Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Study of consumers’ behavior for non-vegetarian products in emerging market of India

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to understand non-vegetarian food consumption behavior, and factors affecting the same of the consumers of middle-sized market, where organized retailing is still at infancy. Design/methodology/approach - – A total of 182 households of two middle-sized cities of India were personally surveyed with a structured questionnaire. Simple statistical analysis such as frequency distribution, factor analysis and analysis of variance, logit regression were carried out to infer the required information. Findings - – Although an important constituent of the food, for most the consumers, purchase of non-vegetarian products were weekly, well planned, and family affairs. Assured good quality, followed by the meat preparation in front of the customers’ eye emerged important market attributes for selecting the store by the consumers. The study revealed that consumers were mainly dependent on search and credence attributes of the product for non-vegetarian food purchase decisions. Research limitations/implications - – This paper analyses non-vegetarian food consumption food behavior of those customers, for whom non-vegetarian food is still considered as special food, and who belong to middle-sized cities where organized food retailing has just started. Originality/value - – The subject is relatively less researched in emerging markets where organized food retail is still at infancy, and where non-vegetarian foods are considered special.
ALLELOPATHIC ASSESSMENT OF GENETICALLY MODIFIED AND NON MODIFIED MAIZE (ZEA MAYS L.) ON PHYSIOLOGY OF WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.)

The aim of this work was to study the allelopathic effect of 3 extracts viz 3%,5% and 10% prepared from leaves of GM (insect resistance) and non GM maize on physiology of succeeding crop wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). The extracts prepared from GM maize significantly decreased chlorophyll a content but significantly increased chlorophyll b content as compared with untreated control. Content of chlorophyll a non-significantly decreased but content of chlorophyll b significantly increased with methanolic extract prepared from non GM maize. Significant decrease in carotenoid content was found with aqueous extracts of both GM and non GMmaize.GM maize leaves extracts significantly decreased proline but have no effect on protein and sugar content of wheat plant. Significant increase in protein and sugar content was found with aqueous extract of non GM maize as compared with untreated control. Significant increase in superoxide dismutase (SOD) and nonsignificant increase in catalase was found with aqueous extracts however activity of peroxidase (POD) decreased in wheat crop with GM maize leaves extracts. Non-significant increase in antioxidant activities were found with treatment of non GM maize leaves extracts as compared with untreated control.
Performance differences in related and unrelated diversified firms

This paper investigates performance differences (in terms of ROA) between related and unrelated diversified firms. Two regression models of performance are estimated using a sample of 80 firms. Performance differences are associated with advertising expenditures, accounting determined risk, research and development expenditures and capital intensity. The models suggest that research and development expenditures are an important determinant in the performance advantage enjoyed by related diversified firms.
Identification of 14-3-3-like protein in sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum)

Sequencias completas de tres cDNAs que codificam proteinas 14-3-3 de cana-de-acucar (Saccharum officinarum) foram encontradas no projeto genoma EST de cana-de-acucar. As proteinas codificadas por essas sequencias foram identificadas baseando-se no agrupamento de ESTs de cana-de-acucar e, tres "clusters" (SCCCLR1022 D05.g, SCCCRZ1001D02.g e SCBFLR1026E02.g) foram similares a proteinas 14-3-3 de outras monocotiledoneas. O cluster SCCCLR1022D05.g apresentou similaridade de 99% com a proteina 14-3-3 de milho (gi|1345587) e, os clusters SCCCRZ1001D02.g e SCBFLR1026E02.g foram similares a proteina 14-3-3 de arroz (gi|7435022), 96% e 94%, respectivamente. Embora proteinas 14-3-3 tem sido relatadas como sendo especificas a organismos, tecidos e orgaos, todos os "clusters" de cana-de-acucar correspondentes a 14-3-3 foram provenientes de cDNAs advindos de diferentes tecidos.
Real Estate Market Developments and Financal Sector Soundness

