Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Baldrige Award Announcement and Long Memory in Shareholder Wealth

Abstract In a competitive global market environment, the successful institution and implementa-tion of a comprehensive quality improvement programme is pivotal in attaining and sustaining business excellence. Tangible evidence of a company's level of excellence can be demonstrated by winning a prestigious quality award like the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA). While the intention to raise the level of competitiveness in all business sectors is lauded, two pertinent issues arise. Firstly, do investors or stock market participants share the belief that quality leads to business excellence. This implies that the stock market participants may have limited knowledge and experience in assessing the impact of quality improvement initiatives on performance (Easton & Jarrell, 1998). Secondly, if investors do believe and are able to assess the benefits quality improvement initiatives bring, would they acknowledge the benefits these quality awards bring in terms of sustained returns? This paper, an extension from studies by Przasnyski & Tai (2002) and Ramasesh (1998), attempts to investigate the long run sustainability of returns by recipient companies of the MBNQA from 1988 to 1996. Using long memory models commonly used in the financial econometrics literature, it was found that most recipient companies do not display long memory or, in short, recipient companies cannot sustain the previously generated significant abnormal returns on the day of announcement of winning the award.
Open Research Online The impact of selfadvocacy organizations on the subjective wellbeing of people with intellectual disabilities: A systematic review of the literature

Background: A high sense of subjective well-being has been associated with more prosocial behaviours, better health, work productivity and positive relationships. The aim of this systematic review was to explore what impact self-advocacy has on the subjective well-being of people with intellectual disabilities. Method: The authors reviewed articles focusing on the perspectives of adults with intellectual disabilities engaged with self-advocacy groups. Searches were performed in PsychINFO, Web of Science, SCOPUS, MEDLINE and CIHNL databases, resulting in 16 articles meeting the inclusion criteria. A framework synthesis approach was used to extract data deductively based on the Dynamic Model of Wellbeing. Results: While self-advocacy has a positive impact on all domains of the Dynamic Model of Wellbeing, negative impacts associated with participation in a self-advo-cacy group were also reported. Conclusions: The benefits of participating in self-advocacy groups on the well-being of individuals with intellectual disabilities outweigh the disadvantages.
Differently Glycosidated 2-Amino-2-deoxy-d-glucopyranosiduronic Acids as Building Blocks in Peptide Synthesis†

Seven differently glycosidated sugar amino acids (SSAs) derived from glucosamine have been prepared. Following standard solution-phase peptide-coupling procedures, the glycosidated 2-amino-2-deoxy-D-glucopyranosiduronic acids were condensed with natural amino acids to furnish useful heterodi- and -trimeric building blocks to be used in peptide synthesis. Combinations of these building blocks yielded hetero-oligomeric peptides with two sugar amino acid units in different distances to each other. These were prepared to evaluate the influence of glycosidic side chains on the peptide backbone. Conformations of selected examples were examined by means of ROESY spectroscopy in combination with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and circular-dichroism (CD) studies.
Nitric Oxide in the Ventromedial Nucleus of the Hypothalamus Mediates Action of Estrogen on Goat Ingestive Behavior

To examine the hypothesis that whether nitric oxide (NO) in the brain is involved in actions of estrogen on reproduction and ingestion in ruminant species, three experiments were conducted using ovariectomized (ovx) or ovx plus estradiol (E) treated goats. In experiment 1, distributions of cells containing estrogen receptor (ER) or NO synthase (NOS) in the hypothalamus were determined immunohistochemically, which revealed that both ER and NOS positive cells were localized abundantly in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH). In experiment 2, several doses of sodium nitroprusside (SNP), an NO donor, was administered into the unilateral VMH of ovx goats immediately before the presentation of food. Injection of 1.5 μg SNP resulted in an abrupt decrease in food intake during the first 60-min of a 240-min feeding period. However, higher doses of SNP had no effect on food intake. In experiment 3, on the other hand, NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA), a NOS inhibitor, was injected into the bilateral VMH of animals which had been treated with E. Although following the vehicle injection food intake was significantly suppressed by E as was seen in the VMH intact animal, this E-induced decrease in food intake was prevented by administering L-NMMA. This NOS inhibitor, on the other hand, altered neither the timing of the luteinizing hormone surge nor estrous behavior. These data suggest that NO in the VMH is involved in mediation of suppressive effect of E on ingestive behavior in the goat.unctions in the goat.
Trichloroethylene Carcinogenic Potency

