Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Late Pleistocene to Holocene vegetation and climate changes in northwestern Chukotka (Far East Russia) deduced from lakes Ilirney and Rauchuagytgyn pollen records

This paper presents two new pollen records and quantitative climate reconstructions from northern Chukotka documenting environmental changes over the last 27.9 ka. Open tundra‐ and steppe‐like habitats dominated between 27.9 and 18.7 cal. ka BP. Betula and Alnus shrubs might have grown in sheltered microhabitats but disappeared after 18.7 cal. ka BP. Although the climate was rather harsh, local herb‐dominated communities supported herbivores as is evident by the presence of coprophilous spores in the sediments. The increase in Salix and Cyperaceae ~16.1 cal. ka BP suggests climate amelioration. Shrub Betula appeared ~15.9 cal. ka BP, and became dominant after ~15.52 cal. ka BP, whilst typical steppe communities drastically reduced. Very high presence of Botryococcus in the Lateglacial sediments reflects widespread shallow habitats, probably due to lake level increase. Shrub Alnus became common after ~13 cal. ka BP reflecting further climate amelioration. Simultaneously, herb communities gradually decreased in the vegetation reaching a minimum ~11.8 cal. ka BP. A gradual decrease of algae remains suggests a reduction of shallow‐water habitats. Shrubby and graminoid tundra was dominant ~11.8–11.1 cal. ka BP, later Salix stands significantly decreased. The forest‐tundra ecotone established in the Early Holocene, shortly after 11.1 cal. ka BP. Low contents of green algae in the Early Holocene sediments likely reflect deeper aquatic conditions. The most favourable climate conditions were between ~10.6 and 7 cal. ka BP. Vegetation became similar to the modern after ~7 cal. ka BP but Pinus pumila came to the Ilirney area at about 1.2 cal. ka BP. It is important to emphasize that the study area provided refugia for Betula and Alnus during MIS 2. It is also notable that our records do not reflect evidence of Younger Dryas cooling, which is inconsistent with some regional environmental records but in good accordance with some others.
Exchange options and spread options with stochastically correlated underlyings

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the valuation of exchange options and spread options with stochastically correlated underlying assets. Specially, the correlation is determined by market betas of underlying assets and depends on the level of the variance of the market index. Based on the closed form of the moment generating function of the log-return vector, we obtain pricing formulae for exchange options and spread options. Finally, numerical analysis illustrates the impacts of the market risk factor on option prices.
Learning from the Experiences of Collegiate Athletes Living through a Season- or Career-Ending Injury

An athlete’s identity is often related to the goals of their team and their ability to achieve excellence in sport. A threat to an athlete’s identity is a seasonor career-ending injury. Athletes can respond to seasonor career-ending injuries in ways detrimental to their psychosocial well-being (Ivarsson, Tranaeus, Johnson, & Stenling 2017). This study built upon existing knowledge by seeking to better understand the lived experiences of Division I collegiate athletes who experienced a seasonor career-ending injury. There is a need for ongoing recommendations for helping athletes process their injuries. Researchers used a descriptive phenomenological approach. Researchers interviewed ten college athletes who experienced a seasonor career-ending injury. Themes included: (1) physical and emotional stress, (2) resistance to resiliency, (3) importance of relationships with others, and (4) appreciation and cultivation for new possibilities outside of sport. This research provided insight for behavioral health professionals on injury response. This included the need for Posttraumatic Growth responses such as (1) building strong support preand post-injury, (2) recognizing healthy coping mechanisms, (3) cultivating new identities for athletes, (4) helping an athlete with identity loss, (5) helping athletes recognize new possibilities post-injury, and (6) helping an athlete maintain an appreciation for life.
Optimization of Window-to-Wall Ratio for Buildings Located in Different Climates: An IDA-Indoor Climate and Energy Simulation Study

This study investigates different cases to obtain optimal Window-to-Wall ratio (WWR) in seven different climate conditions based on the Köppen–Geiger climate classification. The optimal WWR was decided based on the minimum amount of total energy use (total of cooling, heating, and lighting energy use) of a building model during a complete year. The impact of overhang and automatic blinds were assessed on the optimization of WWR for a building with integrated automatic lighting control. Moreover, three different windows with different U-values and features were employed in order to analyze their effect on the energy use and WWR of the building. IDA-Indoor Climate and Energy (IDA-ICE) was used to carry out the simulations. The software has been validated based on ASHRAE Standard 140. Based on each climate condition, orientation, employed window type, and comfort conditions, an optimal range with a specific combination of window with blind, overhang, or neither was found.
The Role of Networks in the Internationalization Process of Firms from Emerging Economies: The Nigerian Perspective

