Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bridging skills demand and supply in South Africa: The role of public and private intermediaries

ABSTRACT Demand-led skills development requires linkages and coordination between firms and education and training organisations, which are major challenges considering that each represents a ‘self-interested’ entity. The need for a ‘collaborative project’ involving government, firms, universities and colleges, and other bodies is thus increasingly recognised. However, the crucial role of intermediaries has been largely overlooked. The article addresses this gap by investigating the main roles of public and private intermediaries across three case studies: sugarcane growing and milling, automotive component manufacturing, and the Square Kilometre Array sectoral systems of innovation. The research highlights the need for a move towards systemic thinking, to bridge across public and private objectives. It shows that private intermediaries play a larger role than is recognised in policy; that public–private intermediaries play crucial roles in coordination; and the potential for public intermediaries to contribute more effectively to systemic functioning.
Decoupling of DNA Methylation Status and Gene Expression Levels in Aging Individuals

Aging is a multi-factorial process, where epigenetic factors play one of the major roles in declines of gene expression and organic function. DNA methylation at CpG islands of promoters can directly change the expression of the neighbouring gene mostly through inhibition. Furthermore, it is known that DNA methylation patterns change during aging In our study, we investigated gene regulation through DNA methylation of genes up- and downregulated in long-lived people compared to a younger cohort. Our data revealed that comparatively highly methylated genes were associated with high expression in long-lived people (e.g. over 85). Genes with lower levels of methylation were associated with low expression. These findings might contradict the general model used to associate methylation status with expression. Indeed, we found that methylation in the promoter regions of all investigated genes is rather constant across different age groups, meaning that the disparity between methylation and expression only happens in older people. A potential explanation could be the impact of other epigenetic mechanisms, possibly related to stress.
Conservatism and asymmetric recognition: some evidences from Brazil

I present evidence of the value relevance of Brazilian accounting numbers under the Ohlson framework. My results suggest that book values are superior to earnings in terms of value relevance. I also show that accounting income does not incorporate economic income in a conservative way (asymmetrically). These results are consistent with the hypothesis that under the very concentrated ownership capital markets system in Brazil accounting earnings are less useful as information asymmetry reducers while book values remain relevant due to legal implications of Brazilian corporate law.
IoT Analytics: From Data Collection to Deployment and Operationalization

The VITAL smart cities platform has been introduced in an earlier chapter (Chapter 4). It comprises a set of middleware libraries and accompanying tools, which facilitate the development, deployment and operation of smart cities applications, including IoT analytics applications. The platform supports functionalities across all the phases of the IoT analytics lifecycle, which have been presented in the introductory chapter. The rest of this chapter focuses on illustrating the practical implementation of the IoT analytics lifecycle as part of the VITAL internet-of-things (IoT) platform for Smart Cities, which has been already introduced in Chapter 4. Furthermore, it presents practical examples associated with the deployment and operationalization of advanced IoT analytics, over footfall datasets collected from a smart city. IoT Data Collection. In terms of IoT data collection, VITAL enables the collection of data from heterogeneous IoT systems, notably systems that have been developed and deployed independently in the scope of a smart city. To this end VITAL defines the PPI (Platform Provider Interface) abstract interface, which enables the unification of data from diverse systems in terms of their format. In particular, VITAL enables the collection of IoT data from different systems and data sources as soon as the latter implement the PPI interface. TheVITALplatform provides also the means for managing, registering and de-registering IoT systems in its platform, based on PPIs. Furthermore, the
Deposited in DRO : 31 October 2017 Version of attached le : Peer-review status of attached

In the last few years, many countries have introduced laws combating the phenomenon colloquially known as ‘revenge porn’. While new laws criminalising this practice represent a positive step forwards, the legislative response has been piecemeal and typically focuses only on the practices of vengeful ex-partners. Drawing on Liz Kelly’s (Surviving sexual violence. Polity Press, Cambridge, 1988) pioneering work, we suggest that ‘revenge porn’ should be understood as just one form of a range of gendered, sexualised forms of abuse which have common characteristics, forming what we are conceptualising as the ‘continuum of imagebased sexual abuse’. Further, we argue that image-based sexual abuse is on a continuum with other forms of sexual violence. We suggest that this twin approach may enable a more comprehensive legislative and policy response that, in turn, will better reflect the harms to victim-survivors and lead to more appropriate and effective educative and preventative strategies.
Bitrate Control of Distributed Source Coding by Frame Prediction Method

Distributed source coding is proposed as a new video compression paradigm to shift the bulk of computation to the decoder, in order to achieve low complexity encoder design. During the decoding operation, the decoder will iteratively request for syndrome bits from the encoder to achieve certain decoding quality. This causes inconsistent bitrate and might increase the bitrate. In this study, we add a module at the decoder to iteratively predict the next to be decoded frame. Hence, the bitrate can be controlled by eliminating the need to request for more syndrome bits from the encoder. The results show that the proposed model can achieve performance close to the conventional distributed source coding model.
Meyer-Neldel Rule in Plasma Polythiophene Thin Films

