Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Safety of iron phosphate nanoparticles for food applications

4 compounds FeSO4, SiO2 200 and SiO2 380 for up to 48 h did not lead to reduced metabolic activity or membrane damage. However, exposure to FePO4 27 for 48 h resulted in decreased metabolic activity and increased membrane damage in HCECs but not in HT29 and HT29-MTX cells. By comparing the settling behavior of FePO4 27, FePO4 98 and FePO4 188, it was apparent that FePO4 27 settles faster, resulting in an increased amount of particles delivered to the cell. By adjusting exposure times to account for the variable settling behavior, metabolic activity of HCECs was similar after exposure to all FePO4 particles. Exposing weanling Sprague Dawley rats for 90 days to FePO4 NPs at the iron dose recommended for laboratory rodents or at a dose at which FeSO4 has been shown to induce adverse effects, did not result in any measurable toxicologically relevant adverse effects, including altered food intake, growth, oxidative stress, organ damage, excess iron accumulation in organs, or histological changes. Feeding rats with diets containing control compounds FePO4 27 and SiO2 200 also did not induce any measurable adverse outcome; however, FePO4 27 appeared to be less bioavailable compared to FeSO4 or FePO4 NPs. The lower bioavailability of FePO4 27 seems to be related to its poorer dissolution in the stomach as was shown during simulated digestion experiments. Overall, our data suggest FePO4 NPs are at least as safe for human consumption as FeSO4, since administration of FePO4 NPs at doses that were approximately 100 times higher than the recommended dietary allowance of iron for women did not result in adverse outcomes. Further research is warranted to elucidate the mechanism of uptake for iron from FePO4 NPs and to evaluate their bioavailability in humans.
Control of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species production in liquid by nonthermal plasma jet with controlled surrounding gas

We present the development of a low-frequency nonthermal plasma-jet system, where the surrounding-gas condition of the plasma jet is precisely controlled in open air. By restricting the mixing of the ambient air into the plasma jet, the plasma jet can be selectively changed from a N2 main discharge to an O2 main discharge even in open air. In the plasma-jet system with the controlled surrounding gas, the production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species is successfully controlled in deionized water: the concentration ratio of NO2− to H2O2 is tuned from 0 to 0.18, and a high NO2− concentration ratio is obtained at a N2 gas ratio of 0.80 relative to the total N2/O2 gas mixture in the main discharge gas. We also find that the NO2− concentration is much higher in the plasma-activated medium than in the plasma-activated deionized water, which is mainly explained by the contribution of amino acids to NO2− generation in the medium.
Client experience of street-level activation practices: Implementation of discourage policy in the Czech Republic

Despite the fact that the unemployment rate in the Czech Republic is one of the lowest in Europe, the country suffers from stagnating long-term unemployment. At the same time, there is a large number of people who fall out of the system as a result of harsh sanctions. The article aims to examine how the activation policy is implemented from the perspective of job seekers and to identify street-level activation practices using a micro-institutionalist perspective. To meet the objective, we used a qualitative research strategy and in-depth interviews. The results of the study show how particular levels of activation intertwine and how they strengthen and create a comprehensive normative system around work, unemployment, and financial support, thus enabling the implementation of the street-level activation practices. Street-level bureaucrats pursue formal policy goals that seek to discourage people from entitlement to benefits and services to cut down expenditures and improve statistics.
Oil prices asymmetric and exchange rate volatility: Case of oil-exporting emerging countries

