Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Longitudinal variation of wood basic density and anatomy of Curatella americana L

Studies with Curatella americana L wood are justified due to scarce information about this species. In this context, we collected wood samples from six trees (ages varied between 30-40 years old) planted in Selvíria (MS- Brazil). Our objective was to verify longitudinal variation of basic density and wood anatomy. From each sampled tree, 5 cm thick discs were removed, at three different heights: base of the trunk (≈ 15cm from the ground), DBH (diameter at breast height, 1m30cm from the ground), and top of the trunk (commercial height of tree with a minimum diameter of 5 cm). We use standardized methods for basic density and wood anatomy. According to results, we concluded that basic density, fiber length, fiber wall thickness, vessel element length, vessel diameter, and vessel frequency were influenced by different heights. However, in ray percentage, no significant variation was observed. The basic density correlates positively with length and fiber wall thickness, and negatively with vessel frequency.
Uncertainty of aid inflows and the aid-growth relationship

This paper contributes to the literature on aid and economic growth. We posit that it is not the level of aid flows per se but the stability of such flows that determines the impact of aid on economic growth. Three measures of aid instability are employed. One is a simple deviation from trend, and measures overall instability. The other measures are based on auto-regressive estimates to capture deviations from an expected trend. These measures are intended to proxy for uncertainty in aid receipts. We posit that such uncertainty will influence the relationship between aid and investment and how recipient governments respond to aid, and will therefore affect how aid impacts on growth. We estimate a standard cross-country growth regression including the level of aid, and find aid to be insignificant (in line with other results in the literature). We then introduce measures of instability. Aid remains insignificant when we account for overall instability. However, when we account for uncertainty (which is negative and significant), we find that aid has a significant positive effect on growth. We conduct stability tests that show that the significance of aid is largely due to its effect on the volume of investment. The finding that uncertainty of aid receipts reduces the effectiveness of aid is robust. When we control for this, aid appears to have a significant positive influence on growth. When the regression is estimated for the sub-sample of African countries these findings hold, although the effectiveness of aid appears weaker than for the full sample. Outline
A TpM‐based collaborative system to teach IoT

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a multidisciplinary field involving different areas of knowledge. The development of IoT solutions depends on the integration and collaborative work between professionals from all of these areas. This has led to the development of methodologies to teach IoT, such as the three‐phase methodology (TpM). This study presents a collaborative system that operationalizes the use of the TpM, aiding in the process of teaching IoT. This system guides and integrates teams developing IoT solutions while providing easy and structured access to information about the project. The system has been used in short and graduation courses. The results have demonstrated its efficiency in assisting students to develop solutions while applying the TpM.
Seismic fracture of koyna dam: Case study

The two numerical procedures previously presented by the authors to model crack closure during seismic fracture of concrete gravity dams are employed herein to study the 1967 performance of the Koyna dam. First, a brief description of the general procedure is given, followed by the detailed formulation of the force method for simulation of crack closure. The latter was introduced to prevent the hypothetical overlap phenomenon which was originally assumed in the modelling of crack closure by the impulse method. Also presented are the results obtained for a model of the Koyna dam tested on a shaking table to study the cracking process under simplified loading conditions. Satisfactory agreement between the test and numerical results is shown. Finally, the cracking process of the Koyna dam prototype subjected to the 1967 earthquake is evaluated numerically by employing the aforementioned techniques. From the results, it is concluded that both procedures for simulating the impact effect of crack closing predict complete penetration of the crack through the upper part of the dam, which is consistent with the observed prototype behaviour.
Distract and Divert: How World Leaders Use Social Media During Contentious Politics

