Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gravity Waves in Titan's Atmosphere

Abstract Scintillations (high frequency variations) observed in the radio signal during the occultation of Voyager 1 by Titan (Hinson and Tyler, 1983, Icarus 54, 337-352) provide information concerning neutral atmospheric density fluctuations on scales of hundreds of meters to a few kilometers. Those seen at altitudes higher than 25 km above the surface were interpreted by Hinson and Tyler as being caused by linear, freely propagating (energy-conserving) gravity waves, but this interpretation was found to be inconsistent with the scintillation data below the 25-km altitude level. Here an attempt is made to interpret the entire scintillation profile between the surface and the 90-km altitude level in terms of gravity waves generated at the surface. Numerical calculations of the density fluctuations caused by two-dimensional, nonhydrostatic, finite-amplitude gravity waves propagating vertically through Titan's atmosphere are performed to produce synthetic scintillation profiles for comparison with the observations. The numerical model accurately treats the effects of wave transience, nonlinearity, and breakdown due to convective instability in the overturned part of the wave. The results indicate that wave phase speeds could not have exceeded 2 m sec -1 and must have been oriented in the meridional (north-south) direction if there were strong zonal winds on Titan. The high-altitude scintillation data were accurately recovered with a freely propagating wave solution, confirming the analytic model of Hinson and Tyler. The amplitude, phase speed, and horizontal and vertical wavelengths of the freely propagating waves are consistent with their having been generated in the convective boundary layer at Titan's surface. It is found that the low-altitude scintillation data can be fit by a model where a component of the gravity waves becomes convectively unstable and breaks near the 15 km level. A definitive value for the amplitude of the breaking wave cannot be obtained without better knowledge of its horizontal wave-length and phase speed. If the breaking wave had the same horizontal wavelength, approximately 4 km, as the freely propagating waves, then its vertical perturbation velocity near the surface would have been ∼1.4 cm sec -1 , and its phase speed would have been ∼20 cm sec -1 . This component could also have been generated by convection near the surface. Alternatively, it is estimated that the breaking wave could have been forced by topographic relief of 60-300 meters. The large-scale structure of the observed scintillation profile in the entire altitude range between 5 and 85 km can be simulated by a model where the freely propagating and breaking waves are forced at the surface simultaneously. Further analysis of the Voyager 1 Titan low-altitude scintillation data, using inversion theory appropriate for strong scattering, could potentially remove some of the ambiguities remaining in this analysis and allow a better determination of the strength and source of the waves.
A Theory of the Intergenerational Dynamics of Inflation Beliefs and Monetary Institutions

We develop a stochastic overlapping-generations model with endogenously evolving heterogeneous beliefs on the degree of inflation protection to be provided by markets versus the monetary authority. It incorporates adaptive learning from inflation history and imperfect empathy in the cultural transmission of beliefs. Analytical results on endogenous inflation beliefs and socially-optimal inflation are derived first in a within-generation voting equilibrium that defines a particular degree of inflation aversion of a society's monetary institution. Then further theoretical and simulation analysis of the intergenerational dynamics of inflation and inflation beliefs provides insights into the long-run evolution of population types and social institutions, exploring the interactions of three central forces: the persistence of inflation, the degree of inflation aversion of the central bank and the recurrent irregular cycles of agent type proportions and subsequent majority switches. Our main contribution consists in showing how the endogenous transmission of inflation beliefs and monetary institutions in a stochastic economic environment can be understood as a process of intergenerational learning from history combined with a political economy mechanism that amends legislation and a socialization process that transmits experienced knowledge.
Genetic diversity of wild and cultivated Rubus s pecies in Colombia using AFLP and SSR markers