This paper empirically examines the asymmetric impacts of oil prices on exchange rate volatility in oil-exporting developing countries. The study uses a nonlinear ARDL model to investigate the presence or otherwise of asymmetric relations between oil prices and exchange rate volatility from 1995 to 2018. The annual data was collected from WDI for 25 developing oil-exporting countries. Empirical evidence suggests the presence of asymmetric relationship in both short and long run. Price of oil has a long-run asymmetric impact on volatility of exchange rate, with the decrease in oil price, and is significantly related to exchange rate volatility, while the increase in oil price is not. The short-run asymmetric relationship also shows that only the decrease in price of oil has a substantial association with exchange rate volatility, while the relationship is insignificant in the case of oil price increase. The study concludes that oil price increase does not significantly affect exchange rate movement or volatility in the selected countries while oil price reduction has significant effects on exchange rate volatility in both short and long run. The study recommends that efforts must be made to prevent downward trend in oil price in order to avoid its concomitant negative effects on the economy via the exchange rate instability.
Leadership Dynamics and Public Participation in Kenya: A Case of Constituency Development Fund Projects in Manyatta Constituency, Embu County, Kenya

public dynamics set financial Abstract: This study intended to establish the influence of leadership dynamics on public participation in CDF projects in Kenya: a case of Manyatta constituency in Embu County. Specific objectives of the study included determining how project leadership managerial skills, project financial management, and project leadership level of education influence public participation in CDF projects. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select a study sample of 384 respondents from six wards in Manyatta constituency. Primary data collection was conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire. The findings revealed that effective managerial skills, financial management skills and good level of education of project managers were very instrumental in ensuring public participation in CDF projects. Financial resources were also critical in enhancing public participation in CDF projects. Similarly, proper and regular staff training is important in the management of CDF funded projects and therefore this must be adopted as a common practice.
A case study of consumer preferences towards different brands of palm oil in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia

The palm oil industry has played a vital role in the economic development of Malaysia and the economic expansion in developing countries primarily drove the growth in palm oil consumption. However, consumer preference towards palm oil products is changing due to the population increase, rapid urbanisation, rising income levels, development of communication tools, and negative campaign towards palm oil. Hence, this study was conducted to identify consumers’ preferences towards palm oil to understand this predicament further. In this study, the data were obtained from 107 respondents through convenient sampling from different supermarkets in Shah Alam, Selangor. Moreover, factors such as socioeconomic, marketing, and non-marketing factors were investigated, which employed descriptive analysis, factor analysis, and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that majority of the respondents were Malay females, married, and were in the age range between 31 and 40 years old. Most of these respondents completed secondary schools and were now working in public and private sectors with a monthly income between RM2001 and RM3000. It was found that most of the respondents purchased the bottled “Saji” brand palm oil at least once a month, and advertising was the primary source of brand information for the respondents. Furthermore, the multiple regression analysis of marketing factors revealed that product and price were the most significant factors that influenced consumer preferences towards palm oil. Meanwhile, non-marketing factors indicated that the quality of products, as well as advertising or campaign, were the significant determinants which affected consumer preferences towards palm oil. On that basis, this article proposed a few recommendations to enhance consumer preferences towards palm oil in the future.
Succession of the Gut Microbiome in the Tibetan Population of Minjiang River Basin

Tibetans are one of the oldest ethnic groups in China and South Asia. Based on the analysis of 1,059 Tibetans in the Minjiang River basin at an altitude of 500–4,001 m, we found that the dominant phyla of the Tibetan population were Bacteroidota and Firmicutes, and the main genera were Prevotella and Bacteroides, which were mostly in consistent with other nationalities. We further evaluated in total 115 parameters of seven categories, and results showed that altitude was the most important factor affecting the variation in the microbial community. In the process of emigration from high altitudes to the plain, the gut microbial composition of late emigrants was similar to that of plateau aborigines. In addition, regarding immigration from low altitude to high altitude, the microbial community became more similar to that of high altitude population with the increase of immigration time. Changes in these microbes are related to the metabolism, disease incidence and cell functions of the Tibetan population. The results of other two cohorts (AGP and Z208) also showed the impact of altitude on the microbial community. Our study demonstrated that altitude of habitation is an important factor affecting the enterotype of the microflora in the Tibetan population and the study also provided a basis to explore the interaction of impact parameters with gut microbiome for host health and diseases.
Comparative effects of sorghum SK-5912 (Sorghum bicolor, L. Moench) and pearl millet as dietary energy sources on performance and economics of production of broiler chickens