How do leaders communicate during domestic crises? We provide the first global analysis of world leader communication on social media during social unrest. We develop a theory of leaders’ digital communication strategies, building on the diversionary theory of foreign policy, as well as research on the role of democratic institutions in explaining elite responsiveness. To test our theory, we construct a new dataset that characterizes leader communication through social media posts published by any head of state or government on Twitter or Facebook, employing a combination of automated translation and supervised machine learning methods. Our findings show that leaders increase their social media activity and shift the topic from domestic to foreign policy issues during moments of social unrest, which is consistent with a conscious strategy to divert public attention when their position could be at risk. These effects are larger in democracies and in particular in the run-up to elections, which we attribute to incentives created by democratic institutions. Our results demonstrate how social media provide meaningful comparative insight into leaders’ political behavior in the digital age.
Student capabilities to utilize m-learning service in new smart devices

A typical gadget that students often carry is a smart phone. Each smart phone brand has often unique features and capabilities. This study reveals how students perceive these devices when they start-up for the first time and discusses the major gaps among these devices based on students’ usability experiments. The results help to understand the mobile learning applications usage and demand in smartphones. There have already been many initiatives to enhance mobile phones in education activities but failed to reach a common development framework standard [1].
Semiarid Precipitation Frequency Project Contrasted with Previously Published Rainfall Atlases

Design of hydraulic structures and management of water resources requires rainfall frequency analyses and depth-area-duration curves to determine design storms and stormwater runoff. For the western United States, two atlases provide rainfall information for return frequencies from 2 to 100 years: NOAA Atlas 2 and Technical Paper 49. The Semiarid Precipitation Frequency Study (Semiarid Study) was begun several years ago to revise these atlases for Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Southeast California. The Semiarid Study will supersede the previous atlases for these regions. Precipitation frequencies will be provided for events as frequent as six times a year up to 1,000-year return periods and for durations from 5 min to 60 days. New depth-area-duration curves will be provided. The Semiarid Study differs from the earlier studies in (a) 30 percent more daily stations and 230 supplemental stations; (b) new statistical methods permitting more objective quality control, regionalization of data, and objective curve-fitting techniques; and (c) direct use of partial-duration data series. With Utah as an example, comparisons with NOAA Atlas 2 of 100-year, 24-hr return frequency values are also shown. Semiarid Study values are lower in central and southern Utah but higher in the Uinta Mountains and the northern Wasatch Range. Results for the rest of the Semiarid area are similar; that is, values are generally higher than NOAA Atlas 2 in the mountains and lower in the desert regions. Seasonality is illustrated with 45-day events in central and western Utah. The maximum 45-day rainfalls occur in this area in March and April and in August and September, a bimodal distribution.
PENGEMBANGAN E-LKPD MATERI BILANGAN PECAHAN BERBASIS PROBLEM BASED LEARNING PADA KELAS IV SEKOLAH DASAR

Student worksheet usually in printed form, while Electronic student worksheet in digital form, so it could be accessed anywhere using the internet network. This study aims to develop and determine suitability of Electronic worksheets on fractional number material in grade 4th. Type of research is R&D using the 4-D Thiagarajan and Sammel model which consists of four step, 1) Define, 2) Design, 3) Develop, 4) Disseminate. The subjects of this research were 4th grade students of SDN Menteng Atas 01 Pagi. Data instruments in the form of observations, interviews, expert review and student response questionnaires. The expert review process is carried out on material, media, and language experts. The average result of the three experts is 86.20% and can be interpreted as "very feasible". The COVID-19 virus pandemic has made the field trial process only using the zoom application, namely with one to one evaluation and small group. The results of each field trial are 83.66% and 88.54%, which means "very feasible". Based on the test result of GEBEKA Electronic student worksheet, it is appropriate to use it as for learning fractional number material in grade 4th Elementary School.
Rights and Responsibilities Are Substitutable Framings That Differentially Affect Judgment