The purpose of this study was to explore the role of networks in the internationalization process of firms from emerging economies using Nigeria as a case study. A qualitative approach was employed to realize this purpose by using a sample of eight (8) top executives serving in four (4) leading Nigerian multinationals headquartered in Lagos. The participants had over 15 years of experience working with their respective firms in varying capacities. The study revealed that both social and business networks played critical roles in the internationalization of the investigated multinationals. However, it was observed that as much as social relationships remained crucial, they seemed less influential than the business networks in the subsequent international expansion activities of the firms. The findings contributed to the knowledge by providing insights into the international expansion patterns of Nigerian companies rarely found in empirical studies. By implication, multinationals are to embrace the relevant best practices for developing and managing firms’ relationships with other stakeholders. Among the key messages are: prepare well, approach professionally, invest time, take a long-term view, learn from successful, failed and struggling relationships, and exit with least acrimony.
Europe Abhors Donald Trump: The Opinion on the 2020 U.S. Presidential Elections and Their Candidates in the European Newspapers

What is the opinion held by the European press on the U.S. election campaign and the candidates running for president? What are the predominant issues that attract the attention of European print media? Does Europe detest Donald Trump? The objective of the present study is to analyze the perception European commentators had of the 2020 race for the White House. The media, the audience, and European governments were captivated more than ever before by how the U.S. election campaign unfolded, fixing their gaze on the contest between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Through a combined quantitative and qualitative methodology, a combination of content analysis and the application of framing theory (hitherto scarcely applied to opinion pieces), our research centers on exploring the views, opinions, and analyses published in eight leading newspapers from four European countries (France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom) as expressed in their editorials and opinion articles. This study observes how the televised presidential debates were commented on, interpreted, and assessed by commentators from the eight newspapers we selected. The goal was to identify the common issues and frames that affected European public opinion on the U.S. presidential campaign and the aspirants to the White House.
A Parallelized Database Damage Assessment Approach after Cyberattack for Healthcare Systems

In the current Internet of things era, all companies shifted from paper-based data to the electronic format. Although this shift increased the efficiency of data processing, it has security drawbacks. Healthcare databases are a precious target for attackers because they facilitate identity theft and cybercrime. This paper presents an approach for database damage assessment for healthcare systems. Inspired by the current behavior of COVID-19 infections, our approach views the damage assessment problem the same way. The malicious transactions will be viewed as if they are COVID-19 viruses, taken from infection onward. The challenge of this research is to discover the infected transactions in a minimal time. The proposed parallel algorithm is based on the transaction dependency paradigm, with a time complexity O((M+NQ+N^3)/L) (M = total number of transactions under scrutiny, N = number of malicious and affected transactions in the testing list, Q = time for dependency check, and L = number of threads used). The memory complexity of the algorithm is O(N+KL) (N = number of malicious and affected transactions, K = number of transactions in one area handled by one thread, and L = number of threads). Since the damage assessment time is directly proportional to the denial-of-service time, the proposed algorithm provides a minimized execution time. Our algorithm is a novel approach that outperforms other existing algorithms in this domain in terms of both time and memory, working up to four times faster in terms of time and with 120,000 fewer bytes in terms of memory.
Improved triplex real‐time PCR with endogenous control for synchronous identification of DNA from chicken, duck, and goose meat

Abstract The authentication and labeling of meat products, concerning origins and species, are key to fair trade and to protect consumer interests in the market. We developed an improved triplex real‐time PCR approach to simultaneously identify chicken, duck, and goose DNA in meat, including an endogenous control to avoid false negatives. Our method specifically detected DNA from chicken, duck, and goose, and showed no cross‐reaction with DNA extracted from other meat types. The detection limits of chicken, duck, and goose DNA were 0.001–0.00025 ng, 0.0025–0.0001 ng, and 0.001–0.00001 ng, respectively, and we were able to simultaneously identify DNA from two distinct origins using as little as 0.1% of total meat weight. Our newly generated triplex real‐time PCR method with endogenous control exhibited high specificity, sensitivity, and efficiency for simultaneous identification of DNA from chicken, duck, and goose in meat.
Clinico-pathological Studies on Canine Mammary Tumors in Dachshund Dog

Background: The study was aimed to find out the epidemiological data of canine mammary tumor in Dachshund breed in relation to age, growth rate, lymph node status, histological type of tumor and to compare hematological alterations of any within the tumor to compare hematological alterations due to different types of tumor.Methods: Mammary neoplasms were clinically evaluated. The measurement of total erythrocyte count (TEC), total leukocyte count (TLC), platelet count and packed cell volume (PCV %) was carried out as per standard methods. Histological observation was performed by staining with Hematoxylin and Eosin stain. Benign and malignant mammary tumors were found highest in the younger age group of 8 to 12 years and lowest thereafter.Result: 79.16% cases of the mammary tumors located in the inguinal region were found. The fast growth rate was observed in 45.83% of tumors. The hematological profile showed no difference. However, the platelet count in the malignant mammary gland tumor dogs showed significant (P less than 0.01) decrease than the normal and benign tumor dogs. Distant metastasis to lung was found only in 8.33% of the total mammary tumor dogs. Mammary tumors with stage I, stage II and stage III were restricted to benign mammary tumors whereas, those with stage IV and stage V were of malignant mammary tumors.
Young Adults’ Qualitative Self-Reports of Their Outcomes of Online Sexual Activities

