Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimum Location of EDFA based on Eye Diagram, Q-factor and Bit Error Rate Metrics

This work investigated the optimum location of Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier (EDFA) in an optical system based on analysis of BER analyzer metrics by simulation approach using Optisystem software. The simulation model will be studied based on many parameters as input power (dBm), gain of Amplifier (dBm), fiber cable length (km) and attenuation coefficient (dB/km), there are two different parameters will be analyzed at five different locations of EDFA which are Q-Factor and Bit Error Rate (BER) and also Eye Diagram, which Q-factor and BER are measurement parameters used to measure the quality of received signal at receiver.
AN EXPLORATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MOTIVATION AND THE INTENTION TO STAY IN A HIGHER EDUCATION PROGRAM

Retention within the higher education community is an area of great concern to many colleges and university administrators. It is a statistic which many institutions publish on behalf of their admissions department and one which they constantly look to improve. The following is a research study which looks into the relationship between motivation and the intent to stay in a higher education program. A model of the motivation for students to stay in an academic program developed by Young (2004) was used as the framework for this study. The specific motivational variables which will be utilized in this study are interest in coursework, role models, encouragement and age.
Harmonic Reduction by using Hybrid Active Power Filter

This paper presents a comparative analysis of Active, Passive and Hybrid Active filter with control strategies which involves instantaneous p-q theory method. A comparative evaluation of these shunt filter is carried out. A PI controller is used to control the dc capacitor voltage. The modeling of different filter topologies is done using MATLAB/Simulink.
The effects of opening trails on exotic plant invasion in protected areas on La Réunion Island (Mascarene archipelago, lndian Ocean)

RESUME. — Les effets de l’ouverture de sentiers sur l’invasion des zones protegees de l’ile de la Reunion (archipel des Mascareignes, ocean Indien) par des especes vegetales exotiques. — L’envahissement par les especes exotiques est devenu un probleme majeur au niveau des aires protegees. Une meilleure connaissance de leur impact sur le fonctionnement des ecosystemes est necessaire pour ameliorer les pratiques de gestion et la conservation des habitats. Nous suggerons que les effets des perturbations comme l’ouverture de chemins forestiers et l’invasion par les plantes exotiques sont sous-estimes. Nous avons donc quantitativement mesure le role de l’ouverture de chemins forestiers dans la colonisation par les plantes envahissantes, un phenomene en progression constante mais jamais etudie auparavant. Notre etude montre que Rubus alceifolius, la plante exotique envahissante la plus repandue a La Reunion, est capable de germer aussi bien au niveau d’un chemin etroit que d’un chemin large mais ne persiste qu’au niveau du chemin le plus large. Nos resultats montrent aussi qu’un chemin large favorise l’etablissement des plantes exotiques et determine une reduction significative de la richesse specifique. Cette etude conduit a suggerer aux forestiers de construire plutot des chemins etroits, ce qui permettrait d’empecher l’installation et la propagation de R. alceifolius et des autres plantes non indigenes. SUMMARY. — Exotic species have become a major problem in protected areas. A better knowledge of ecosystem functioning is necessary to improve management practice that facilitates habitat conservation. We suggest that small-scale disturbances such as trail opening and the effects on exotic plants invasions are underestimated. We have, therefore, quantitatively measured the effect of forest trail building on invasive plant colonization, a phenomenon in constant progression but never studied before. Our study shows that Rubus alceifolius, the widespread exotic invasive plant on La Reunion, is able to germinate on both narrow and wide trails, but persists only on the wider ones. Our results show moreover that wide forest trails favored establishment of exotics and significantly decreases species richness. We suggest to forest managers that building narrow forest trails is preferable as it will stop the persistence and propagation of R. alceifolius and other non-indigenous plants.
Indigenous breeding practices and selection criteria of sheep breed in central zone of Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