Do employers have a responsibility to treat their workers equally or do employees have a right to be treated equally? In common discourse, rights and responsibilities are often used as substitutable framings for the same event, but they may differentially shape judgment. In this investigation, we develop an experimental manipulation of rights versus responsibilities and evaluate whether framing an arrangement between two parties in terms of rights, versus responsibilities, affects people’s judgment. We found that people judged unequal distributions between two parties as less fair when framed in terms of rights than in terms of responsibilities. Furthermore, people judged a rights framing as fairer for an unequal (vs. equal) contractual agreement. Thus, a subtle framing manipulation can increase or decrease people’s sensitivity to unequal distributions. We discuss potential mechanisms for this effect and implications for behavioral law as well as the potential to nudge people’s sensitivity to inequality.
Impact of mobile banking failure on bank customers' usage behaviour: the mediating role of user satisfaction

PurposeThis study seeks to observe the association between mobile banking failures, use of m-banking and customer engagement to determine the contribution of user satisfaction towards m-banking as mediator between the aforementioned relationship.Design/methodology/approachThis study proposes a Mobile Banking Failure Model (MBFM) by integrating four failure dimensions (functional, system, information and service) based on Tan's failure model and DeLone and Mclean's Information Success model. In this paper, data was gathered from 338 respondents, who were the customers of banks and regular users of m-banking services of their respective banks in India. A survey method was employed to collect data. Structure equation modelling (SEM) was used to analyse the collected data.FindingsThe results suggest that all m-banking failure dimensions (functional, system, information and service) affect the use of m-banking, which in turn affects user satisfaction towards m-banking and customer engagement. Additionally, this study found that user satisfaction towards m-banking acts as a partial mediator between the use of m-banking and customer engagement.Research limitations/implicationsThe banking failure and its use by customers have been examined in the context of mobile banking in India only and thereby limits the generalization of results to other industry and country contexts.Practical implicationsThe results of this paper will guide bank managers and policy planners in implementing MBFM in the Indian banking context, specifically for their m-banking apps.Originality/valueThe use of m-banking, user satisfaction towards m-banking and customer engagement have been added as three supportive variables to the basic Tan's failure model and DeLone and Mclean's Information Success model to examine the impact of m-banking failure on bank customers' usage behaviour. This is a novel addition to the extant literature, as most empirical works in this domain are from industries other than banking (specifically m-banking) and with differing contexts.
Mindful Acceptance Predicts Writing Achievement in 6th-Graders

ABSTRACT Writing is a complex task that requires the activation and coordination of several processes. In addition to the research on the domain-specific factors that contribute to school achievement, there is an increasing interest on general variables, such as mindfulness. Here, we aimed to test the contribution of middle-grade students’ trait mindfulness to writing achievement, after controlling for well-known writing predictors. One hundred and eighty-seven 6th-graders (M = 11.66 years) were assessed on transcription, text quality, executive functions, and self-reported trait mindfulness. Preliminary analyses showed that our trait mindfulness measure had two factors: mindful awareness and acceptance. However, because only the latter was found to be reliable, main analyses were exclusively focused on the acceptance facet of mindfulness. A multiple hierarchical regression analysis was conducted. After controlling for demographic characteristics (Step 1), transcription skills (Step 2), and executive functions (Step 3), we examined the predictive role of mindful acceptance (Step 4) to writing achievement. Findings indicated that mindful acceptance had a significant contribution to writing achievement in Grade 6 (b = .18). These are pioneering findings about the contribution of mindful acceptance to writing. The putative mechanism underlying this contribution is discussed, and indications for future research are proposed.
Large‐scale detection and quantification of harmful soil compaction in a post‐mining landscape using multi‐configuration electromagnetic induction