The Andean blackberry belongs to the genus Rubus, the largest of the Rosaceae family and one of the most diverse of the plant kingdom. In Colombia Rubus glaucus Benth, known as the Andean raspberry or blackberry, is one of the nine edible of the genus out of forty-four reported species. In this study wild and cultivated genotypes, collected in the Central Andes of Colombia were analyzed by AFLP and SSR markers. Sexual reproduction seems to play an important role in maintaining the genetic variability in R. glaucus, and the viability of using the SSR of Rubus alceifolius to characterize Colombian Rubus species was clearly demonstrated. All species evaluated produced very specific banding patterns, differentiating them from the others. Both AFLP and SSR produced bands exclusive to each of the following species: R. robustus, R. urticifolius, R. glaucus, and R. rosifolius. The SSR markers differentiated diploid and tetraploid genotypes of R. glaucus.
Investigation on circular asymmetry of geographical distribution of mortality risk in Hiroshima atomic bomb survivors

While there are a considerable number of studies on the relationship between the risk of disease or death and direct exposure from the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, the risk for indirect exposure caused by residual radioactivity has not yet been fully evaluated. One of the reasons is that risk assessments have utilized estimated radiation doses, but that it is difficult to estimate indirect exposure. To evaluate risks for other causes, including indirect radiation exposure, as well as direct exposure, a statistical method is described here that evaluates risk with respect to individual location at the time of atomic bomb exposure instead of radiation dose. The proposed method is applied to a cohort study of Hiroshima atomic bomb survivors. The resultant contour map suggests that the region north-west to the hypocenter has a higher risk compared to other areas. This in turn suggests that there exists an impact on risk that cannot be explained by direct exposure. INTRODUCTION The risk of disease or death caused by exposure to atomic bomb radiation has been evaluated using estimated radiation doses based on information concerning age, shielding conditions and distance from the hypocenter under the assumption that the radiation dose decreases with increasing distance from the hypocenter (see, e.g., Preston et al 2007; Matsuura et al. 1997). For details of the dosimetry system used, see e.g. DS02 system (Cullings et al. 2006; Young and Kerr 2005). The corresponding risk analyses focused solely on the risk from direct exposure to the atomic bomb, while the risk from indirect exposure due to residual radioactivity has been not evaluated in previous analyses. This means that the geographical distribution of risk has been structurally restricted to concentric circles under the assumption that the influence of direct exposure essentially depends on the distance from the hypocenter. For example, Peterson et al. (1983) have fitted Cox's proportional hazard models to cancer mortality rates, to investigate circular asymmetry around the hypocenter in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Gilbert and Ohara (1983) have analyzed data on acute symptoms. They divided the survivors in the Life Span Study (LSS) cohort, registered at the Radiation Effect Research Foundation (RERF), into eight groups according to the survivors' location at the time of atomic bomb exposure relative to the hypocenter and evaluated the relative risk of each octant compared with that for survivors in the octant of east-north-east direction. However, we consider their approach to be not enough to investigate circular asymmetry around the hypocenter, because they evaluated only relative risks for each octant with respect to the location at exposure relative to the hypocenter and did not consider heterogeneity of risk in each octant.
Prognostic and predictive factors in colorectal cancer

3 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 5 INTRODUCTION 6 AIM 6 DEFINITIONS 6 HISTORY 6 CARCINOGENESIS 7 INCIDENCE AND RISK FACTORS 9 CLINICAL PICTURE 9 PROGNOSIS 16 THE REASON FOR PROGNOSIS 16 DEFINITIONS 17 WHAT MAKES A FACTOR? 18 PROGNOSTIC FACTORS 20 1 TUMOUR-RELATED FACTORS 21 2 HOST-RELATED FACTORS 26 3 ENVIRONMENT RELATED FACTORS 27 4 LABORATORY FACTORS 29 PREDICTIVE FACTORS 31 MATERIALS & METHODS 34 RESULTS 37 PAPER I 37 PAPER II 37 PAPER III 38 PAPER IV 38 DISCUSSION 39 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 48 REFERENCES 49 APPENDIX 57 PAPER I 58 PAPER II 64 PAPER III 70 PAPER IV 77
Assessing the Effect of Culture on Theory of Mind Performance in South African Students

