Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Farm and farmer capital foster adoption of improved quality agrochemical inputs in the cotton-wheat zone of the Punjab, Pakistan

Adoption of yield-enhancing agricultural inputs fosters agricultural intensification in low-income countries. In Pakistan, initial adoption of agrochemicals is already widespread; the low quality of much of the inputs contributes to severe health, environmental and enduring pest problems, however. While the positive influence of farm capital and farmer capital on initial adoption is well documented, the adoption of improved quality inputs is little researched. We reduce the knowledge gap investigating smallholder adoption of improved quality agrochemical inputs in the Punjab, Pakistan. Using multi-stage random sampling, a pre-tested and piloted farming household survey was administered to smallholder farming households from 18 villages across three districts of the cotton-wheat zone ( N =275). Ordered probit models show that several farming and farm capital variables (cotton crop area, farm machinery, no-tillage farming, adoption in the neighbourhood) as well as several farmer capital variables (age, education, off-farm income, agricultural extension services, source of agricultural credit) influence adoption of improved quality agrochemical inputs. Of these variables, an intensification of agricultural extension service visits appears as the most promising policy option. From a fundamental science point of view, our results provide, for the first time, evidence that adoption of improved quality agrochemical inputs is influenced principally by the same variables as initial adoption.
Approaches and challenges of automatic vulnerability classification using natural language processing and machine learning techniques

Jormakka, Ossi Approaches and Challenges of Automatic Vulnerability Classification using Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning Techniques University of Jyväskylä, 2019, 58 + 4 pp. Information Systems, Cyber Security, Master’s Thesis Supervisor: Costin, Andrei Automated vulnerability detection and prediction of vulnerability details may help security specialists to prioritize bug reports and getting earlier fixes to security related software defects. This thesis is about finding vulnerable-like descriptions from any text and classifying vulnerability severities and weakness types. Vulnerability severities are measured using Common Vulnerability Scoring System. Common Weakness Enumeration is a hierarchical list of weakness types that each vulnerability can be classified to. The scoring and weakness type information for known vulnerabilities are available on National Vulnerability Database. Many existing research about vulnerability text-only classification is limited to a narrow area, for example, specific version of Common Vulnerability Scoring System. This thesis gives an overview of classifying bug reports with severities and weakness types altogether. The Scikitlearn library’s interfaces were used extensively to implement text preprocessing, machine learning classification, and experiment validation. Experiments include stemming, lemmatization, and numerous text vectorization options and algorithms provided by the library. The results show that the keyword-based classifier using word 2-grams works as well as One-class Support Vector Machine with lemmatizing using the Term Frequency–Inverse Document Frequency preprocessing method in vulnerability detection. Vulnerability severities can be predicted better for Common Vulnerability Scoring System version 2 than its version 3. The Linear Support Vector Machine classifier got the highest F1-score in predicting both Common Vulnerability Scoring System and Common Weakness Enumeration. This thesis also presents a summary on the latest data available on the National Vulnerability Database data feeds.
Aligned chitosan nanofiber hydrogel grafted with peptides mimicking bioactive brain-derived neurotrophic factor and vascular endothelial growth factor repair long-distance sciatic nerve defects in rats