In polymers, the electronic activation energy depends on the fragmentation, crosslinking, dopants, moisture and in general on the structure-environment interaction. This has a special importance in plasma polymers because fragmentation and crosslinking are usually higher than in other polymers. In this work, DC electrical conductivity of polythiophene thin films prepared by plasma (pPTh) was studied using the Meyer-Neldel (MN) rule to calculate the characteristic MN energy and temperature as a function of moisture and metallic dopants. The experimental data for pPTh synthesized in different conditions indicated that EM = 32 meV and TM = 373 K, suggesting a thermally activated conduction mechanism; however, in polymer-metal matrices with metal concentration higher than the percolation threshold, the conduction mechanism is different causing that the MN rule was only partially fulfilled. The congruence of the experimental data with the multiexcitation entropy model is discussed.
A Survey on Approaches to Build EfficientQuery Services in Cloud

Now a days there are low-cost computers, storage devices and high-capacity networks are available which led to a growth in cloud computing. Cloud provides the advantage in scalability and cost-saving. The service owners can get the advantage on scale up or down the service and only pay for the hours of using the servers. The workloads of query services are highly dynamic and serving such workloads with in house infrastructure will be inexpensive and inefficient. Data confidentiality and query privacy have become major concerns because the service providers lose the control over the data in the cloud. The data owner does not want to move to the cloud unless the data confidentiality and query privacy are guaranteed for the sensitive data.It is also necessary for a secure query service to provide efficient query processing and also reduce the in-house workload, because the purpose of using cloud resources is to reduce the need of maintaining scalable in-house infrastructure. Data confidentiality, query privacy, efficient query processing, and low in-house processing cost are the requirement for constructing practical query service in the cloud. Satisfying al this requirement will increase the complexity of building query services in cloud. Some related approaches are there which will address some aspects of problem. We give the comparative study of these approaches with their limitations.
The Concept of Building a Model of the National Blood Information System

The development of modern information technologies in medicine makes actually the creation of the national Information Systems (IS) for joint activities of medical institutions, improve the quality of health services and improve management in the health sector. One of the components of healthcare is the system of Blood Service (BS). In this work the concept of building the national system is considered on example of the IS of BS. The national IS of BS aims to track relevant information on indicators of the quality of blood products through information integration BS establishments, makes it possible to increase the level of infectious safety and quality of transfusion care. The models of integration IS of BS are offered on the conceptual level in this work for information exchange organization between BS establishments. The analysis of structures of models of integrated systems is carried out to select the rational national IS of BS.
Parameterization of Aerodynamic Roughness Length and Zero Plane Displacement Over Tropical Region Using Airborne LiDAR Data

Airborne LiDAR data has been one of the reliable data for individual tree properties estimation. High density airborne LiDAR data has been used previously for detailed reconstruction of tree geometry. The aim of this study is to estimate aerodynamic roughness over specific height ( Z o /H ) and zero plane displacement ( d o ) over forest area using airborne LiDAR data. The results of this study will be very useful as a main guideline for related applications to understand the role of carbon and hydrological cycles, land cover and land use change, habitat fragmentation, and biogeographical modeling. The airborne LiDAR data is first classified into ground and non-ground classes. The ground points are interpolated for digital terrain model (DTM) generation and the non-ground points are used to generate digital surface model (DSM). Canopy height model (CHM) is then generated by subtracting DTM from DSM. Individual tree delineation is carried out on the CHM and individual tree height is used together with allometric equation in estimating height to crown base (HCB) and diameter at breast height (DBH). Tree crown delineation is carried out using the Inverse Watershed segmentation approach. Crown diameter, HBC and DBH are used to estimate individual tree frontal area and the total frontal area over a specific ground surface is further calculated by subtracting the intersected crowns and trunks from the total area of tree crowns and trunks. The considered ground area i.e. plants area determined the final spatial resolution of the Z o /H and d o . Both parameters are calculated for different wind directions that were assumed to be originated from North/South and East/West. The results show that the estimated Z o /H and d o have similar pattern and values with previous studies over vegetated area.
A global phylogeographic survey of Sccharomyces uvarum