Theory of mind (TOM) is the ability to infer another person’s beliefs, desires and feelings. TOM is believed to be a universal ability. However research has indicated differences in TOM development across cultures. South Africa provides a unique opportunity to research the effect of culture on adult TOM performance. In this study data was collected on three culture groups: English, Afrikaans and Sotho/Tswana cultures. The participants were tested on the three tasks most commonly used in adult TOM research: Strange Stories, Reading the Mind in the Eyes and Faux Pas. The results of this study indicate that culture does not impact on performance on the Strange Stories, Reading the Mind in the Eyes and Faux Pas, supporting the hypothesis that TOM is uniform across cultures. However the sample used was highly educated so these results should be generalized cautiously. The results also indicate that features of the tasks are biased for non-English cultures.
Recent extreme floods on Mars

New high-resolution images of the large (>20 km wide) flood channels near the Cerberus Plains and in Marte Vallis, Mars, reveal streamlined islands, longitudinal grooving, and terracing, similar to features in the Channeled Scabland (USA). These are the youngest catastrophic flood channels on Mars, formed less than 200-500 × 10 6 years ago, and fluvial morphologies are preserved on scales of a few metres. Peak discharges are estimated as more than 10 7 m 3 s -1 . Our data indicate that the water originated in the region north of the Cerberus Plains, and was probably related to volcanic processes.
ANTIBACTERIAL EFFECT OF HONEY*

It is known that honey strongly inhibits the growth of microorganisms. Already in 1892, the Dutch scientist Van KETEL demonstrated that honey has bactericidal effects. A great number of research reports have subsequently confirmed his findings (PLACHY, DOLD, PRICA, DUISBERG, LAVIE, BUCHNER). Responsible for these antiseptic properties are both the high sugar content and, above all, the various bacteriostatic constituents. WHITE and his colleagues in the United States take the great merit of having analysed the thermolabile and light-sensitive components of this inhibitory substance (classed with the inhibine of Dold): WHITE demonstrated that the antibacterial effects of inhibine result from the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) which is enzyme-produced – by a natural glucose oxidase system in honey, and as a by–product of glucose oxidase activity in honey or sugar dilutions. The hydrogen peroxide which is forming is partially responsible, alongside of other components, for the antibacterial effect of honey. What relation exists between the inhibine values recorded during chemical assays (following hydrogen peroxide accumulation/minute) and the results of bioassays – inhibition of the bacterial growth not on nutrient agar plates containing honeys (produced in FRG) but in dialysed honey solutions (in test tubes)? How great is the antibacterial effect of the enzyme prepared from the secretion of the hypopharingeal glands? Which is the effect of light or of other inhibitory factors on the inhibine activity? Our investigations were precisely intended for answering these questions.
Does Perseverance Pay as Much as Being Smart?: The Returns to Cognitive and Non-cognitive Skills in urban Peru 1

This paper estimates the returns to cognitive and socio-emotional (“non-cognitive”) skills in a developing country setting using a recent labor force survey of the working-age (14-50) urban population in Peru designed to measure cognitive skills (Peabody Picture Vocabulary, verbal fluency, working memory, and numeracy/problem-solving) and personality traits to proxy for socio-emotional skills (Big-five Factors; Grit - Duckworth et al 2009), and also collects data on some instrumental variables as skills are measured contemporaneously to schooling and earnings. We corroborate findings from developed countries that both types of skills are important correlates of earnings. After correcting for the potential endogeneity of measured skills vis-a-vis schooling, the findings confirm that both socio-emotional and cognitive skills are equally valued in the Peruvian labor market. A one standard deviation change in an overall cognitive skill measure and in the perseverance facet of Grit each generates a 9% increase on average earnings, conditional on schooling. The effect size of an increase in years of schooling (about 3 years) is a 15% increase in earnings, conditional on skills. The returns to other socio-emotional skills vary across dimensions of personality: 5% higher earnings for emotional stability while 8% lower earnings for agreeableness.
Women Empowerment through Participation in Micro-Credit Programme: A Case Study from Bangladesh