Autologous nerve transplantation, which is the gold standard for clinical treatment of peripheral nerve injury, still has many limitations. In this study, aligned chitosan fiber hydrogel (ACG) grafted with a bioactive peptide mixture consisting of RGI (Ac-RGIDKRHWNSQGG) and KLT (Ac-KLTWQELYQLKYKGIGG), designated as ACG-RGI/KLT, was used as nerve conduit filler to repair sciatic nerve defects in rats. Methods: Chitosan nanofiber hydrogel was prepared by a combination of electrospinning and mechanical stretching methods, and was then grafted with RGI and KLT, which are peptides mimicking brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), respectively. The physicochemical properties of ACG-RGI/KLT were fully characterized. In vitro, the distribution, proliferation, and secretory activity of Schwann cells were analyzed. Next, the in vivo repair potential for 15-mm rat sciatic nerve defects was examined. The recovery of regenerated nerve, muscle, and motor function was evaluated by neuromuscular histology, electrophysiology, and catwalk gait analysis. Results: We first constructed directionally aligned chitosan nanofiber hydrogel grafted with RGI/KLT peptide mixture (ACG-RGI/KLT). ACG-RGI/KLT oriented the Schwann cells, and promoted the proliferation and secretion of neurotrophic factors by Schwann cells. At an early injury stage, ACG-RGI/KLT not only enhanced nerve regeneration, but also promoted vascular penetration. At 12 weeks, ACG-RGI/KLT facilitated nerve regeneration and functional recovery in rats. Conclusions: Aligned chitosan nanofiber hydrogel grafted with RGI/KLT peptide provides an effective means of repairing sciatic nerve defects and shows great potential for clinical application.
The Impact of Emotional Intelligence on Employee Performance in Saudi Arabia Banking Sector

Saudi Arabia‟s banking sector plays an important role in the country‟s development as it is among the leading sectors in the financial sector. Considering, two main Saudi banks (The National Commercial Bank and Saudi American bank), the present study aims to observe the impact of emotional intelligence on employee performance. The components of emotional intelligence affecting employee performance include self-management, relationship management, self-awareness, and social awareness. A quantitative methodology was applied to analyse the survey results of 300 respondents over the period from 2018 to 2019. The results show that there was a significant positive impact of self-management, self-awareness, and relationship management on employee performance. However, in the Saudi banking sector, there was no impact on social awareness on employee performance.
Influence of Cutting Height on Seasonal Composition of Moringa oleifera in the Rainforest Zone of Nigeria

Moringa oleifera, a native of sub-Himalayan regions of northwestern India, is now indigenous to many countries in Africa. Matured leaves and young branches of Moringa are potentially useful livestock fodder, for ruminants (Akinbamijo et al. 2004) and non-ruminants (Ly et al. 2001). However, in Nigeria it has been grossly underexploited as it is restricted to the arid northern zone where it is used mainly as live fence and as vegetable salad. The study was initiated because not enough information on the nutritive value of Moringa foliage and its change with season, harvesting or grazing had been accumulated in Nigeria especially in the rainforest zone.
Physico-Chemical and Antioxidant Contents During Developmental Stages in Three Pomegranates Cultivars under Assiut Condition

The experiment included three Egyptian pomegranate cultivars namely as Manfalouty, Hejazy and Nab-El-Gamal. The study aimed to assess some physical and chemical characteristics in the fruits and estimate their content of some antioxidants at different stages of development. The study revealed that there were significant differences between the studied cultivars in most traits. The average weight and fruit dimension (length and diameter) significantly increased and reached their maximum values at 165 days after full bloom (maturity stage). Total soluble solids (TSS) and sugars increased while the acidity gradually decreased until they reached the optimum level in maturity. Vitamin C concentration increased progressively until the fruits reached their maturity. The total phenolics content (T.P.C) measured in the fruit peel and arils started high, and then there was a gradual decline until they minimized at fruit maturity. Total anthocyanin content of pomegranate arils and peel began low for the three cultivars and gradually increased till the end of fruit development. Hydrolysable tannin content (as mg tannic acid/ gm of dry weight basis) in peel and lit. of juice began high and rapidly decreased reaching its lowest level at fruit maturity. The differences were significant between the studied cultivars in both seasons for most abovementioned attributes.
Tunable Effect of Metal Ions on Polyelectrolyte Mechanics

iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . iv TABLE OF CONTENTS . v LIST OF FIGURES . vii LIST OF TABLES . ix LIST OF ACRONYMS (or) ABBREVIATIONS . x CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Polyelectrolyte hydrogels. 1 1.1.1 Characteristics of polyelectrolyte hydrogels . 1 1.1.2 Nanofiber fabrication and characterization. 3 1.2 Polyelectrolyte nanofiber mechanics . 5 1.2.1 Metal ion mediated crosslinking of PAA and CS. 6 1.2.2. Mechanical properties of PAA and CS hydrogels. 7 1.3 Hypothesis. 9 CHAPTER TWO: MATERIALS AND METHODS . 13 2.1. Nanofiber synthesis by electrospinning. 13 2.1.1. Variables Affecting Nanofiber Characteristics. 13 2.1.2. Fabrication parameters for PAA:CS nanofibers. 16 2.1.3. Conductivity of pre-electrospun solutions. 17 2.2. Scanning electron microscopy . 17 2.3. Infrared Spectroscopy . 18
Model Based Design of Electric drives

Electric drives are probably the most widely used electronic devices in the industry. The development process of the drives is very time-intensive, but there are many methods to reduce the development time. In this paper, the development of vector control of induction machine using Simulink is presented. Firstly, the creation of the simulation model is described; then the same model is used for code generation. We used the dSpace platform; however, any platform supported by Matlab/Simulink can be used as well. Finally, the comparison of results between simulation and real motor is presented. Keywords— AC drive, vector control, development simulation, Simulink, Code generation, dSpace.
An overexpression of the AP2/ERF transcription factor from Iris typhifolia in Arabidopsis thaliana confers tolerance to salt stress

The roles of ethylene responsive factors (ERFs) and their positive and negative regulations of abiotic stress tolerance have been widely reported. This study reports the characterization of ItERF from Iris typhifolia Kitag with respect to molecular and functional properties. The 867 bp cDNA fragment of ItERF was cloned by reverse transcription PCR from I. typhifolia. Real-time quantitative PCR revealed that ItERF expression was induced in the roots, stems, and leaves of I. typhifolia after NaCl treatment, and that ItERF expressions were significantly higher in the leaves and roots than in the stems. A green fluorescent protein marker revealed that ItERF was located to the nucleus. Plant survival and root growth of ItERF transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana L. seedlings were much better than those of the wild type under NaCl stress. Malondialdehyde content in the transgenic lines was significantly lower than that in the wild type. Growth of yeast transformants showed an enhanced tolerance to salt stress than non-transformed yeast cells. All of the results verified that the expression of ItERF had effects on plant growth under salt stress.
Analysis of Energy and Exergy for the Flat Plate Solar Air Collector with Longitudinal Fins Embedded in Paraffin Wax Located in Baghdad Center

Received: 19 January 2019 Accepted: 4 December 2019 Latent heat of the fusion for the Phase changeable materials (PCM) can be utilized as heat energy store, and this energy can be employed in different applications. In present experimental work, effect of using the embedded longitudinal fins within the paraffin wax, on the energy and exergy performance for the solar air collector was investigated under the Baghdad governorate climate. Compared with the collector without paraffin wax, the results indicated that using of paraffin wax as a thermal storage material reduces the losses of energy and exergy of the collector, high levels of heat reduction by using PCM/Fins were about 33 and 40% respectively at the peak heat charging time (12:30 PM), while the decreasing in energy and exergy losses of the collector with PCM only was about 24 and 30% respectively at the same time of charging (12:30 PM). Due to the going of sum heat to store in the paraffin wax at the charging heat time, the energy along with exergy heat gains, while efficiencies were decreased with and without fins, this decreasing in the heat was the most by using PCM/Fins and it was around 30 and 44%, respectively for energy and exergy efficiencies, while it was about 20 and 31% by using PCM only at the same time of testing. The benefit of using embedded longitudinal fins in PCM is to enhance the thermal storage efficiency by about 6% compared with the solar collector that uses PCM only.
DEVELOPMENT OF ALGORITHMS FOR GUNSHOT DETECTION