An experiment was conducted with three hundred unsexed day-old broiler chicks (Marshal Strain) to evaluate the effect of sorghum SK-5912 variety as replacement for pearl millet on the growth performance and economics of production of broiler chickens. Five experimental diets were formulated with sorghum SK-5912 replacing pearl millet at 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100% in the diet and tagged as diets 1 (control), 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively, for both starter phase (23%CP) and finisher phase (20%CP). The chicks were randomly allotted to the dietary treatments with four replications each and 15 birds per replicate in a completely randomized design (CRD). Feed and water were supplied ad libitum throughout the experimental period. The results showed no significant differences in feed intake, daily weight gain and FCR among the treatment means at the starter phase, finisher phase as well as the overall phase. Based on the cost benefit analysis diet 5 (100% sorghum SK-5912) had the cheapest feed cost N /kg gain of N 343.19 while the highest was diet 1 (N 373.85). It can therefore, be concluded that sorghum SK-5912 variety can replace pearl millet up to 100% in the diets of broiler chickens without negatively affecting the growth performance and with concomitant reduction in feed cost.
Hybrid Modes of Urban Water Delivery in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Most urban residents in high-income countries obtain piped and treated water for drinking and domestic use from centralized utility-run water systems. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), however, utilities work alongside myriad other service providers that deliver water to hundreds of millions of city-dwellers. Hybrid modes of water delivery in urban areas in low- and middle-income countries are systems in which a variety of state and nonstate actors contribute to the delivery of water to households, schools, healthcare facilities, businesses, and government offices. Historically, the field has evolved to include within-utility networks and outside-the-utility provision mechanisms. Utilities service the urban core through network connections, while nonstate, smaller-scale providers supplement utility services both inside and outside the piped network. The main reform waves since the 1990s—privatization and corporatization—have done little to alter the hybrid nature of provision. Numerous case studies of nonutility water providers suggest that they are imperfect substitutes for utilities. They reach millions of households with no access to piped water, but the water they deliver tends to be of uncertain quality and is typically far more expensive than utility water. Newer work on utility-provided water and utility reforms has highlighted the political challenges of private sector participation in urban water; debates have also focused on the importance of contractual details such as tariff structures and investor incentives. New research has produced numerous studies on LMICs on the ways in which utilities extend their service areas and service types through explicit and implicit relationships with front-line water workers and with supplemental nonstate water suppliers. From the nonutility perspective, debates animated by questions of price and quality, the desirability or possibility of regulation, and the compatibility (or lack thereof) between reliance on small-scale water providers and the human right to safe water, are key areas of research. While understanding the hybrid nature of water delivery is essential for responsible policy formulation and for understanding inequalities in the urban sphere, there is no substitute for the convenience and affordability of universal utility provision, and no question that research on the conditions under which particular types of reforms can improve utility provision is sorely needed.
Scaling and Integral Solutions to Mixed Convection Over an Exponential Stretching Sheet

The reported studies on mixed convection flow problems have been solved purely by method of similarity studies. Scaling analysis is an alternate method that can give better engineering insight of the problem being investigated. Integral solutions are mathematically simpler to handle as the engineering requirement is that of accurate solutions only close to the wall. In the present work, scaling and integral solutions are discussed for a typical mixed convection flow problem already discussed in literature by similarity technique. Scaling method has been demonstrated and is found in good agreement with the results obtained from similarity method. The integral solution is obtained by deriving the integral form of governing equation and solution is discussed for specific case of Prandtl number = 1. The solution obtained by Integral formulations is in good agreement with that of similarity method.
Optimization of Fenton Technology for Recalcitrant Compounds and Bacteria Inactivation

