Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of Indian cedar particle pretreatments on cement-wood composite properties

This work physically, mechanically, and chemically characterized the composites produced from Portland CP II-E32 cement and fresh Indian cedar wood particles previously treated by immersion in hot and cold water. Density values for wood particulate composites were around 50% lower compared with the wood-free control treatment, from 0.88 to 1.78 g/cm³. A larger swelling was observed for the composite material. The results of compressive strength and stiffness indicated that there is no need for particle treatment for composite production. Hot and cold water immersion treatments reduced the total Indian cedar wood extractives by 33% and 42%, respectively. Optical microscopy analysis was used to identify adhesion failures between the cement/wood interface of the composite produced with fresh particles, which presented a higher percentage of extractives. This result indicated that the greater concentration of total extractives partially inhibits the matrix-matrix interaction reinforcement. Despite the reduction in total extractives caused by the treatments, this process is not necessary for the composite production because there is no statistical difference between the treatments. The values obtained for the composite indicate the possibility of application in sealing blocks in light construction systems.
Effectiveness of web-based health education and consultation on health promotion behaviors of adolescents

Aims:Adolescence is a critical period for many health-risk behaviours. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of web-based health education and consultation on health promotion behaviors of adolescence and their e-health literacy. Methods:This randomized controlled study consisted of 252 adolescence, of whom 120 were in the control group and 132 comprised the intervention group. Students in the intervention group received web based health education and consultation program based on health promotion theory. No procedures were applied to the control group. The results were reevaluated three months after the intervention. Measurements included the e-HEALS: The Health Literacy Scale, Adolescent Lifestyle Questionnaire, Information Assessment Form for the Content of Health Education Program and Satisfaction Evaluation Form. Results:Results indicated that total Adolescent Lifestyle Questionnaire (p= 0.004), e-health literacy (p= 0.001) differences were greater in the intervention group than in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant. Conclusions:Web-based education and consultation demonstrated positive contributions for adolescents’health promotion behaviors and e-health literacy who are the biggest group of internet users, in promoting healthy lifestyle choices.
Formation of Parental Educational Decisions before and after the Reform of the Education System in Baden-Württemberg

In the German education system there are intentional risk factors that lead to considerable educational inequalities in the structured school system and which, moreover, are increasingly becoming empirically comprehensible. One of these risk factors, which has attracted much attention in empirical educational research in recent years, is the transition from primary school to secondary school. The connection between state-specific, parental educational decisions and educational inequalities in the transition from primary to lower secondary education is therefore considered to be a well-documented finding for the German education system (Maaz et al. 2010). However, it is precisely the context conditions of school transitions that have increasingly changed in recent years as a result of systemic reform processes and offer an opportunity to put existing findings to the test and question them critically. The two studies presented in this article (Wiedenhorn 2011, Semmelroch from 2016) therefore examine parental educational decisions before and after systemic changes in the course of reform processes using the education system of Baden-Württemberg as an example.
Finite-dimensional Discrete Random Structures and Bayesian Clustering

Discrete random probability measures stand out as effective tools for Bayesian clustering. The investigation in the area has been very lively, with a strong emphasis on nonparametric procedures based on either the Dirichlet process or on more flexible generalizations, such as the normalized random measures with independent increments (nrmi). The literature on finite-dimensional discrete priors is much more limited and mostly confined to the standard Dirichlet-multinomial model. While such a specification may be attractive due to conjugacy, it suffers from considerable limitations when it comes to addressing clustering problems. In order to overcome these, we introduce a novel class of priors that arise as the hierarchical compositions of finite-dimensional random discrete structures. Despite the analytical hurdles such a construction entails, we are able to characterize the induced random partition and determine explicit expressions of the associated urn scheme and of the posterior distribution. A detailed comparison with (infinite-dimensional) nrmis is also provided: indeed, simple bounds for the discrepancy between the partition laws are obtained. Finally, the performance of our proposal over existing methods is assessed on a real application where we study a publicly available dataset from the Italian education system comprising the scores of a mandatory nationwide test.
Threshold Effect of Public Debt on Economic Growth: An Empirical Investigation for Selected North African Countries

In this paper, we examine the non-linear relationship between public debt and economic growth, using panel data for 4 North African countries (Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt) from 2003 to 2012. Applying a Panel Threshold Regression (PTR) model proposed by Hansen (1999), we got empirical results indicating that public debt lower than 42,8% of GDP is positively effected by economic growth. However, beyond this threshold of public debt, this relationship becomes negative, which implies that public debt seems to reduce economic growth. Therefore, the policy implication is to address fiscal consolidation and reduce public debt so as to stimulate the economic growth of the 4 North African countries.
Transforming Gender Relations in Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa

Based on this optimism about the possibilities for field implementation, we also felt that the problems created by gender inequality are by now fairly well understood in the academic debate, and what was needed was a source of inspiration for implementers. While we do work with a theoretical framework, outlined primarily in Chapter 2, we hope that what is most useful about this book is the highlighting of actual experience which has served to reinforce this theoretical model.
IWH Discussion Papers

This paper contributes to the discussion on the importance of physical distance in the emergence of cross-region collaborative Research and Development (R&D) interactions. The proximity theory, and its extensions, is used as a theoretical framework. A spatial interaction model for count data was implemented for the empirical analysis of German data from the period from 2005 to 2010. The results show that all tested proximity measurements (geographical, cognitive, social and institutional proximity) have a significant positive influence on collaboration intensity. The proximity paradox, however, cannot be confirmed for geographical, social and institutional proximity, but for cognitive proximity.
Coronary Artery Disease Diagnosis: Ranking the Significant Features Using Random Trees Model

Heart disease is one of the most common diseases in middle-aged citizens. Among the vast number of heart diseases, coronary artery disease (CAD) is considered a common cardiovascular disease with a high death rate. The most popular tool for diagnosing CAD is the use of medical imaging, e.g., angiography. However, angiography is known for being costly and also associated with a number of side effects. Hence, the purpose of this study is to increase the accuracy of coronary heart disease diagnosis by selecting significant predictive features in order of their ranking. In this study, we propose an integrated method using machine learning. The machine learning methods of random trees (RTs), the decision tree of C5.0, support vector machine (SVM), the decision tree of Chi-squared automatic interaction detection (CHAID) are used in this study. The proposed method shows promising results and the study confirms that the RTs model outperforms other models.
Working Paper No.57 March 2007

The New Keynesian Phillips Curve (NKPC) specifies a relationship between inflation and a forcing variable and the current period’s expectation of future inflation. Most empirical estimates of the NKPC, typically based on Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimation, have found a significant role for lagged inflation, producing a “hybrid” NKPC. Using U.S. quarterly data, this paper examines whether the role of lagged inflation in the NKPC might be due to the spurious outcome of specification biases. Like previous investigators, we employ GMM estimation and, like those investigators, we find a significant effect for lagged inflation. We also use time varying coefficient (TVC) estimation, a procedure that allows us to directly confront specification biases and spurious relationships. Using three separate measures of expected inflation, we find strong support for the view that, under TVC estimation, the coefficient on expected inflation is near unity and that the role of lagged inflation in the NKPC is spurious.
Evaluation of Menopausal Women's Lifestyle in Baghdad City

Abstract Objective(s): Thisstudy is carried out to evaluate menopausalwomen’s lifestyle andto identify the significant differences between these women's lifestyle and their socio-demographic characteristics of age, marital status, socioeconomic status, education, occupation, residence, and family type. Methods: A descriptive design is carried outon purposive “non-probability” sample of (240) menopausal women, who are attending the primary health care centers at Al-Russafa District in Baghdad City, for the period from September 18th, 2016 to June 28th, 2017. A questionnaire has been developed for the purpose of the study. Content validity and internal consistency reliability for the study instrument are determined through a pilot study. Data are collected with the study instrument and the interview technique as means of data collection. Data are analyzed through the application of the descriptive and inferential statistical data analysis approaches. Study Results: The study findings reveal that the majority of the menopausal women are displaying a moderate level of lifestyle (94.4%), and there is a significant relationship between women's education, marital status and their lifestyle and high significant relationship between their socioeconomic status and lifestyle. This reveals the positive effect of these characteristics on having better and healthier lifestyle during menopause. While women's age, occupation, residence, and family type are non-significant and do not influence on their lifestyle. Conclusion: the study concludes that menopausal women are following healthy lifestyle in moderation manner.
Nucleophosmin Gene Mutation in Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia: Apoptotic Role