This paper analyses the characteristics and functioning of real estate markets. It focuses on the relationship between developments in these markets and the financial sector to determine under what circumstances real estate booms and busts can develop and how they can affect the health and stability of the financial system. It concludes that unbalanced real estate price developments often contribute to financial sector distress and that trends in real estate markets should be monitored closely in the context of financial sector assessments.
Medoid Determination in Deterministic Annealing-based Pairwise Clustering

The deterministic annealing-based clustering algorithm is an EM-based algorithm which behaves like simulated annealing method, yet less sensitive to the initialization of parameters. Pairwise clustering is a kind of clustering technique to perform clustering with inter-entity distance information but not enforcing to have detailed attribute information. The pairwise deterministic annealing-based clustering algorithm repeatedly alternates the steps of estimation of mean-fields and the update of membership degrees of data objects to clusters until termination condition holds. Lacking of attribute value information, pairwise clustering algorithms do not explicitly determine the centroids or medoids of clusters in the course of clustering process or at the end of the process. This paper proposes a method to identify the medoids as the centers of formed clusters for the pairwise deterministic annealing-based clustering algorithm. Experimental results show that the proposed method locate meaningful medoids.
Molecular characterization and endosymbiotic localization of the gene encoding D-ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase-oxygenase (RuBisCO) form II in the deep-sea vestimentiferan trophosome.

To better understand the contribution of micro-organisms to the primary production in the deep-sea gutless tubeworm Lamellibrachia sp. , the 16S-rDNA-based phylogenetic data would be complemented by knowledge of the genes that encode the enzymes relevant to chemoautotrophic carbon fixation, such as D-ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase-oxygenase (RuBisCO; EC 4.1.1.39). To phylogenetically characterize the autotrophic endosymbiosis within the trophosome of the tubeworm Lamellibrachia sp. , bulk trophosomal DNA was extracted and analysed based on the 16S-rRNA- and RuBisCO-encoding genes. The 16S-rRNA- and RuBisCO-encoding genes were amplified by PCR, cloned and sequenced. For the 16S rDNA, a total of 50 clones were randomly selected and analysed directly by sequencing. Only one operational taxonomic unit resulted from the 16S rDNA sequence analysis. This may indicate the occurrence of one endosymbiotic bacterial species within the trophosome of the Lamellibrachia sp. used in this study. Phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rDNA showed that the Lamellibrachia sp. endosymbiont was closely related to the genus Rhodobacter, a member of the alpha-Protebacteria. For the RuBisCO genes, only the form II gene (cbbM) was amplified by PCR. A total of 50 cbbM clones were sequenced, and these were grouped into two operational RuBisCO units (ORUs) based on their deduced amino acid sequences. The cbbM ORUs showed high amino acid identities with those recorded from the ambient sediment bacteria. To confirm the results of sequence analysis, the localization of the symbiont-specific 16S rRNA and cbbM sequences in the Lamellibrachia sp. trophosome was visualized by in situ hybridization (ISH), using specific probes. Two types of cells, coccoid and filamentous, were observed at the peripheries of the trophosome lobules. Both the symbiont-specific 16S rDNA and cbbM probes hybridized at the same sites coincident with the location of the coccoid cells, whereas the filamentous cells showed no cbbM-specific signals. The RuBisCO form I gene (cbbL) was neither amplified by PCR nor detected by ISH. This is the first demonstration of chemoautotrophic symbiosis in the deep-sea gutless tubeworm, based on sequence data and in situ localization of both the 16S-rRNA- and RuBisCO-encoding genes.
Concept of Voluntary Information Disclosure and A Review of Relevant Studies