Online sexual activities (OSA) refer to Internet-based activities, behaviours, and materials that are sexual in nature. Many young adults engage in OSA, but report doing so infrequently. Most OSA outcome research has focused on negative effects of only some types of OSA (e.g., viewing pornography online). The goal of this study was to enhance knowledge on the range of OSA outcomes by qualitatively exploring young adults’ self-reported negative and positive outcomes from OSA experiences generally. University/College students from Canada (n = 246), Germany (n = 411), Sweden (n = 299), and the USA (n = 123) completed an online survey that included open-ended questions about “one of the most positive/negative effects that engaging in online sexual activities has had on your life”. More participants provided positive outcome responses than negative outcome responses. Qualitative analysis of the responses suggested a wide range of positive and negative outcome content that fit into seven bi-polar, higher-order themes: No Outcomes, Relationship Outcomes, Sexual Experience, Emotional Outcomes, Knowledge, Personal Outcomes, and Security. We found no variations in themes or their respective codes across the four countries. The findings suggests that researchers, educators, health care and psychology providers need to include multiple dimensions of positive and negative, personal and interpersonal, sexual and non-sexual OSA outcomes in their work
The emission reduction effect of environmental information disclosure: a Chinese city perspective

To address the problem of air pollution caused by industrialization and urbanization, China has issued various types of policies related to environmental protection. However, policies regarding environmental information disclosure have long-term advantages in reducing information asymmetry and improving regulatory efficiency, and are selected as the research objects of this paper. Using the "Environmental Information Disclosure Measures (Trial)" in 2008 as a quasi-natural experiment, our analysis utilizing the difference-in-differences method shows that (1) as the quality of environmental information disclosure increase, the production and emission of sulfur dioxide decrease, and this relationship is robust to different specifications; (2) a possible channel composed of green patents and the pollution source information and treatment information (PITI) disclosure index has a same-direction moderating effect on the reduction of pollutants; and (3) our findings are particularly pronounced in subsamples of large-scale and resource-intensive cities. Overall, this paper reveals micro evidence on the effects of environmental information disclosure policy on the reduction of pollutants, thus providing timely insights for the further improvement and implementation of the policy.
Chemical composition and antibacterial activity of Mentha pulegium L.and Mentha spicata L. essential oils

The analysis and identification of essential oils hydrodistilated from two mint species (Mentha spicata and Mentha pulagium) by means of gaz chromatography and mass spectroscopy was realized in this investigation. In addition, their antagonistic activity against some pathogenic bacteria was screened. Acceptable yield (1.0 and 0.87 % for M. Pulagium and M. Spicata respectively) was obtained. From the leaf essential oil Mentha spicata 57 compounds were separated, representing 97,022% of the total essential oil mass from which 44 compounds were elucidated. The major compound was carvone (59.40 %), other components present in appreciable contents were: limonene (6.12%), 1,8-cineol, germacrene- D (04.66%), β-caryophyllene (2.969 %), β-bourbonene (2.796 %), α-terpineol (1.986 %) , Terpinene-4-ol (1.120 %). The essential oil of Mentha pulegium, 43 compounds were separated, representing 99.52 % of the total essential oil mass from which 29 compounds were elucidated. The major component was pulegone (38.815 %), other components present in appreciable contents were: menthone (19.240 %), piperitenone (16.528 %), piperitone (6.348 %) and isomenthone (6.096 %), Limonene (4.293 %), Octaan- 3-ol (1.854 %). Furthermore, screening of the two essential oils for their antagonistic activity against pathogenic bacteria reveals that they have not an appreciable activity except that observed against Streptococcus pyogenes (20 and 16 mm for M. Spicata and M. Pulagium respectivelly). This growth inhibition was obtained by the undiluted essential oils. However, more research on the factors influencing the biosynthesis and bioactivity of essential oils is needed as essential oils are gained important applications in food and pharmaceuticals industry.
On the role of object knowledge in reference production