Introduction and objectives: Since Falini and his co-workers reported the expression of nucleophosmin (NPM) gene mutation in acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML), and various research in succession clarified the role of mNPM in AML. We previously studied the proliferative role of mNPM in AML in a trial to discover its role in AML development and leukemogenesis. This study aimed to complete the scenario and investigate the apoptotic role of mNPM AML. Another objective was to assess the effect of NPM mutational state on response to etoposide treatment in AML. Materials and methods: In this study human leukemia cell lines, HL60 and OCI-AML3 were used as models for AMLs bearing wild type (wt) and mutated (m) NPM, respectively. The study was conducted by using viability studies. The obtained results were reaffirmed by immunocytochemical and immunoblotting analyses. Results were interpreted and presented with the appropriate computer softwares. Results and conclusions: Interpretation of data showed normal growth and delayed apoptotic response of etoposide treated cells bearing mNPM as compared with cells carrying wtNPM and the control. Also we noted irreversible cytoplasmic translocation of NPM that was dependent on the duration and extent of the etoposide induced cytotoxicity in cells with wtNPM. Proteomic analysis of NPM revealed that protein expression in the etoposid lysates was approximately similar to the untreated controls We concluded that wtNPM has a pro-apoptotic effect while mNPM has an anti-apoptotic effect, suggested that therapeutic response to etoposide treatment in AML could be variable from one patient to another depending on the molecular basis of leukemia development in each case. Also, it was concluded that AML cells bearing nucleophosmin mutation are resistant to etoposide effect.
South American Expert Roundtable: Increasing Adaptive Governance Capacity for Coping with Unintended Side Effects of Digital Transformation

This paper presents the main messages of a South American expert roundtable (ERT) on the unintended side effects (unseens) of digital transformation. The input of the ERT comprised 39 propositions from 20 experts representing 11 different perspectives. The two-day ERT discussed the main drivers and challenges as well as vulnerabilities or unseens and provided suggestions for: (i) the mechanisms underlying major unseens; (ii) understanding possible ways in which rebound effects of digital transformation may become the subject of overarching research in three main categories of impact: development factors, society, and individuals; and (iii) a set of potential action domains for transdisciplinary follow-up processes, including a case study in Brazil. A content analysis of the propositions and related mechanisms provided insights in the genesis of unseens by identifying 15 interrelated causal mechanisms related to critical issues/concerns. Additionally, a cluster analysis (CLA) was applied to structure the challenges and critical developments in South America. The discussion elaborated the genesis, dynamics, and impacts of (groups of) unseens such as the digital divide (that affects most countries that are not included in the development of digital business, management, production, etc. tools) or the challenge of restructuring small- and medium-sized enterprises (whose service is digitally substituted by digital devices). We identify specific issues and effects (for most South American countries) such as lack of governmental structure, challenging geographical structures (e.g., inclusion in high-performance transmission power), or the digital readiness of (wide parts) of society. One scientific contribution of the paper is related to the presented methodology that provides insights into the phenomena, the causal chains underlying “wanted/positive” and “unwanted/negative” effects, and the processes and mechanisms of societal changes caused by digitalization.
Multicomponent Physical Exercise in Older Adults after Hospitalization: A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Short- vs. Long-Term Group-Based Interventions

Multicomponent physical exercise is effective in curbing the effect of hospitalization in older adults. However, it is not well established which characteristics of the exercise interventions would optimize intervention sustainability and efficacy. This study compared the effects of two group-based multicomponent exercise interventions of different lengths in older adults after hospitalization. Fifty-five participants were randomly assigned to a short-term group-based branch (SGB, n = 27) or to a long-term group-based branch (LGB, n = 28). The SGB participated in a six-week multicomponent group-based exercise-training program followed by 18 weeks of home-based exercise. The LGB completed 12 weeks of each phase. Physical function, physical activity, quality of life, anthropometrics, and nutritional status were assessed at baseline, after 12 weeks, and after 24 weeks of intervention. Both groups improved physical function and nutritional status and increased physical activity after 12 weeks of intervention (paired student’s t-test, p < 0.01), and maintained the positive effects during the following 12 weeks. No group-by-time interaction was observed in any of the studied variables using mixed-model ANOVA. Based on these findings, we determined that 6 weeks of a group-based exercise intervention caused similar functional and nutritional benefits to a longer group-based intervention of 12 weeks when both are continued at home until 24 weeks.
Present status of fisher community of Jamuna river in Sariakandi, Bangladesh