Along with the economic development, the compulsory information disclosure of listed companies can not satisfy investors’ diversified information needs. The society advances higher requirements for listed companies’ information disclosure, which drives listed companies to disclose more information voluntarily. Recently, voluntary disclosure has gradually become a focus domestic and abroad because voluntary disclosure has positive impacts on the communication of corporate management agency and interests-related parties, the decrease of information asymmetry of investors, and the improvement of quality of disclosed information. On one hand, voluntary disclosure can detail and deepen compulsory disclosure, improving the credibility and completeness of compulsory disclosure. On the other hand, it can complement and expand the compulsory disclosure, for the sake of realizing the more complete, diversified, and systematic information disclosure. Therefore, the voluntary disclosure serves as an effective way for communicating interest-related parties and describing the corporate prospect. It is meaningful for perfecting listed companies’ governance structure and enhancing the protection for investors’ interests.
Using Requirements to Define Services for Service-Centric Food Traceability Information Systems

This paper reports empirical research on our requirements processes and methods for engineering service-centric food traceability information systems. We address the need for providing requirements for the service provider and service integrator by developing new structures, architectures and techniques needed to derive services from a requirements specification. Our results are demonstrated by addressing four specific challenges that we currently lack process and method advice for. The paper reports our experiences and concludes with our lessons learned.
Just another channel? Marketing communications in e‐business

In the digital world, marketing communications is concerned with creating presence, creating relationships, and creating mutual value. The Internet as a marketing channel is interactive, accessible, ubiquitous, and integrates marketing communication with commercial transactions and service delivery. As a channel, the Internet both sends content to an audience, and acts as a route to a group of customers. In order to build presence, e‐merchants enter a world of new marketing concepts such as banner ads, click through, affiliate networks, URL's and portals. The role and value of brands takes on new dimensions. The potential for building relationships is inherent in every transaction and dialog. No longer does the marketer need to speculate about customer needs; they actually know customer‐purchasing profiles. Customer service, customer profiles and customisation present important marketing opportunities. Value creation both requires and strengthens mutual dependence. Communities, including customer communit.
Necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of a Fr\'echet mean on the circle

Let $(\S^1,d_{\S^1})$ be the unit circle in $\R^2$ endowed with the arclength distance. We give a sufficient and necessary condition for a general probability measure $\mu$ to admit a well defined Fr\'echet mean on $(\S^1,d_{\S^1})$. %This criterion allows to recover already known sufficient conditions of existence. We derive a new sufficient condition of existence $P(\alpha,\varphi)$ with no restriction on the support of the measure. Then, we study the convergence of the empirical Fr\'echet mean to the Fr\'echet mean and we give an algorithm to compute it.
Wireless Sensor Networks for Intelligent Transportation Systems

This paper presents a traffic monitoring system implemented through Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) technology within SAFESPOT Project funded by the European Community. The aim of this project is to provide a flexible, robust, low-cost and low-maintenance wireless solution for obtaining traffic-related data that can be used for automatically generating safety warnings at black spots along the road network. The WSN consists of one Gateway Node (GN) and n Sensor Nodes (SNs) deployed along the roadside according to an approximately linear topology. Each SN is able to monitor a section of road, collecting parameters such as vehicle count, speed and direction. Data from the SNs is collected by the GN and delivered to a Road Side Unit (RSU) responsible for fusing it with traffic-related data generated by alternative sources. The system has been tested and performance evaluated under a number of real use-case scenarios. Traffic monitoring, Wireless Sensor Networks In this paper we present one of the traffic monitoring solutions realized within SAFESPOT Project. The proposed solution is based on WSN technology and involves a network composed of one Gateway Node (GN) and n Sensor Nodes (SNs) univocally identified by their own address i=1,…,n. The GN is connected to the RSU through a wired interface. In general, the RSU is able to perform more advanced data processing than SNs and it could be connected to a number of GNs belonging to several WSNs. The WSN application follows a master-slave paradigm enabling bidirectional radio communication. The GN behaves as a master, polling the desired SN with requests and commands, while SNs play the role of slaves replying to the GN through data packets or acknowledgment (ACK) packets.
Time-domain analysis of surface-plasmon-polariton propagation in Ag nano-films using a generalized polarization approach