Problem statement: Numerous micro-credit organizations have been emerged as the form of mushroom in Bangladesh in the recent times. All of them are providing micro-credit to the poor women with the view of poverty reduction and empowering the rural women. Thus, the researchers take an attempt to check that to what extent these micro-credit programmes are effective in empowering rural women. Approach: The study was attempted to assess the impact of micro-credit programmes in empowering rural women in Bangladesh. All women of Rampur village were the population of the study. Empirical data for the study were collected from 180 women of Rampur village under Palashbari sub-district of Gaibandha district by using structured questionnaire. Among these 180 women 50% were active members of MF NGOs and rest were individual housewives. Lists of micro-credit NGO women were collect from concerned MF NGOs and from these lists, respondent women were selected as random basis. Similarly, lists of the individual housewives were collected from union council office and from that lists respondent women were selected randomly. Results: The result of the study revealed that only 21% of the respondent women are empowered and rest of them is not yet empowered. However, among the empowered respondent women 69% of them are the active members of micro-credit programmes. The result of the study also explored that among the socio-economic factors of the women institutional participation, media exposure and family land holdings are very important for women empowerment. While, micro-credit use by own self, duration of micro-credit use and monitoring by the concerned MF NGO are found as significant factors for women empowerment who are associated with micro-credit programmes. Conclusion: It was therefore, recommended that if it was possible to provide micro-credit to rural women and monitor them regularly, that women by themselves use this money in productive sector then they must be attained empowerment either today or tomorrow.
Spatial distribution of southern brown shrimp (Farfantepenaeus subtilis) on the Amazon continental shelf: a fishery, marine geology and GIS integrated approach

The spatial distribution of the southern brown shrimp Farfantepenaeus subtilis (Perez-Farfante, 1967) was studied based on industrial fishing fleet activities and is associated with geological and oceanographic characteristics of the benthonic environments on the Amazon continental shelf. Using a geographical information system (GIS) this paper sought to calculate the relative abundance of brown shrimp based on catch per unit effort (CPUE) and compare it with bathymetry, type of sedimentary structure, sedimentation rate and bottom salinity. As a result, we have concluded that the relative abundance (in terms of CPUE) is not uniformly distributed in space. Spatial analysis indicates that commercial trawling efforts were made in the (foreset) region of the subaqueous Amazon delta at depths of 40 to 60 m. In this region, prawn are responsible for the bioturbation of the sediments and the creation of a sedimentary structure called mottled mud. In the foreset region, sedimentation rates progressively increased up to 10 cm.yr-1; re-suspension was reduced and bottom salinity was high (~ 36). It appears that all of these factors define a stable muddy area with intense bioturbation. This notable biological activity is to be explained by the occurrence of a high F. subtilis abundance that appears to originate in a microbial loop. We concluded that by combining fishery information with environmental data from a GIS, it was possible to identify abundance distribution patterns for southern brown shrimp and other economically important fishery resources and to understand how they change on a large spatial-scale.
Culling and Mortality among Swedish Crossbred Sows