Fast and accurate large‐scale localization and quantification of harmfully compacted soils in recultivated post‐mining landscapes are of particular importance for mining companies and the following farmers. The use of heavy machinery during recultivation imposes soil stress and can cause irreversible subsoil compaction limiting crop growth in the long term. To overcome or guide classical point‐scale methods to determine compaction, fast methods covering large areas are required. In our study, a recultivated field of the Garzweiler mine in North Rhine‐Westphalia, Germany, with known variability in crop performance was intensively studied using non‐invasive electromagnetic induction (EMI) and electrode‐based electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). Additionally, soil bulk density, volumetric soil water content and soil textures were analysed along two transects covering different compaction levels. The results showed that the measured EMI apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) along the transects was highly correlated (R2 > .7 for different dates and depths below 0.3 m) to subsoil bulk density. Finally, the correlations established along the transects were used to predict harmful subsoil compaction within the field, whereby a spatial probabilistic map of zones of harmful compaction was developed. In general, the results revealed the feasibility of using the EMI derived ECa to predict harmful compaction. They can be the basis for quick monitoring of the recultivation process and implementation of necessary melioration to return a well‐structured soil with good water and nutrient accessibility, and rooting depths for increased crop yields to the farmers.
Priming with Humic Acid to Reverse Ageing Damage in Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill.] Seeds

Soybean seed vigour declines with increase in storage duration, due to ageing, which can be alleviated through seed priming. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of Humic acid (HA) priming on germination, vigour and seedling performance under laboratory and greenhouse conditions with two soil moisture level [50% and 80% field capacity (FC)]. Seeds stored for 12 months having 60% germination were primed either with 0.2 g/L HA solution or distilled water (hydro-primed) at 25 °C for 1, 3, 5 and 7 h. Non-primed dry seeds were used as control, giving nine treatment combinations. Various germination traits [mean germination time (MGT), final germination percentage (FG%), germination rate index (GRI), seedling emergence percentage (SEP)], mean emergence time (MET), seedling quality traits [seedling vigor index (SVI), shoot length, root length, root volume], antioxidant enzyme activities [catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD)], lipid peroxidation [malondialdehyde (MDA)] and electrical conductivity (EC) were determined. A germination test in the laboratory was conducted as single factor (nine priming treatments), while the greenhouse experiment was conducted as two factors [2 soil moisture level (50 and 80% FC) and 9 priming treatments]. The results indicated that seeds primed with HA for 5 h was able to reinstate the CAT activities (25%), POD activities (50%) and reduced EC (51%) and MDA content (40%) compared with non-primed seeds, reduced the MET (from 4.3 to 3.5 days), increased FG% (from 62 to 71%), GRI (15.6–21.1) and SEP (from 35 to 54%) and (from 60 to 72%) at 50% FC level and 80% FC level, respectively. A strong negative correlation (r = −0.80 **) was found between MDA content and GRI, while CAT and POD activities had positive correlation with GRI r= 0.67 ** and r = 0.56 **, respectively. Thus, priming with 0.2 g/L HA for 5 h improved the vigour of minimally deteriorated soybean seeds resulting in increased emergence with more uniform field establishment.
Clinical and Ergonomic Comparison Between a Robotic Assisted Transfer Device and a Mobile Floor Lift During Caregiver-Assisted Wheelchair Transfers

Background The robotic assisted transfer device was developed as an updated lift technology to reduce adjustments in posture while increasing capabilities offered by transfer devices. The purpose of this study was to compare the trunk biomechanics of a robotic assisted transfer device and a mechanical floor lift in the transfer of a care recipient by a caregiver during essential transfer tasks. Methods Investigators enrolled 28 caregiver/care recipient dyads to complete 36 transferring tasks. Surface electromyography for the back muscles and motion data for trunk range of motion were collected for selected surfaces, phase, and direction tasks using a robotic assisted transfer device and a mechanical floor lift. Results Robotic assisted transfer device transfers required significantly smaller range of trunk flexion (P < 0.001), lateral bend (P < 0.001), and axial rotation (P = 0.01), in addition to smaller distance covered (P < 0.001), average instantaneous velocity (P = 0.01), and acceleration (P < 0.001) compared with a mobile floor lift. The robotic assisted transfer device transfers required significantly smaller peak erector spinae (left: P = 0.001; right: P < 0.001) and latissimus dorsi (right: P < 0.001) and integrated erector spinae left (P = 0.001) and latissimus dorsi right (P = 0.01) electromyography signals compared with the floor lift. Conclusions The robotic assisted transfer device provides additional benefits to mobile floor lifts which, coupled with statistically lower flexion, extension, and rotation, may make them an appealing alternative intervention.
Relaminarization on Swept Leading Edges Under High-Lift Conditions