A time-domain analysis of the propagation properties of surface-plasmon-polaritons (SPP) in Silver nanostructures is presented. The analysis is based on a simulation algorithm that unifies the formulation of different dispersion models and multi-pole relations into one form. The main objective of this work is to perform a comparative analysis between different dispersion models used for Silver, including Debye, Drude and multi-pole Lorentz-Drude models. The quantities that are used in the comparison are the SPP propagation length and propagation speed. Experimental results reported in literature are used to support the conclusions.
Risk analysis and evaluation of capital investment projects

In determining the feasibility of projects where capital investments are concerned, various methods are used. The focus of these methods is on return per se, so it is often asked to what extent any of these methods take the risk concept into account. The main objective of this study was to investigate the importance of risk with regard to capital investment projects. Secondly, with the aid of an empirical study, the study tried to establish whether risk is incorporated when South African companies evaluate capital investment projects. The empirical analysis indicated that risk analysis and evaluation in practice are to a large extent neglected by South African companies. It was found that nearly a quarter of companies estimate their annual cash flows using management subjective estimates alone.
Multi-Brand Loyalty Cards: A Good Idea

The UK's leading coalition loyalty card scheme was launched at a time when questions were raised regarding the viability of such schemes. Two years into the scheme, it is now appropriate to review the scheme's relationship with its' customers and judge its' success in terms of its ability to influence card holders' behaviour. To meet the objectives a survey methodology was adopted, and a new questionnaire devised for administration to a sample of coalition loyalty card scheme cardholders. The survey achieved 153 responses from the scheme members. Findings from the study revealed that coalition loyalty card scheme holders' exhibit weak bonds between the card provider and its customers and that customers display signs of low commitment, low trust and low perceived relational benefits. There is a decisive lack of awareness of many sponsors and this confusion seemed to be leading to the use of coalition loyalty card scheme as a single-brand card. Although usage rates are on a par with other loyalty schemes, a lack of involvement seems apparent; indicating that no considerable increase in share of customer had occurred. This is mainly down to poorly targeted communications and irrelevant reward offerings. Finally, there was little to suggest that coalition loyalty card scheme are currently having much influence over consumer behaviour, as the bonds between the two parties were not strong enough to encourage this. However, this does not indicate that the current market leader is currently unsuccessful, there is evidence to suggest consumers perceive real benefits in coalition schemes and that there is a willingness to alter their behaviour if the motivation is sufficient. Implications for future research include more specific investigations into the dynamic of the relationship between loyalty schemes and consumers and further research on coalition schemes per se.
Ethical products and consumer involvement: what's new?

Purpose – This paper aims to provide an adequate instrument to measure involvement, its antecedents and its impact on behaviours relating to ethical product consumption, using the case of fair trade.Design/methodology/approach – Based on an in‐depth analysis of the involvement literature and the specificities of ethical products, a model is derived using a hypothetico‐deductive approach. It is then analysed using structural equation modelling.Findings – The new construct specific to ethical products is a strong predictor of involvement. In addition, the involvement in the ethical aspect of products is much stronger than the involvement in the product category to explain selected consumer behaviours.Research limitations/implications – It is likely that highly involved consumers are more prone to participate in such a survey, which limits the representativeness of the sample.Practical implications – Beyond the theoretical contribution for ethical consumption analysis, practical implications for fair trade m.
Design, prototyping and evaluation of SIMpliCity: an NFC system for the mobility of citizens

SIMpliCity is an application developed in the RFID Lab of CATTID (Centre for the Applications of Television and for Distance Learning Techniques), research centre of Rome University “La Sapienza”, that helps tourists in their sightseeing around the city and offers value-added services for both tourists and local citizens, thanks to the use of mobile phones equipped with Near Field Communication technology. This paper describes the application’s architecture, together with the first usability test conducted on it. We exploited users’ suggestions arising from a deeper analysis of the results in order to redesign the application, increasing i t s performance, moreover obtaining more flexibility and reliability. The result is the upgraded version of the system (we called it SIMpliCity 2.0), described in par. 4. This upgraded version has been tested too with real users. The results of this second test are reported and analyzed in par. 5.
Reconstitution of cellular immunity against cytomegalovirus in recipients of allogeneic bone marrow by transfer of T-cell clones from the donor.

