-κB binding activity than their androgen-dependent counterparts. These results suggest a role of NF-κB in prostate cancer progression.
Notas sobre a bionomia de Tetragonisca weyrauchi schwarz, 1943 (Apidae, MeliponinI)

No Brasil, a abelha sem ferrao, Tetragonisca weyrauchi tem sua distribuicao restrita a regiao Amazonica. Constroi ninhos aereos frequentemente em forquilhas inclinadas de arvores. Os ninhos, cilindroides e verticais, medem cerca de 60cm de circunferencia na parte mais larga e 35cm de altura. A cobertura e de uma pelicula fina e maleavel com diferentes consistencias. A maioria dos ninhos apresenta, na parte superior, um prolongamento com varias protuberâncias e aberturas, ou so aberturas, com diâmetros milimetricos variaveis ao longo do dia, denominado aqui de respiraculo. A morfologia do ninho, com a porta na parte inferior e o respiraculo na parte superior, parece estar bem adaptado ao ambiente tropical em que se encontra. As medias das temperaturas internas de um ninho habitado e outro vazio acompanharam as flutuacoes ambientais com alto valor de correlacao (r=0,98). Os resultados sugerem que a estrutura fisica do ninho seria responsavel por uma pequena parcela na retencao da energia calorifera. Se existe termorregulacao, ela deve ser mais evidente acima dos 33oC ambientais, temperatura onde ocorreu tendencia de estabilidade. A grande quantidade de lamelas de cerume ao redor dos favos de cria horizontais, o tamanho dos potes ovoides de alimento ao redor de 1-2 cm de altura, a porcentagem de agua no mel ao redor de 27.6%, o aspecto do tubo de entrada com pequenos orificios, os valores de temperatura em que ocorre a abertura desse tubo pela manha, entre 21-23oC, e as coletas de nectar, predominantemente em Myrtacea, fazem com que seja atribuida grande semelhanca fisica e comportamental entre T.weyrauchi e T. angustula. Os ninhos se adaptam bem em colonias tipo Paulo Nogueira-Neto. Sao abelhas agressivas quando manuseadas. Estima-se que seus ninhos tenham uma populacao de 2000-3000 individuos.
The Response of the Labor Force Participation Rate to an Epidemic: Evidence from a Cross-Country Analysis

ABSTRACT Coupled with data on the occurrence of historical epidemics, this study examines the impact of an epidemic on the labor force participation rate of the affected country. We find robust evidence that the outbreak of an epidemic alters human behavior and negatively affects the labor force participation rate. The negative impact could be attributed to cultural attitudes toward uncertainty avoidance. A country with a higher uncertainty avoidance index will suffer from a more significant decline in the labor force participation rate. The negative impact is more pronounced among males and younger workers in low- and middle-income countries.
Explosive boiling of liquid argon films on flat and nanostructured surfaces

Abstract Because of the effects of the nanostructure, phase change behaviors on flat and nanostructured surfaces display distinct features. In this work, the molecular dynamics simulation method is employed to investigate the onset temperature of explosive boiling (Ts) with various film thicknesses, pillar heights, and wettability. The simulation results show that Ts decreases with the film thickness on both wettability flat surfaces. However, the decreasing rates have the significant distinctions, where the difference between two surfaces of Ts with the identical film thickness decreases. In addition, the simulation results demonstrate that all the values of Ts on nanostructured surfaces are lower than those on flat surfaces with the same film thickness. With the increase of the film thickness, Ts presents a decreasing trend on both wettability and nanostructured surfaces, especially with the liquid film with the thickness over 6 nm, where a completely opposite conclusion compared to the flat surface is represented.
Reproductive effort accelerates actuarial senescence in wild birds: An experimental study

Optimality theories of ageing predict that the balance between reproductive effort and somatic maintenance determines the rate of ageing. Laboratory studies find that increased reproductive effort shortens lifespan, but through increased short-term mortality rather than ageing. In contrast, high fecundity in early life is associated with accelerated senescence in free-living vertebrates, but these studies are non-experimental. We performed lifelong brood size manipulation in freeliving jackdaws. Actuarial senescence – the increase in mortality rate with age – was threefold higher in birds rearing enlarged- compared to reduced broods, confirming a key prediction of the optimality theory of ageing. Our findings contrast with the results of single-year brood size manipulation studies carried out in many species, in which there was no overall discernible manipulation effect on mortality. We suggest that our and previous findings are in agreement with predictions based on the reliability theory of ageing and propose further tests of this proposition.
Real effects of financial reporting and disclosure on innovation

This paper reviews the literature on the real effects of financial reporting and disclosure on corporate innovation, highlighting both the possible channels of influence and the potential challenges that researchers face when attributing causal effects. We discuss the concept of innovation, emphasising the specific characteristics that make investments in innovation difficult to report. We then provide a review of the nascent work relating disclosure to innovation, which we organise around three channels: financing, compensation and learning. Finally, we discuss recent efforts aimed at increasing the quality of corporate disclosures, including disclosures of firms’ innovative activities. Throughout the paper, we highlight the trade-offs of disclosure (reduced information asymmetry and increased proprietary costs), which are particularly exacerbated in the context of corporate innovation.
Reviewing the Computational Performance of Structured and Unstructured Grid Deterministic SN Transport Sweeps on Many-Core Architectures