Yeasts belonging to the genus Saccharomyces are interesting model organisms for evolutionary and population genetics studies because of their ubiquitous distribution, relation to human activities and availability of complete genome sequence information for all species. Unlike S. cerevisiae that is closely associated to winemaking and S. paradoxus that is only isolated from the wild, S. uvarum is a cryotolerant yeast that is widely distributed in nature but can also be isolated from cider and certain wines whose fermentation is carried out at low temperatures. While in S. cerevisiae genetic divergence is associated with ecological variants, with two identified domestication events (wine and sake), in S. paradoxus geography, not ecology, drives genetic divergence. Since these aspects have not yet been studied in S. uvarum, a phylogeographic study of 50 strains isolated in Eurasia (both from the wild and man-driven fermentations), North and South America and Australasia was performed. Based on phylogenetic analysis of three nuclear genes, three main clades were found, two of them represented by isolates from two well-delimited regions (Patagonia, clade B and Australasia, clade C), and a third (clade A) including strains from the Northern Hemisphere and some strains from Patagonia. However, the recognition of a Patagonian population distinct from the population of the North Hemisphere was not supported in subsequent analyses where no phenotypic discontinuities were detected, no reproductive barriers were found and evidence for population differentiation through both nuclear genes and microsatellite markers was weak. Furthermore, domestication in S. uvarum could not be detected as, among the isolates from the Northern Hemisphere, putative domesticates could not be distinguished from wild strains. Moreover, the Australasian population showed genetic and phenotypic divergence from the remaining populations and mating studies showed partial reproductive isolation. Evidence for ancestry of the Australasian and Patagonian populations was suggested due to the presence of private alleles with high frequencies in the population. Additionally, some alleles were found to be shared by the Patagonian and Australasian populations leading to the hypothesis of a past connection between them. The ancestry signs found for the Patagonian population combined with the presence of Patagonian genotypes in the Northern Hemisphere and the absence of population structure between these populations suggest a possible migration of strains from Patagonia to North America and Eurasia. Nevertheless, this is an exploratory study that requires further analyses concerning more complete sampling and molecular data.
Explicit Runge-Kutta Methods for the Numerical Solution of Singular Delay Differential Equations

In this paper we are concerned with the development of an explicit Runge-Kutta scheme for the numerical solution of delay differential equations (DDEs) where one or more delay lies in the current Runge-Kutta interval. The scheme presented is also applicable to the numerical solution of Volterra functional equations (VFEs), although the theory is not covered in this paper. We also derive the stability equations of the scheme for the ODE y′(t) = λy(t), and the DDE y′(t) = λy(t) + μy(t− τ), where the delay τ and the Runge-Kutta stepsize H are both constant. In the case of the DDE, we consider the two distinct cases: (i) τ ≥ H , and (ii) τ < H . We evaluate the performance of the scheme by solving several types of singular DDE and a VFE.
Impact of Structural Adjustment Programme on Household Welfare and Inequality - Pakistan A Case-in-Point for the Developing Countries

In this article the impact of Structural Adjustment Programme on Household Welfare and Inequality is discussed and the situation in Pakistan is reviewed as a Case-in-Point which will be useful in studying the situation in other developing countries. A computable general equilibrium model is used to analyse policies under structural adjustment programmes for Pakistan. This model was used to analyse the economic implications of two key elements in the structural adjustment programmes, namely fiscal strictness and trade liberalization policy. The experiment was based on a combination of the said two elements. The objective of this experiment was to determine the possibility of making up the existing trade deficit and revenue losses due to the abolition of tariff. Three variables were considered in this experiment – increase in sales tax, increase in income tax, and cut in government’s consumption expenditures. It was observed that a cut in government consumption expenditure tends to outperform other fiscal stances in terms of household and economy-wide welfare indicators. The results suggest that targeting the government’s consumption expenditures tends to be a real and potent tool for reducing government budget deficit and to cover losses arising out of the import tariff abolition.
Short-term dynamics of Quercus ilex advance regeneration in a Pinus nigra plantation after the creation of small canopy gaps

Aim of the study : The aim of the research is to analyse the role of Quercus ilex advance regeneration in the stand regeneration of pine plantations after small-sized canopy openings, and to assess the influence of the forest stand and the canopy opening. The performance of the advance regeneration under the pine plantation is also examined. Area of study : A Pinus nigra plantation in dry Continental Mediterranean climate in eastern Spain. Materials and Methods : The tree regeneration of ten canopy openings of 0.17-0.43 ha was monitored during five years after treatment. It was also sampled in 0.12 ha-plots in the non-treated pine plantation surrounding the openings. Main results : An important increase in the height of Q. ilex regeneration was observed in the openings, unlike what was found in the intact pine plantation. In the pine plantation, stand density showed a moderate positive influence on the density of Q. ilex regeneration, whereas in the canopy gaps Q. ilex height was negatively influenced by stand density before the opening. Research highlights : The canopy opening triggered a response in Q. ilex advance regeneration, although height growth rates seemed to reduce over time. The results support the view that promoting Q. ilex in pine plantations may require different management strategies depending on the characteristics of the pine overstorey and on the density and size of the advance regeneration. Key words: Mediterranean forest; stand initiation; seedling resprout; group selection cutting; truffle
Insect visitation of peduncular and petiolar extrafloral nectar glands on castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) plants in Southern California

Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) is a myrmecophytic plant species with specialized extrafloral nectar (EFN) glands that serve to attract predatory insects, which in return defend plant-tissues against herbivores. The EFN glands on castor bean plants are located along the leaf petioles as well as on the peduncles of its imperfect (unisexual) flowers. This field-project evaluates the richness, diversity, and species assemblage of insects visiting EFN glands located on (female and male) flower peduncles and leaf petioles on castor bean plants growing in a Southern California coastal landscape. We detected that EFN glands on female-flower peduncles were visited by an insect community that was distinct from that of the other two EFN gland types on castor bean. Additionally, the insects visiting EFN glands on male-flower peduncles more closely resembled those observed visiting EFN glands on leaf petioles. We conclude that the observed differences in the biotic defense of foliar and unisexual floral tissues on castor bean are congruent with the optimal plant-defense strategy of a monoecious pioneer species.
Effective Preconditioners for Large Integral-Equation Problems

We consider effective preconditioning schemes for the iterative solution of integral-equation methods. For parallel implementations, the sparse approximate inverse or the iterative solution of the near-field system enables fast convergence up to certain problem sizes. However, for very large problems, the near-field matrix itself becomes too crude approximation to the dense system matrix and preconditioners generated from the near-field interactions cannot be effective. Therefore, we propose an approximation strategy to the multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA) to be used as a preconditioner. Our numerical experiments reveal that this scheme significantly outperforms other preconditioners. With the combined effort of effective preconditioners and an efficiently parallelized MLFMA, we are able to solve targets with tens of millions of unknowns in a few hours. (5 pages)
Clinical Pharmacology of Teicoplanin in Neonates: Effects and Pharmacokinetics

Teicoplanin is a glycoside antibiotic which consists of five closely related glycopeptide antibiotics with similar antibacterial properties to vancomycin that were first isolated in 1976. Teicoplanin is active against many gram-positive anaerobe microorganisms and is particularly potent against clostridium species. It is also active against most Listeria, enterococci and staphylococci including methicillin-resistant strains. Nonviridans and viridans streptococci, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and enterococci are inhibited by teicoplanin. Teicoplanin has been used to treat a wide variety of infections, including osteomyelitis and endocarditis caused by methicillin-resistant and methicillinsusceptible staphylococci, streptococci, and enterococci. Teicoplanin has a spectrum of antimicrobial action similar to vancomycin, but teicoplanin has some advantages in that it only needs to be given once a day, does not need to be given as slowly as vancomycin and can be given by intramuscular injection. Teicoplanin cannot be given by mouth. Teicoplanin is excreted unchanged in the urine. The half-life of teicoplanin is 100 hours in adults and 2 1/2 days in children. Teicoplanin has a large distribution volume and long half-life and a loading dose is recommended. In infants, the loading dose of teicoplanin is 16 mg/kg administered intravenously followed by 8 mg/kg once daily. The target trough concentration of teicoplanin ranges from 15 to 30 µg/ml. The incidence of hepatic dysfunction, renal impairment and thrombocytopenia is 14.8%, 20%, and 14%, respectively, when the serum teicoplanin concentrations range from < 20 µg/ml and ≥ 20 µg/ml. The aim of this study is to review the effects and the pharmacokinetics of teicoplanin in neonates.
Morphological Observation of Interaction between PAMAM Dendrimer Modified SWCNT and Pancreatic Cancer Cells

With the aim of observing morphological changes of pancreatic cancer cells transfected by PAMAM dendrimer modified single walled carbon nanotubes(SWCNT-PAMAM complexes), the SWCNT-PAMAM complexes were prepared and characterized by atom force microscopy. Then the prepared SWCNT-PAMAM complexes with different concentration such as 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 g/mL, were incubated with human pancreatic cancer cell line BXPC3 cells for 12 to 72 hours, the cytotoxicity of SWCNT-PAMAM complexes was investigated, cell slips were prepared and observed by transmission electron microscopy. Results showed that SWCNT-PAMAM complexes were prepared successfully, and could be transfected into human pancreatic cancer cells by the way of cell pinocytosis. With the extension of the transfecting time, rounded granular SWCNT-PAMAM complexes located not only in the cytoplasm, but also in the lysosome, as well as in the nucleus. Compared with normal control group, there existed no significant change in pancreatic cancer cell’s morphology, the SWCNT-PAMAM complexes within 25g/ml did not exhibit obvious toxicity to pancreatic cancer cells. In conclusion, the prepared SWCNT-PAMAM complexes may be a low toxic, good stable vector for gene or drug delivery system.