This work deals with gunshot recognition and problems connected to it. Firstly, the problem is briefly introduced and broken down to smaller steps. Next, overview of datasets is provided, relevant information sources and publications in this field, and stateof-the-art along with possible applications of gunshot recognition. The second part consists of feature selection and performance comparison. Next, sound recognition algorithms are introduced and compared, along with novel features suitable for gunshot detection. The work culminates in creating two stage gunshot detection system, with real time audio event detection. The conclusion sums up achieved results and sketches possible steps to consider for hardware realization.
The association between spinal curvature and balance in elderly women at high risk of osteoporotic fractures in primary health care

Abstract The main aim was to study the relationship between spinal curvature and balance in elderly women at high risk of osteoporotic fractures. Ninety-four women were included in this cross-sectional study. Static timed standing and dynamic balance tests were performed; spinal curvature was measured by using the Flexicurve ruler; and radiological data on vertebral fractures were gathered. The women in the hyperkyphosis subgroup had a 5.6 s longer tandem standing time eyes open (p < 0.05), tandem gait forwards (p < 0.05) and tandem gait backwards (p < 0.01) than those without hyperkyphosis. Logistic regression with the ability to tandem walk as a dichotomous outcome (cut-off ≥4 steps) showed that women with a hyperkyphosis had an age-adjusted Odds ratio of 4.5 (95% CI 1.7–12.1) to perform ≥4 tandem steps backwards and their Odds ratio to perform ≥4 tandem steps forwards was also significantly higher with an age-adjusted Odds ratio of 2.8 (95% CI 1.1–7.4). Lordotic Index was positively correlated to one-leg standing with eyes open (p < 0.05). The present study suggests an association between hyperkyphosis and a better tandem standing and tandem gait forwards and backwards.
Smart Information System Capabilities of Digital Supply Chain Business Models

This study explores how supply chain management (SCM) information system (IS) capabilities can lead to superior business performance, and what are the detailed capabilities and methods to master volatility and uncertainties in business environments. Key concepts in SC modelling have been identified for decreasing SC complexity and increasing SC agility and key methods for supply network planning and synchronisation for optimising business performance and objectives that are often contradicting at the same time. The study developed a best practice recommendation for profit-optimised SCM for companies with capital intensive and capacity constrained resources such as in the steel companies and others of the industry, and for managing their integration between SC domains and between technological and organisations’ needs simultaneously. Finally, the study shows how Industry 4.0 innovations such as Smart Services and blockchain technology can provide new value potentials such as cross-organisational network effects and increased autonomy in SC ecosystems, and concludes with suggestions for further research in needed rules and semantics for SC ecosystem collaboration.
Interactive comment on “ Estimating observation and model error variances using multiple data sets ” by Richard A . Anthes and Therese Rieckh

for observation and model in several variables, e.g., refractivity, temperature, specific humidity and relative humidity. They compare their results with previous studies and find that the error patterns are consistent. The errors characters for the GPS RO retrieved temperature and moisture are rarely discussed in previous studies, and it is good to see the estimation in the study. For the manuscript, I have some comments as follows.
Digital equity and accessible MOOCs: Accessibility evaluations of mobile MOOCs for learners with visual impairments

Despite the popular claim that massive open online courses (MOOCs) can democratise educational opportunities, this study suggests that current MOOC platforms are not designed to be accessible and inclusive for learners with disabilities. Our main goals in this study were to identify the needs and barriers that learners with visual impairments face when learning with mobile devices in MOOCs and to make recommendations for designing MOOCs that are more accessible and inclusive. We conducted this study in two phases: a user study (Phase I) and a heuristic walkthrough (Phase II). In Phase I, we conducted a user study with three university students with visual impairments to identify their needs and the barriers to learning that they encounter in mobile MOOC platforms. In Phase II, five evaluators conducted a heuristic walkthrough based on Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (World Wide Web Consortium, 2008) to examine the degree of accessibility of a MOOC platform. Overall, the results indicate that serious accessibility issues exist in MOOC platforms, preventing learners with visual impairments from fully participating in learning activities. We conclude this paper by recommending ways to design mobile MOOCs to make them more accessible for learners with visual impairments.
The Concurrence of Women and Nature in Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock: A Cultural Ecofeminist Reading