This study was conducted with the aim to generate organized information on traditional breeding practices and selection criteria for indigenous sheep types in three districts of central zone of Tigray, North Ethiopia. A total of 180 households were randomly sampled for the interview. A semi-structured questionnaire and group discussion were further used to gather information on sheep breeding practices and selection criteria. The primary reason for keeping sheep in Tanqua-Abergelle and Kola-Tembien districts were manure as sources of fertilizer, while in Adwa district cash income. In all the study districts the flock structure were dominated by breeding ewes and they accounted 38.5, 35.9 and 38.7% in Tanqua-Abergelle, Kola-Tembien and Adwa districts, respectively. Sexual maturity of female for Tanqua-Abergelle, Kola-Tembien and Adwa districts were 9.16±0.82, 8.75±1.34, and 8.86±1.04 months, respectively and for male 7.43±0.76, 6.67±0.91, and 6.64±0.95 months, respectively. Tail type and body size in Tanqua-Abergelle and Kola-Tembien were the most frequently reported traits in selecting breeding ram and ewes, while tail type and coat colour in Adwa district. Based on the present result on sheep indigenous breeding practices one may develop selection criteria and productivity schemes of the local sheep in the study districts. Key words: Adwa, breeding practice, indigenous selection criteria, Kola-Tembien, phenotypes, Tanqua-Abergelle.
Comparing the birth rate of stellar black holes in binary black hole mergers and long gamma-ray bursts

Context. Gravitational wave interferometers have proven the existence of a new class of binary black hole (BBH) weighing tens of solar masses, and have provided the first reliable measurement of the rate of coalescing black holes (BHs) in the local Universe. Furthermore, long gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) detected with gamma-ray satellites are believed to be associated with the birth of stellar-mass BHs, providing a measure of the rate of these events across the history of the Universe, thanks to the measure of their cosmological redshift. These two types of sources, which are subject to different detection biases and involve BHs born in different environments with potentially different characteristics, provide complementary information on the birth rate of stellar BHs.Aim. We compare the birth rates of BHs found in BBH mergers and in long GRBs.Methods. We construct a simple model that makes reasonable assumptions on the history of GRB formation, and takes into account some major uncertainties, like the beaming angle of GRBs or the delay between the formation of BBHs and their coalescence. We use this model to evaluate the ratio of the number of stellar mass BHs formed in BBH mergers to those formed in GRBs.Results. We find that in our reference model the birth rate of stellar BHs in BBH mergers represents a significant fraction of the rate of long GRBs and that comparable birth rates are favored by models with moderate beaming angles. These numbers, however, do not consider subluminous GRBs, which may represent another population of sources associated with the birth of stellar mass BHs. We briefly discuss this result in view of our understanding of the progenitors of GRBs and BBH mergers, and we emphasize that this ratio, which will be better constrained in the coming years, can be directly compared with the prediction of stellar evolution models if a single model is used to produce GRBs and BBH mergers with the same assumptions.Key words: stars: black holes / gravitational waves / gamma-ray burst: general
Browsing Semantics in the "Tower" Model

Browsing through a hyperdocument often leads to orientation problems ("lost in hyperspace"). Although some of these problems may be diminished by specific browsing tools, such as fish-eye views and history mechanisms, most problems are embedded in the structure of the hyperdocument. In order to detect potential problems in the use of a hyperdocument, we reduce different types of browsing actions to a unified and well know formalism: the Petri net. In this paper we describe hyperdocuments using the object-oriented model, presented in [4]. This model, unlike other reference models [6,7,10], describes objects using a number of different description layers, which are not fixed by the model, and of which none are excluded from the model. In order to use Petri nets to describe browsing, the operations dealing with the hierarchical structure of objects (composites, towers and cities) are translated into operations that are equivalent to the simple follow-link. Unlike Stotts, Furuta and Ruiz [15] we combine the operations offered by the hypertext system (or presentation layer) with the link structure of the document, in order to characterize the browsing semantics of document and system as a unity. We do this by translating system features into (virtual) link structures. By using existing analysis tools for (different kinds of) Petri nets one can easily detect potential browsing problems like unreachable nodes and links, dead ends, unlimited numbers of simultaneously displayed nodes, infinite loops, etc. Such analysis is most valuable to hypertext authors, whose biggest problem is the creation of the most appropriate links. keywords: hypertext, hyperdocument, browsing semantics, extensible data model, boolean Petri nets, timed Petri nets, complex objects, link structure.
Treatment with silver nanoparticles delays repair of X-ray induced DNA damage in HepG2 cells