The aim of this thesis was to investigate culling and mortality among Swedish crossbred sows. Data collection was prospective (2002–2004) from 21 piglet producing herds in south-central Sweden. Average annual removal rate was 49.5%. Of 14 234 removed sows, 85.2% were slaughtered, 10.5% euthanized on farm and 4.3% found dead. Most sows were removed in low parities and soon after weaning. The most common removal reasons were reproductive disorders (26.9%), old age (18.9%) and udder problems (18.1%). In addition, 96 females euthanized or found dead in one herd during 2006 were post mortem examined. Most sows were euthanized due to lameness and had arthritis as primary finding. Removal hazard was estimated using survival analysis. The factor with highest impact on sow removal was days after farrowing, followed by parity and herd×year combination. Removal hazard was highest shortly after weaning and lowest in medium parity numbers. Moreover old age at first farrowing, small litters and long intervals between weaning and next farrowing resulted in high removal hazard. Genetic parameters were estimated on genetic material supplied by the breeding organisation Quality Genetics. Heritability for sow longevity was estimated from 0.03 to 0.12 with survival analysis and linear model analysis. Correlations between estimated breeding values for longevity traits and traits included in the running Swedish breeding evaluation were estimated. Sow longevity was significantly correlated with low age at first farrowing, high litter weight at three weeks, low growth rate (birth to 100 kg) and inferior conformation (measured at station). Genetic improvement of sow longevity would be possible by including stayability from first to second litter in the breeding evaluation.
Assessing Hydrosystem Influence on Delayed Mortality of Snake River Stream-Type Chinook Salmon

Abstract Snake River stream-type Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha exhibited substantial delayed mortality despite recent improvements in oceanic and climatic conditions. These salmon declined sharply with the completion of the Columbia River hydrosystem in addition to other anthropogenic impacts and changes in oceanic conditions. Previous analytical approaches have compared management options for halting the population decline. The predicted benefits of these options on salmon recovery hinged on whether the source of the mortality that takes place in the estuary and during early ocean residence is related to earlier hydrosystem experience during downstream migration (i.e., delayed hydrosystem mortality). We analyzed the spatial and temporal patterns of mortality for Chinook salmon populations to determine whether delayed mortality for the Snake River populations decreased during the recent period of favorable oceanic and climatic conditions. We found that Snake River stream-type Chinook salmon popu.
A holistic, learning-centred approach to building evaluation capacity in development organizations

There is growing pressure on development organizations to improve their evaluation systems and capacities. This presents considerable challenges for time- and resource-poor organizations in developing countries. Evaluation capacity development (ECD) approaches are needed that are appropriate and effective for such organizations. We argue that this requires a long-term, holistic, participatory, learning-centred approach that aims to develop learning organizations and build the capacity of whole organizations and their stakeholders. It also needs to incorporate local knowledge and ideas and ongoing meta-evaluation of ECD activities. We describe this approach and how it was applied in a four-year action research project with a non-governmental organization in Nepal. Drawing on findings from this project and various follow up activities, we suggest some principles and strategies for designing and implementing an effective and sustainable approach to ECD that can help to address the many challenges and issues we have identified.
Heterogeneous ice nucleation of viscous secondary organic aerosol produced from ozonolysis of α -pinene

Abstract. There are strong indications that particles containing secondary organic aerosol (SOA) exhibit amorphous solid or semi-solid phase states in the atmosphere. This may facilitate heterogeneous ice nucleation and thus influence cloud properties. However, experimental ice nucleation studies of biogenic SOA are scarce. Here, we investigated the ice nucleation ability of viscous SOA particles. The SOA particles were produced from the ozone initiated oxidation of α-pinene in an aerosol chamber at temperatures in the range from −38 to −10 °C at 5–15 % relative humidity with respect to water to ensure their formation in a highly viscous phase state, i.e. semi-solid or glassy. The ice nucleation ability of SOA particles with different sizes was investigated with a new continuous flow diffusion chamber. For the first time, we observed heterogeneous ice nucleation of viscous α-pinene SOA for ice saturation ratios between 1.3 and 1.4 significantly below the homogeneous freezing limit. The maximum frozen fractions found at temperatures between −39.0 and −37.2 °C ranged from 6 to 20 % and did not depend on the particle surface area. Global modelling of monoterpene SOA particles suggests that viscous biogenic SOA particles are indeed present in regions where cirrus cloud formation takes place. Hence, they could make up an important contribution to the global ice nucleating particle budget.