The oppression of women, as the subordinate second sex, and the exploitation of the environment have been the focus of most ecofeminist studies. In this study, the authors will discuss the patriarchal injustice suppressing women and the environment in an 18th-century literary text, Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock (1719). Through the prism of cultural ecofeminism, this article makes an effort to illustrate the formation and also interrelatedness of two main long-held cultural dichotomies: the sexist-oriented privilege of male over female and the anthropocentric privilege of human over nonhuman in the microcosmic literary scope of the 18th-century English literature. From this regard, the feminist-oriented ecological issues will be discussed according to Val Plumwood’s distinction of cultural ecofeminism. Within this theoretical framework, we try to demonstrate how the elements of a patriarchal system shape all feminine subjectivities. The present article also shows how Nature herself, as an objection to the patriarchal culture, acts as the major supporter of women throughout The Rape of the Lock.
1 BRINGING TRAVEL BEHAVIOR AND ATTITUDES TOGETHER : 2 AN INTEGRATED SURVEY APPROACH FOR CLUSTERING URBAN 3 MOBILITY TYPES 4

1 Implementing measures to improve transportation systems requires detailed knowledge of 2 potential travelers’ behavior and underlying psychological factors. Traditional travel surveys often 3 provide information about travel behavior only. Crucial aspects such as information about attitudes 4 and norms are usually not considered. However, this information is relevant to gain knowledge 5 about acceptance of planned measures, e.g., new mobility offers. Our research tries to overcome 6 these challenges by elaborating an integrated survey approach. To this aim, we combine questions 7 on mobility patterns, using a travel skeleton, and questions related to people’s norms and attitudes. 8 We conducted a travel survey in selected German cities and clustered data to define and identify 9 different urban mobility types. For this, we brought together travel behavior as well as attitudes 10 and norms. Our results showed the importance of both aspects, as travel behavior does not 11 necessarily correspond to people`s attitudes (e.g., people who like driving a car, but using transit). 12 Our clusters distinguished both: travel behavior and attitudes. Among those clusters are for 13 example convinced cyclists or eco-modes oriented pragmatics. The clustered data indicates how 14 to efficiently address travelers in order to introduce measures such as new mobility offers. 15 Von Behren et al.: Bringing travel behavior and attitudes together: An integrated survey approach for clustering urban mobility types 4
Expectations and Experiences of Technology-Rich Classrooms of Preservice and In-service Teachers in China

Technology-Rich Classrooms (TRCs) have been increasingly constructed in K12 schools. Existing studies revealed that to what extent TRCs play a role in shaping teaching and learning depends on what teachers expect to do and what they do with TRCs. This study aimed at exploring the gap between teachers’ experiences of existing TRCs and their expectations of ideal TRCs. A total of 194 preservice teachers studying at Beijing Normal University (BNU) and 149 in-service teachers who enrolled in a master program at BNU participated in the study. The Smart Classroom Inventory (SCI) a ten-component inventory revised from the previous study, was used to collect the data. Independent-samples t-tests and paired-samples t-tests revealed that: (a) both preservice teachers and in-service teachers reported significantly lower experiences of TRCs than their expectations of ideal ones in terms of most dimensions, with the only exception that preservice teachers’ Technology usage . (b) Whether in existing TRCs, or in ideal ones, both preservice teachers and in-service teachers reported relative lower scores of Flexibility , Learning data , Differentiation , Investigation , and Cooperation than other dimensions. (c) Preservice teachers reported significantly higher scores of Flexibility , Technology usage , Learning data , Differentiation , Investigation , and Cooperation than in-service teachers, while in-service teachers reported significantly higher scores of Physical design , Student Cohesiveness , Equity , and Learning experience s than preservice teachers.4) Preservice teachers reported significantly higher expectation of ideal Physical design , Differentiation than in-service teachers, while they reported significantly lower expectations of ideal Flexibility , Student Cohesiveness , Equity , and Learning experience than in-service teachers. Implications for preservice teachers’ education and in-service teachers’ professional development were discussed.