The rapid development of nanomaterials during the last decade brought a technological breakthrough in many fields of human activity. NPs defined as particles having one or more dimensions of the order of 100 nm or less have found many applications in industry and medicine. The last few years brought, however, an increased concern about the biohazard aspect of the presence of NP in consumer goods and in the environment [5, 17, 33, 36]. The variety of nanomaterials, their size, shape and coating give them different biological properties and makes biohazard estimation very complicated [17, 25, 39]. In addition, the biological effect of NP likely depends on the target tissue and the way of entry. Further complications are brought about by possible interactions with other biologically active agents. Hence, a detailed study is necessary for each NP type and cell or tissue type, as well as interacting chemical or physical agents. So far, Ag NP which have antibacterial properties have been integrated into hundreds of consumer products, including cosmetics, odor-reducing clothing and underwear. Although Ag NP belong to the most often studied ones, the mechanisms of their biological effects are still not fully understood. There is a general agreement that the various, NP-induced end effects at the level, including genotoxicity and mutagenicity, disturbed mitochondrial respiration, slowed proliferaTreatment with silver nanoparticles delays repair of X-ray induced DNA damage in HepG2 cells Maria Wojewodzka, Anna Lankoff, Maria Dusinska, Gunnar Brunborg, Jolanta Czerwinska, Teresa Iwanenko, Tomasz Stepkowski, Irena Szumiel, Marcin Kruszewski
Comunidades de prática : influências no raciocínio pedagógico e ação de professoras de enfermagem

Objective. To analyze how the practice shared in communities of teaching practice in public and private universities influences the pedagogical reasoning and action of nursing professors based on Wenger’s concepts of community, negotiation of meaning, and learning. Methods. Case study conducted with two professors teaching nursing in a public and a private university in Brazil. Data collection included triangulation of sources and was conducted from April 2014 to July 2015. Data were organized in ATLAS.ti and analyzed using the constant comparative method, which generated three metacategories. Results. In both cases the program’s project is shared repertoire and grounds negotiation of meaning in the practice that takes place in the pedagogical reasoning and action phases but negotiation is different between communities and cases. Learning is either solitary or has the influence of at least one other member but does not Communities of practice: influences on pedagogical reasoning and action of nursing professors
Pengembangan Multipleks PCR (MPCR) untuk Mendeteksi Virus Penyakit Kerdil Udang Windu di Tambak pada Musim Berbeda

Stunted growth phenomenon of shrimp has caused significant lost due to its undersize. This research was aimed to analyze occurrence of viruses MBV, IHHNV and HPV, in shrimp ponds at dry and rainy seasons. Samples were shrimps cultivated for 3 to 4 months. The samples were designated as stunted, size 6.97±2.34 to 16.86±1.90 g, and Normal, size 22.94±4.62 to 40.31±8.22 g. MPCR Specific primers used for detection of MBV, IHHNV and HPV could amplify the three viruses DNA with PCR products of 261 bp, 302 bp, and 595 bp, respectively. Prevalence of MSGS viruses was not different significantly between rainy and dry season in both normal and stunted samples (P > 0.05). No correlation was found between water quality parameters and the prevalence of infection of MBV, IHHNV and HPV in normal and stunted shrimp (P > 0.05). In dry season, prevalence of infection type MSGS-related viruses was higher in stunted shrimp than normal shrimp, and prevalence of uninfected shrimp was higher in normal shrimp in both seasons. On the other hand, prevalence of infected shrimp was higher in stunted shrimp in dry season (P < 0.05). It was concluded that the MPCR can implementation as a fast detection for MSGS viruses and the viruses were responsible for the shrimp stunted growth phenomenon in shrimp ponds.
'Multilatinas' in the Americas: Dynamics of Nation Champion Policy and Asymmetrical Behaviour