Accepted 17 Jan 2016 Online release 24 Sept 2016 The present study was conducted to assess the livelihood status of fisher community of the Jamuna river near Sariakandi Upazila of Bogra district of Bangladesh from August to December, 2015. Data were collected through the use of well-structured questionnaire from 40 fishermen of the selected area. The survey revealed that most of the fishermen were belonged to the age groups of 30 to 50 years (58.00%), represented by 87% Muslim. About 65% of the fishermen had small family with 3 to 4 members; 22% had medium family with 5 to 7 members and 13% had large family with more than 8 members. Over 56.5% of the fishermen solely depend on fishing as their occupation. Besides fishing, 23.5% was engaged in agriculture, 9% in daily labor activities, 5% livestock rearing and 6% small business. About 14% of the fishermen were only could write name while 74%, 10% and 2% of the fishermen were illiterate, primary and secondary level of education respectively. About 68.5% of the fishermen received health service from village doctors, 21.5% from Upazila health complex and remaining 10% got health service from MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and of Surgery ) doctors. Most of the people (55%) have kacha house with tin roofing, 32.5% have house with straw roof, 9.5% have semi-paka house and only 10% of the people have paka house. Majority (45%) of the fishermen had medium (61,000-1,20,000 TK.) annual income whereas 23% of the fishermen had low (35,000-60,000TK.) annual income and 32% of the fishermen had high (above 1,20,000 TK.) annual income. The poor condition of most of the fisher may be due to scarcity of alternate employment opportunities, low education facilities, lack of nearby market for selling of fish, lack of sanitation and credit facilities, nonavailability of own fishing net and insufficient government support such as Vulnerable Group Feeding cards. Keyword
Size and persistence matters: Wage and employment insurance at the micro level

Firms provide substantial insurance against wage fl uctuations and job loss. This paper studies how the interaction between shock size and persistence affects the firm's ability to insure workers against idiosyncratic firm-level shocks. Using linked employer-employee data from Germany, I find that wages respond largely symmetrically to positive and negative permanent shocks. Whereas transitory shocks lead to upward wage rigidity. Individual layoff probabilities only increase in response to negative permanent shocks. Interestingly, wage cuts and job loss after negative shocks are limited to blue-collar workers. Whereas white-collar workers are fully insured against negative shocks both in terms of wages and employment.
Myostatin (MSTN) Gene Indel Variation and Its Associations with Body Traits in Shaanbei White Cashmere Goat

Simple Summary As a major gene to regulate the muscle mass of animals, Myostatin (MSTN) plays a negative role in regulating the number and size of skeletal myocytes. Additionally, it is reported that mutations of MSTN gene contribute to the double-muscling (DBM) phenomenon. Therefore, mutations of MSTN gene will always be one of the hot spots. A 5 bp indel (c. –120 ins) in the 5’ untranslated region (5’ UTR) of goat MSTN gene was reported to relate to the growth traits of goat. However, all the sample sizes were limited. Herein, this study firstly enlarged the sample size (n = 1074, Shaanbei White Cashmere goat) to uncover the indel location, as well as its association with growing performance. Based on the data, the 5 bp insertion mutation in goat MSTN gene was significantly associated with the body height, height at hip cross, and chest width index in SBWC (p < 0.05), hinted that this insertion could be assigned to an effective molecular marker for growth trait in goat rearing. Abstract Myostatin (MSTN) gene, also known as growth differentiation factor 8 (GDF8), is a member of the transforming growth factor-beta super-family and plays a negative role in muscle development. It acts as key points during pre- and post-natal life of amniotes that ultimately determine the overall muscle mass of animals. There are several studies that concentrate on the effect of a 5 bp insertion/deletion (indel) within the 5’ untranslated region (5’ UTR) of goat MSTN gene in goats. However, almost all sample sizes were below 150 individuals. Only in Boer goats, the sample sizes reached 482. Hence, whether the 5 bp indel was still associated with the growth traits of goats in large sample sizes which were more reliable is not clear. To find an effective and dependable DNA marker for goat rearing, we first enlarged the sample sizes (n = 1074, Shaanbei White Cashmere goat) which would enhance the robustness of the analysis and did the association analyses between the 5 bp indel and growth traits. Results uncovered that the 5 bp indel was significantly related to body height, height at hip cross, and chest width index (p < 0.05). In addition, individuals with DD genotype had a superior growing performance than those with the ID genotype. These findings suggested that the 5 bp indel in MSTN gene are significantly associated with growth traits and the specific genotype might be promising for maker-assisted selection (MAS) of goats.
Access to and control over agricultural labor and income in smallholder farming households: a gendered look from Chipata, Eastern Zambia

This study assessed access to and control over agricultural income and labor among smallholder farmers in Chipata, Zambia. Data was collected through 120 structured interviews, three focus group discussions, 17 key informant interviews, and desk analysis. Results show that joint decision making over agricultural income was fairly common (48 percent) in male-headed households, but uncommon (19 percent) in female-headed households. Men dominated decisions regarding household investments and livestock sales, while decisions about crop sales were jointly made with the women. Local gender norms restricted women’s mobility and limited women’s participation in more lucrative distant markets. Our results suggest that joint decision making among married couples is more common than routinely assumed, and assignment of control over agricultural resources is vested based on household headship, and not primarily gender. Our work highlights the importance of micro-level studies to inform program design and cautions against interventions based on assumptions of unilateral decision making by male household heads.