BACKGROUND Cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease in immunocompromised patients correlates with a deficiency of CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes specific for CMV. We evaluated the safety and immunologic effects of immunotherapy with clones of these lymphocytes in recipients of allogeneic bone marrow transplants. METHODS Clones of CD8+ cytotoxic T cells specific for CMV proteins were isolated from the blood of bone marrow donors. Fourteen patients each received four intravenous infusions of these clones from their donors beginning 30 to 40 days after marrow transplantation. The reconstitution of cellular immunity against CMV was monitored before and during the period of infusions and for up to 12 weeks after the final infusion. The rearranged genes encoding the T-cell receptor served as markers in evaluating the persistence of the transferred T cells. RESULTS No toxic effects related to the infusions were observed. Cytotoxic T cells specific for CMV were reconstituted in all patients. In vitro measurements showed that cytotoxic activity against CMV was significantly increased (P < 0.001) after the infusions in 11 patients who were deficient in such activity before therapy. The level of activity achieved after the infusions was similar to that measured in the donors. Analysis of rearranged T-cell-receptor genes in T cells obtained from two recipients indicated that the transferred clones persisted for at least 12 weeks. Cytotoxic-T-cell activity declined in patients deficient in CD4+ T-helper cells specific for CMV, suggesting that helper-T-cell function is needed for the persistence of transferred CD8+ T cells. Neither CMV viremia nor CMV disease developed in any of the 14 patients. CONCLUSIONS The transfer of CMV-specific clones of CD8+ T cells derived from the bone marrow donor is a safe and effective way to reconstitute cellular immunity against CMV after allogeneic marrow transplantation.
DEVELOPMENT OF PROTOCOLS FOR PROCESSING AND TESTING OF FOREST SEEDS

OF PROJECT PROPOSAL 1. Project No. : KFRI 389/03 2. Title of the project : Development of protocols for processing and testing of forest seeds. 3. Objectives : 1. To standardise seed processing techniques for important indigenous forest species of Kerala 2. To assess the storage physiology of forest seeds for which information is not available. 3. To develop appropriate procedures for seed viability and purity testing for certification. 4. Date of Commencement : April 2003 5. Date of Completion : March 2006 (extended up to June 2006) 6. Funding Agency and Total amount of grant sanctioned : Plan Funds Rs. 3 lakhs + 0.4 lakhs 7. Name of the principal investigator : K. C. Chacko
Radiation-Hard Dielectrics for 4H–SiC: A Comparison Between $\hbox{SiO}_{2}$ and $ \hbox{Al}_{2}\hbox{O}_{3}$

Ion implantation effects at SiO<sub>2</sub>/SiC and Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/SiC interfaces have been investigated by implanting Ar ions at the interface of oxide and SiC. Capacitance-voltage relation and breakdown properties for these dielectrics are studied before and after implantation. The results indicate that the SiO<sub>2</sub>/SiC interface is sensitive to ion fluences higher than 1 × 10<sup>11</sup> cm<sup>-2</sup>, while Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> on SiC can sustain higher fluences. In addition, the breakdown of the Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> is found to be less sensitive to the ion implantation.
Bank Lending and Asset Prices: Evidence from Bulgaria

We examine the dynamics of bank lending to companies and private households in Bulgaria by applying a non-linear Markov switching error correction model (MS-ECM). The MS-ECM provides evidence for multiple structural breaks and improves the estimation results compared to a linear model. In particular we find a more or less pronounced, time-varying relation between bank lending and asset prices. We identify periods when corporate and household loans were driven to a greater extent by supply-side rather than long-run demand-side factors. We also find evidence for a regime switch due to the introduction of administrative measures to curb the credit expansion in early 2005.