From the 1990s, two former telecoms monopoly incumbents — Telefonica of Spain and Telmex of Mexico — emerged as world player Multinationals and soon dominated this sector across Latin America. This paper argues that, in both cases, national champion policies by domestic governments coincided with an asymmetrical behaviour on the part of the firms, which helped them in their quest to successfully internationalise. Empirical findings support some newly emerging theories on the asymmetrical behaviour of former monopolies which stress the importance of the timing and extent of domestic policies which can combine with ambitious internationalization strategies on the part of the firms.
QGIS approach to extract fluvial terraces for archaeological purposes using remote sensing data

Fluvial terraces, usually defining flattened surfaces, are significant geomorphic features that explains the presence of rivers at high altitudes and constitute the remains of the old river along the valley. In Iberia, many of these terraces preserve Paleolithic artifacts and document the presence of the first human communities. Nowadays, the increasing use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) provides the opportunity to analyze and test different approaches to study these geomorphological features. According to the literature, several algorithms from open source GIS software have been used, such as Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) GIS. In the recent versions, QGIS, a GIS open source software, is integrated with several algorithms from other open source software, such as GRASS GIS, System for Automated Geoscientific Analyses (SAGA), Orfeo-ToolBox (OTB), among others. Therefore, the procedures used to extract and identify the fluvial terraces can be performed using QGIS software. The objective of this work was to combine Remote Sensing (RS) data and GIS algorithms, considering QGIS software, to identify fluvial terraces in order to support archaeological prospection of Paleolithic artifacts along the Minho River (Portugal border). Different data were used such as the Digital Surface Model (DSM), the slope derived from DSM, the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) map derived from Sentinel-2A image (summer), the Land Use Land Cover (LULC) derived from Corine Land Cover (CLC) and hydrological data from Minho valley. The data used were in WGS84 UTM zone 29 (EPSG:32629) and the spatial resolution adopted was 10 meters. The method proposed allowed the definition of a fluvial staircase considering several terraces levels along the Minho valley. Different scenarios were tested, and the results were FOSS4G-Europe 2018 Academic Program Running Head Title OSGeo Journal Volume 18, Issue 1 2 validated considering in situ measurements, in order to find the best weight associated to each parameter.
An Analysis of the Dust Halo and Extinction toward X Persei

Interstellar dust grain models are not sufficiently constrained by UV extinction curves to allow researchers to distinguish between them. By testing grain models in the X-ray regime and applying elemental abundance constraints, we show to what extent the models can reproduce the observables in these regimes and whether they are capable of doing so while respecting the abundance limits. We tested the MRN and WD grain models using the UV extinction and X-ray halos along the line of sight toward X Per. Both models provide reasonable fits to the UV extinction and X-ray halos but cannot do so while respecting the elemental abundance constraints. Furthermore, the abundances and NH required to reproduce the observables in these two regimes are not consistent with each other, reflecting the fact that X-ray regime constraints were not taken into account when the models’ grain size distributions were constructed, and thus the models are incomplete. Both MRN and WD underestimate the hydrogen column density NH when the standard model parameters for RV = 3.1 are used. The problem is mitigated when model parameters derived from fitting the UV extinction are used, but this does not necessarily lead to agreement between the two regimes.
Surface Interaction between Ethylene, Hydroxide Ion, and Titanium Dioxide Anatase (001): A First Principle Density Functional Theory Study