In this work, the Fenton technology was applied to decolorize methylene blue (MB) and to inactivate Escherichia coli K12, used as recalcitrant compound and bacteria models respectively, in order to provide an approach into single and combinative effects of the main process variables influencing the Fenton technology. First, Box–Behnken design (BBD) was applied to evaluate and optimize the individual and interactive effects of three process parameters, namely Fe2+ concentration (6.0 × 10−4, 8.0 × 10−4 and 1.0 × 10−3 mol/L), molar ratio between H2O2 and Fe2+ (1:1, 2:1 and 3:1) and pH (3.0, 4.0 and 5.0) for Fenton technology. The responses studied in these models were the degree of MB decolorization (D%MB), rate constant of MB decolorization (kappMB) and E. coli K12 inactivation in uLog units (IuLogEC). According to the results of analysis of variances all of the proposed models were adequate with a high regression coefficient (R2 from 0.9911 to 0.9994). BBD results suggest that [H2O2]/[Fe2+] values had a significant effect only on D%MB response, [Fe2+] had a significant effect on all the responses, whereas pH had a significant effect on D%MB and IuLogEC. The optimum conditions obtained from response surface methodology for D%MB ([H2O2]/[Fe2+] = 2.9, [Fe2+] = 1.0 × 10−3 mol/L and pH = 3.2), kappMB ([H2O2]/[Fe2+] = 1.7, [Fe2+] = 1.0 × 10−3 mol/L and PH = 3.7) and IuLogEC ([H2O2]/[Fe2+] = 2.9, [Fe2+] = 7.6 × 10−4 mol/L and pH= 3.2) were in good agreement with the values predicted by the model.
Impact of invasive alien plant species on aquatic biodiversity of Koshi Tappu Wetlands : Ramsar Site, Nepal

Invasive Alien Species (IAS) are the species which have the capacity to compete with native species outside their geographical origin (CBD, 1992). IAS are of great concern for conservationists and natural resource managers because of their rapid spreading nature, competitiveness and capability to colonize in new areas within short time period (Rejmánek and Richardson, 1996). These species primarily gain entry into new geographic areas through human activities, environmental disturbances, deforestation and forest degradation, and forest fire which promotes the establishment of the species (Early et al., 2016; McNeely, 2001). IAS have negative consequences to native species and ecosystem services (MEA, 2005) by predation, Impact of invasive alien plant species on aquatic biodiversity of Koshi Tappu Wetlands : Ramsar Site, Nepal
Magnesium Sorption onto Titan Yellow Supported on Classic Thiourea-Formaldehyde Resin

Magnesium is a common water hardness source. This divalent ion can react with soap anions that reduce cleaning efficiency, resulting in high detergent consumption. The development of new low-cost metal removal adsorbents has attracted a great deal of attention. Here the adsorption behavior and the underlying kinetics of magnesium sorption on Titan yellow (TY) supported on thiourea-formaldehyde resin (TF) was investigated. The results of analyzing sorption behavior showed that the sorption environment had different effects on the sorption of Mg(II) ions. It could be found that the initial pH had the best sorption effect on Mg(II) ions, the equilibrium is reached within 115-120 min and the kinetic profiles are simulated by the pseudo-second-order rate equation (PSORE). The maximum adsorption capacity of Mg was 19.45 mg g−1 at initial pH = 10.5. Under the optimal conditions, the maximum sorption capacity of Mg(II) ions reaches up to 19.45 mg g−1. Therefore, TF-TY was found to be an efficient adsorbent for Mg(II) removal from water.
Nexus between Corporate Governance and Financial Performance: Corroboration from Indian Banks