Abstract In recent years the computer processors underpinning the large, distributed, workhorse computers used to solve the Boltzmann transport equation have become ever more parallel and diverse. Traditional CPU architectures have increased in core count, reduced in clock speed and gained a deep memory hierarchy. Multiple processor vendors offer a collectively diverse range of both CPUs and GPUs, with the architectures used in the fastest machines in the world ever growing in diversity of many-core architectures. Going forward, the landscape of processor technologies will require our codes to function well across multiple architectures. This ever increasing range of architectures represents a unique challenge for solving the Boltzmann equation using deterministic methods in particular, and so it is important to characterize the performance of those key algorithms across the processor spectrum. The solution of the transport equation is computationally expensive, and so we require well optimized and highly parallel solver implementations in order to solve interesting problems quickly. In this work we explore the performance profiles of deterministic SN transport sweeps for both 3D structured (Cartesian) and unstructured (hexahedral) meshes. The study focuses on the characteristics of computational performance which are responsible for the actual performance of a transport solver.
Wine tourism and purchase intention: a measure of emotions according to the PANAS scale

ABSTRACT Tasting sessions for tourists at Spanish wineries are a direct way to promote wines and encourage purchases. Previous academic work has demonstrated the influence of emotions on buying behaviour and of tasting-room experiences on wine purchasing. However, it has not yet been determined which key factor – the winery visit or the novelty of the wine itself – has a greater impact on purchase intention. To fill this gap, our study uses two structural equation models to analyse the impact of emotions on purchase intention. We used a PANAS-based questionnaire to measure the emotions produced by a new type of wine and a winery visit. The results show that the positive emotions generated by the product’s novelty highly explained purchase intention, whilst the emotions produced by the winery visit barely affected it. These outcomes have important marketing and managerial implications for wine tourism management and for wine marketing strategy.
Contemporary Revisionism in the Multilayered Political Order: Operationalisation, Techno-Social Conditions, Dilemmas

Abstract In opening this special issue, our conceptual essay reclaims the importance of revisionism for regional analysis. It identifies and offers key conceptual and analytical tools for a multifaceted analysis of revisionism, discussing its various forms in relation to the aims and risk propensity of a given country. As a transdisciplinary and theoretical eclecticism, dilemma analysis is utilised to bridge the divide between political science, international relations, and security studies. To ascertain the extent of revisionism, we offer and operationalise six dilemmas seen as central for grasping its contemporary parameters: political order, political regimes, technology, migration, the economy, and the international system.
Biocontrol of Fusarium sambucinum, dry rot of potato, by Serratia plymuthica 5–6

Abstract Serratia grimesii 4–9 and Serratia plymuthica 5–6, isolated from the rhizosphere of pea, Pisum sativum (L), were evaluated for their potential to suppress growth of Fusarium sambucinum in vitro and to reduce Fusarium dry rot in stored potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L). In vitro studies indicated that these bacterial isolates suppressed growth of F. sambucinum by 60% or more at both 15 and 25°C. In a potato tuber slice assay the number of infection sites in potato slices exposed to F. sambucinum and treated with S. grimesii 4–9 and S. plymuthica 5–6 was reduced by 96 and 97%, respectively, at 15°C. The diameter (mm) of the infection sites was reduced 91 and 96%, respectively, when compared to slices treated with F. sambucinum alone. Studies with Fusarium-infected whole potato tubers also showed significant reduction in dry rot formation following treatment with the bacterial isolates or the fungicide thiabendazole. When applied simultaneously with the pathogen, S. grimesii 4–9 and S. plymuthica 5–6 suppressed development of Fusarium dry rot by 60 and 77%, respectively, at 15°C and by 63 and 84%, respectively, at 25°C compared to tubers inoculated with the pathogen alone. Thiabendazole suppressed development of Fusarium dry rot by 66 and 81% at 15 and 25°C, respectively, compared to tubers inoculated with the pathogen alone. These studies demonstrate the potential of soil bacteria as biofungicides for managing post-harvest crop diseases. Due to the potential risks to human health associated with S. grimesii 4–9, S. plymuthica 5–6 is recommended for further study for biofungicide development.
EFFECTS OF FLAX SEED SUPPLEMENTATION TO LACTATING GOATS ON MILK FATTY ACID CONTENT

Abstract Goat milk is very valuable and desired food for its high digestibility and unique composition, because contains only small amount of milk protein casein, thus is suitable for casein allergy. The aim of the study was to assess the quality of pastures located in lessfavoured areas of Czech Republic and to investigate the influence of that quality on the content of fatty acids in goat milk. Two groups of goats were fed ad libitum intake of meadow hay and concentrate supplements, for experimental group contained 0.1 kg of flaxseed. Results of experimental group shows reduced SFA and increased content of MUFA and PUFA. Flax seed supplementation has an positive effect on increasing CLA in milk fat
Identification of different song types in the European Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus

ABSTRACT Capsule: Two distinct song types were identified for male European Nightjars Caprimulgus europaeus with their relative frequency of use changing through the breeding season, indicating a possible link to paired status. Aims: To test whether two song types could be defined in audio recordings and whether use differed in relation to the paired status of males. Methods: Unattended acoustic recording devices were placed at a Nightjar study site in Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom, and recordings of churring vocalizations were made during two periods of the breeding season. These recordings were then analyzed to identify the presence/absence of the song terminal phrase and associated audible features. Results: Two distinct song types were identified in the recorded audio data that differed in their terminal phrasing and overall song duration. The number of Nightjar songs with a terminal phrase increased significantly between the two sampling periods, from lower levels during the site arrival period, to higher levels during the first clutch initiation period. Conclusion: This study showed that the use of Nightjar song types appears to vary through the breeding season, with males being more likely to produce song with a terminal phrase during the first clutch initiation period, when they are more likely to be paired or in the presence of a female. The unattended acoustic recording method may provide a minimally intrusive means of assessing the number of Nightjar breeding pairs and not just singing males.