This study covers surface interaction between ethylene, hydroxide ion, and Ti5C adsorption site of titanium dioxide anatase (001). The result of the relaxation suggests that stability was reached on Ti5C site with the adsorption energy of -0.57 eV, while the changes in the bond length and angle between atoms on ethylene were negligible. Calculation of states density suggests that there was no orbital splitting between HOMO and LUMO states of ethylene after bonding, indicating that there was no covalent chemical bond formed, and hence the bond can be categorized as physisorption. It can be concluded that ethylene was adsorbed weakly on (001) surface of titanium dioxide, which was also line with the previous result. Meanwhile, the potential energy surface calculation between ethylene and hydroxide ion revealed that hydroxide ion was more stable in Ti site of TiO2. The bond energy calculation of co-adsorption between ethylene and hydroxide ion suggests that adsorption tends to be happened chemically with the bond energy of –2.56 eV, which means that hydroxide ion may give significant effect to the adsorption of ethylene.
Solution structure of Domains IVa and V of the tau subunit of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase III and interaction with the alpha subunit

The solution structure of the C-terminal Domain V of the τ subunit of E. coli DNA polymerase III was determined by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The fold is unique to τ subunits. Amino acid sequence conservation is pronounced for hydrophobic residues that form the structural core of the protein, indicating that the fold is representative for τ subunits from a wide range of different bacteria. The interaction between the polymerase subunits τ and α was studied by NMR experiments where α was incubated with full-length C-terminal domain (τC16), and domains shortened at the C-terminus by 11 and 18 residues, respectively. The only interacting residues were found in the C-terminal 30-residue segment of τ, most of which is structurally disordered in free τC16. Since the Nand C-termini of the structured core of τC16 are located close to each other, this limits the possible distance between α and the pentameric δτ2γδ′ clamp–loader complex and, hence, between the two α subunits involved in leadingand lagging-strand DNA synthesis. Analysis of an N-terminally extended construct (τC22) showed that τC14 presents the only part of Domains IVa and V of τ which comprises a globular fold in the absence of other interaction partners.
Evaluation of brain monoamines in diabetic rats treated with quercetin

Food derived antioxidants have a strong potential effect on the long term as chemo preventive agents in disease states involving oxidative stress. This study was done to evaluate the brain oxidative stress induced by streptozotocin (STZ) in rats with consequent changes in brain neurotransmitters and examined the potential protective role of quercetin (QCT) against the changes STZ induced. Forty male albino rats were used in this study and divided into four groups (10 rats in each group) as follow: Group I (control group) received a vehicle, group II (quercetin group) received daily intra peritoneal injection of QCT (15 mg/kg body weight/day), group III (diabetic group) diabetic rats received a vehicle, group IV (treated group) diabetic rats received a daily intra peritoneal injection of QCT (15 mg/kg body weight/day). After 8 weeks, blood, urine and brain tissues samples were collected. Oxidant/antioxidant parameters were determined included DNA damage by measuring urinary8-hydroxyguanosine (8-OHdG) by Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) analysis using electrochemical detector. Brain neurotransmitters were estimated by RP-HPLC and UV detection. The current data appeared that, STZ effectively increased oxidative stress parameters along with disturbances in brain monoamines. Quercetin injection attenuated these elevation, thus a significant decreased was observed in oxidative stress parameters and brain neurotransmitters in treated group compared to diabetic one. We concluded that quercetin seems to be a highly promising agent in protecting the diabetic rats against oxidative damage and in preventing disturbances in brain monoamines due to STZ induced diabetes.
Kinetic Study on Iso-concentration Hydrogen Peroxide Bleaching of Poplar Chemi-thermomechanical Pulp by the Process of Continuous Chemical Supplement

In the authors’ previous studies, a bleaching process based on continuous chemical supplementation (CCS) was proposed to improve the effectiveness of peroxide bleaching of chemi-thermomechanical pulp (CTMP). In this study, the kinetic model of the CCS process of peroxide bleaching was applied to poplar CTMP to explore how the bleaching rate was affected. The model was based on the rate of chromophore elimination characterized by the brightness gains of bleached pulp. The reaction rate of chromophore destruction proceeded via a rapid initial phase followed by a slow phase. The equation of reaction rate was confirmed. The value of reaction order was -3.62, and the activation energy was 288.8 kJ/mol. The developed kinetic model was a good fit for the experimental results.