Corporate governance (CG) is now a world phenomenon and the nucleus of economic regulations. History evidenced that failure in corporate governance might lead to economic turmoil. Governance of banks is particularly important for a country like India which is still in the path of economic development. In this paper, we have tried to establish the nexus between corporate governance practices and financial performance of selected Indian public sector banks. The study is empirical in nature and is based on secondary data collected from CMIE Prowess database. We have considered ten public sector banks based on their balance sheet size covering seven years ending on 2019. We have used Correlation and Regression Model to achieve our objectives. Two performance variables, eight corporate governance variables and two control variables have been used for this purpose. Based on the diagnostic tests, we applied fixed effects generalised least square (GLS) regression. Our results showed that financial performance (ROA and ROE) is negatively associated with board size, board meetings, board committees and board independence. On the contrary, we found a positive relationship between the number of woman directors, executive directors, non-executive directors and banks' performance measures. Finally, we suggest that public sector banks should not have a board size beyond a certain limit. Our study will provide a new dimension to the existing literatures regarding the impact of governance and banking sector in particular.
Crystal structure of 2-(4-(dimethylamino)-2-fluorophenyl)-1,3-bis(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)propan-2-ol monohydrate, C15H20FN7O2

Abstract C15H20FN7O2, triclinic, P1̅ (no. 2), a = 5.8088(18) Å, b = 11.667(4) Å, c = 13.104(4) Å, α = 68.724(4)°, β = 84.660(5)°, γ = 84.859(4)°, V = 822.4(4) Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.0501, wRref(F2) = 0.1394, T = 293(2) K.
The impact of government funding on senior high enrolment in Ghana

Successive governments, both military and civilian regimes, funded senior high school education in Ghana to increase access and improve quality since the nation attained independence on 6 March 1957. In the study reported on here we adopted a quantitative research method using secondary data from five public senior high schools in the Wa Municipality, as these schools are beneficiaries of government funding in Ghana. We used the generalised linear model to test the impact of government funding on student enrolment. The study reveals that government funding has a significant impact on increasing enrolment among girls but it is not statistically significant in increasing boys’ enrolment.
Influence of the growth parameters on the properties of exchange bias in PtMn/Co bilayers

In PtMn/Co exchange biased bilayers the influence of growth conditions on the structure of the layers and on the properties of exchange bias has been studied. Aim was to find a bilayer with stable exchange bias versus temperature and field. Samples were grown using DC magnetron sputtering, allowing for variation of growth pressure and power. Using an atomic force microscope (AFM) the topography on top of the structure was determined, giving (in plane) grain size and roughness. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) gave information about (out of plane) grain size and crystallinity of the AF layer. VSM-SQUID magnetometer was used for measuring the exchange bias stability against temperature (blocking temperature) and field (relaxation). Growth conditions were varied for the AF layer and for an underlaying Ta seed layer. We attempt to connect the observed changes of structural properties (grain sizes, RMS roughness, and PtMn 111 peak properties) to changes of the magnetic properties of the bilayer (exchange bias and coercive field as function of time and temperature). Increasing grain size was correlated with an increase in exchange bias, coercive field and stability versus temperature, but a decrease in stability versus field. Increasing the growth power for the Ta layer showed an increase in grain size, for the PtMn layer a maximum grain size is found for growth under 20 W. Increasing the growth pressure for the PtMn layer showed a decrease in grain size, for the Ta layer the grain size decreased only slightly. Samples with best combined stability against field and temperature were found at low values of the growth parameters.
Effect of irrigation on growth and fibre quality of Eucalyptus globulus and Eucalyptus nitens

An experiment in southern Tasmania provided an opportunity to study the impact of continuous irrigation or cycles of drought stress on growth and wood quality of Eucalyptus globulus Labill. and Eucalyptus nitens (Deane and Maiden) Maiden. These species are commonly planted for pulpwood production in southern Australia. Growth was measured over a 6-year period and fibre quality assessed at age 6 years. Height of E.globulus was greater than that of E.nitens irrespective of water status. In the irrigated treatment diameter increment was greater in E.nitens than E.globulus in the third year of growth. Annual increments in stem volume were greater in E.globulus than E.nitens during the first 5 years. The effects of drought stress were more apparent in E.nitens than E.globulus. Irrigation led to lower basic density, longer average fibre length in E.nitens, lower fibre coarseness in E.globulus, and better strength properties when tested for cold caustic soak chemimechanical pulping characteristics.