Detailed experiments were made to gain an improved understanding of relaminarization on swept wings under high-lift conditions. Two swept wings with different airfoil sections and flaps were tested, and measurements were made consisting of surface-pressure distributions13; and wall shear-stress fluctuations in the leading-edge zone. Measurements were made at a chord Reynolds number of 1.3 x 106 with wing-sweep angles of 45 and 60 deg and model incidence varied in the range of 3 to 18 deg in discrete steps. Following the attachment-line transition, the turbulent boundary layer relaminarized under certain13; conditions due to the acceleration around the wing's leading edge. Broad features of relaminarization and subsequent retransition are discussed based on wall shear-stressfluctuation data. The present dataset shows that relaminarization is likely if the maximum value of13; the acceleration parameter K, (evaluated along the external inviscid streamline) is greater than about 3 x 10-6, in agreement with earlier findings. Much higher maximum values of IC, result in significant reduction of intermittency during relaminarization. After relaminarization, the boundary layer retransitions across a separation bubble. Characteristics of the post relaminarization separation bubbles are shown to be similar to those of bubbles occurring in more pristine13; laminar boundary layers.
IMPROVING COMBINED CYCLE POWER PLANT PERFORMANCE IN ARID REGIONS

In arid regions, where cooling water supplies are limited and highly regulated, combined cycle power plants (CCPPs) are turning to air-cooled condensers instead of water-cooled condensers. However, performance of air-cooled condensers can decline as ambient temperatures increase and result in loss of steam turbine power output. At the same time, as ambient temperature rises, net output of the gas turbine also can decline due to increased power consumption by the compressor and reduced power output by the gas turbine. In this paper, it is proposed to remedy these problems by pre-cooling the inlet air to the air-cooled condenser as well as the compressor, using a low-temperature thermal energy storage (TES) system. The TES is maintained around 5oC by an absorption refrigeration system driven by the waste heat in the stack gases. A thermodynamic analysis of a 500-MW CCPP incorporating the above concept is presented.
Hierarchical TS‐1 for epoxidation of non‐edible Karanja (Millettia pinnata) oil methyl ester to methyl epoxioleate (biodiesel additive) in presence of H2O2 as oxidizing agent

Application of non‐edible Karanja (Millettia pinnata) oil which is abundantly available in India is not explored so far. The present study is an attempt to convert fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) obtained from Karanja oil to methyl epoxioleate over hierarchical titanosilicate (TS‐1) catalyst. Methyl epoxioleate, a biodiesel additive can blend up to 20% with biodiesels to improve oxidative stability and cold flow properties of biodiesel. A series of hierarchical TS‐1 were prepared by desilication of parent TS‐1 with 0.1 N NaOH at 80°C for 1, 3, 5, and 7 h, respectively. Samples were characterized by powder XRD, low temperature nitrogen adsorption/desorption, and TEM. Eighty percent FAME conversion with 70% yield of methyl epoxioleate was obtained over 5H‐TS‐1 catalyst. The enhanced catalytic activity of a 5H‐TS‐1 compared to parent TS‐1 mainly attributed to the high mesoporosity coupled with well‐preserved crystallinity. 5H‐TS‐1 catalyst was found to be completely reusable after calcination at 500°C for 12 h. Hierarchical 5H‐TS‐1 catalyst for effective conversion of non‐edible Karanja oil methyl ester to methyl epoxioleate probably not reported so far.