In two language production experiments, we investigated whether stored knowledge of the typical color of objects affects spoken reference. In experiment 1, human speakers referred to objects with colors ranging from very typical (e.g., red tomato) to very atypical (e.g., blue pepper). The probability that speakers redundantly include color in their descriptions was almost linearly predicted by the degree of atypicality. In experiment 2, we extended this finding to references to objects for which color is inherently a less salient property in stored knowledge (i.e., objects with a highly characteristic shape, making color less important for recognition). Following these findings that typicality affects reference production, we conclude that speakers utilize stored knowledge about everyday objects they refer to. We discuss the implications of our findings for artificial agents that generate natural language, arguing that computational models fall short in capturing general knowledge about typical properties of objects.
Pak Mun Dam’s long term impact on local residents’ livelihood

Multidimensional well-being is an important method for understanding the social functioning of communities affected by the Pak Mun Dam, 26 years after its construction. This is the first quantitative research on the well-being of these communities. In six of eight well-being dimensions, the more distant communities are faring better than those in close proximity to the dam. Furthermore, 24 of 40 items that represent each dimension have statistically significant lower means in the affected community. This result shows the long-lasting nature of negative effects on communities and without appropriate policy action, negative impacts will linger preventing developmental progress from occurring.
The precursors of acceptance for a prosumer-led transition to a future smart grid

ABSTRACT Centralised electricity grids around the world are transitioning towards greater renewable distributed storage, and pivotal to transition is the relationship between prosumers and utilities. Evidence of this changing relationship is observed through a three-year (2016–2019) Australian smart grid pilot. This study investigates the precursors of technology acceptance of smart batteries, because a lack of acceptance presents risks to implementation. We draw on: scholarly literature, government documents, interviews and observations of the pilot implementation for a qualitative, exploratory, longitudinal and thematic analysis. We outline four findings: Firstly, we suggest a reframing of the influence of agency in IoT-systems: The concept of ‘behaviour’ might be conditionally substituted for ‘agency’ in the case of smart grids. Secondly, we reconfirm prosumers require different agency-focused engagement than is currently offered if private investment in batteries is to be encouraged. Thirdly, prosumers do not always desire increased agency – there is a trade-off between agency and trust under the duress of high system complexity. Finally, we extend a variation of the technology acceptance model (known as RITAM) to include Perceived Trust, Agency and Complexity in relation to smart grids, and note these acceptance precursors pose both a risk and an enhancer to smart grid implementation.
Adaptive iterative error recovery detection algorithm for uplink massive multiple-input multiple-output systems

In this paper, an error recovery (ER) detection based on the lattice reduction (LR) algo-rithm with adaptive iteration is presented for uplink massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems to obtain an improved bit error rate (BER) performance, especially when the number of active users increases. In the proposed algorithm, as the result of LR pre-processing, a larger diagonally dominant index (DDI) is used to measure the diagonal dominance of gram matrix for the initialisation of the ER detection. In addition, the larger DDI could be further used to realise adaptive iteration, which helps to strike a trade-off between the BER performance and the computational complexity. Moreover, two properties of the DDI are derived, and the simulation results show that the larger DDI leads to better detection performance, and it could be widely applied to linear elimination and MIMO detection algorithms.
School Counselor Perceptions of Preparation and Importance of College and Career Readiness Counseling

This study addresses school counselors’ perceptions of the importance of college and career readiness counseling and their preparedness to implement aspects of such counseling with students and families. Results from surveying school counselors in a large urban district serving a diverse, low-income student population indicated that school counselors did not believe they were well prepared to provide many aspects of college and career readiness counseling, although they perceived that each area was important to their work with students and families. We discuss implications for training school counselors in college and career readiness counseling.
Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Monitors Cutaneous Wound Healing under Angiogenesis-Promoting Treatment in Diabetic and Non-Diabetic Mice

During wound healing, the rapid re-establishment of a functional microcirculation in the wounded tissue is of utmost importance. We applied optical coherence tomography (OCT) angiography to evaluate vascular remodeling in an excisional wound model in the pinnae of C57BL/6 and db/db mice receiving different proangiogenic topical treatments. Analysis of the high-resolution OCT angiograms, including the four quantitative parameters vessel density, vessel length, number of bifurcations, and vessel tortuosity, revealed changes of the microvasculature and allowed identification of the overlapping wound healing phases hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. Angiograms acquired in the inflammatory phase in the first days showed a dilation of vessels and recruitment of pre-existing capillaries. In the proliferative phase, angiogenesis with the sprouting of new capillaries into the wound tissue led to an increase of the OCT angiography parameters vessel density, normalized vessel length, number of bifurcations, and vessel tortuosity by 28–47%, 39–52%, 33–48%, and 3–8% versus baseline, respectively. After the peak observed on study days four to seven, the parameters slowly decreased but remained still elevated 18 days after wounding, indicating a continuing remodeling phase. Our study suggests that OCT angiography has the potential to serve as a valuable preclinical research tool in studies investigating impaired vascular remodeling during wound healing and potential new treatment strategies.