Mention of tradename, specific equipment, or proprietary product does not constitute a guarantee or warranty by the State of California or imply approval to the exclusion of other products. The conclusions reached herein represent those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the State of California. Current U.S. regulatory policy regarding the carcinogenic potential of trichloroethylene (TCE) in humans is conflicting. Weight-of-evidence considerations show either no or inconsistent associations between chronic TCE exposure and excess human cancer risk. Occupational exposure limits are so great (538,000 µg/m3) that daily absorbed doses are greater than the rodent no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL). Using the regulatory strength-of-evidence approach, recommended ambient air concentration limits (1.1 µg/m3) are derived using the default linearized multistage model. The latter assumes a radiomimetic mode of action, a highly questionable assumption in light of published TCE mechanism of action data. Given the current state of U.S. regulatory policy on this material, credible analyses of the data are needed from neutral nongovernmental organizations.
Activation of human Vγ9Vδ2 T cells by a Brucella suis non‐peptidic fraction impairs bacterial intracellular multiplication in monocytic infected cells

Human gamma delta T cells are considered to play an important role in the early response to infection with intracellular pathogens. Evidence has been presented that the percentage of gamma delta T cells with Vgamma9Vdelta2 phenotype is dramatically increased in the peripheral blood of patients with acute brucellosis. This specific gd T-cell subpopulation is known to be activated by small non-peptidic molecules that can either be produced by the pathogen itself or released from damaged cells after infection. In the present work we provide evidence that Vgamma9Vdelta2 T lymphocytes from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of healthy donors can be specifically activated by non-peptidic low-molecular-weight compound(s) from Brucella suis lysate. Moreover, we show that Vgamma9Vdelta2 T cells activated by this B. suis fraction produce tumour necrosis factor-alpha and interferon-gamma, which reduce bacterial multiplication inside infected cells.
Tuned Random Forest Algorithm for Improved Prediction of Cardiovascular Disease

Data mining is becoming more and more popular and essential in the field of medicine. The large amounts of data produced everyday by the medical industry are very complex and voluminous to be processed and analyzed by the usual traditional means. In such cases data mining comes into play. Despite the presence of several prediction algorithms, the efficiency is questionable due to the presence high error rate. Therefore it is necessary to choose a prediction algorithm that gives higher accuracy with fewer errors. The aim of this paper is to create a system for efficient and accurate prediction of cardiovascular disease. The datasets for the process is taken from UCI machine learning repository. The datasets are tested for accuracy using ANOVA technique. The algorithms are investigated using the WEKA tool. The best features for prediction are obtained from feature selection algorithms. Various classification algorithms are applied on the datasets to identify the most efficient algorithm. We observe that random forest gives consistently better accuracy than other algorithms. Tuning is done on the random forest algorithm to further improve the accuracy of prediction system.
The Dynamic Relationship Between Accidents, Drivers' Licensing and Automobile Registrations; A Vector Autoregression Perspective

Aims/ Objectives: The paper seeks to investigate the dynamic relationship between drivers licensing, vehicle registration, motorbike registration and accidents. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: The secondary data was collated on a monthly basis on Accidents, Driver license, Motor Registration and Vehicle Registration that spanned 9 years from January 2010 to December 2018 from the Upper East Regional Office of the Drivers Vehicle and License Authority. *Corresponding author: E-mail: hmkpamma@bpoly.edu. gh; Kpamma et al.; AJPAS, 7(2): 44-58, 2020; Article no.AJPAS. 57065 Methodology: The data was analyzed using vector autoregression model to establish the dynamic relationship between the variables. The R and Eviews softwares were used in the analysis. Results: The findings revealed that in the short-run and long-run neither Driver license, Vehicle Registration, Motor Registration none Accidents cannot influence much on each other but experienced their own shock. Findings further ascertain that Accidents can granger cause vehicle registration to change but the remaining variable have no much influence on accidents.Although, accidents can granger cause vehicle registration to change, the remaining variables had no influence on accidents. The finding finally concluded that ARCH-LM test indicated that there was no ARCH effect present in the series implying that the Vector Autoregression model was appropriate to establish the dynamic relationship between the variables.
Impact of GUI personalization of a word processor on a learning activity course

This research investigates the impact of an activity of personalization of a graphical user interface by the learners, on their behavior of using the ILE. The analysis conducted is based on an exploitation of the interaction traces between the learner and the interface of a word processor software with advanced personalization and auto-writing features including training of spelling and a learning analytics management module. The results show that, several variables related to the facilitation conditions recognized by the ILE partly explain the writing activity. Navigation variable can be correlated with the knowledge of customization possibilities. If the automatic sentence generator has no significant effect on the number of misspellings found in the documents submitted, the intention to personalize the interface seems to have a greater effect than the act of personalization itself. But the impact of the personalization process on learning outcomes is still to be established.
Carnation Italian ringspot virus.

SUMMARY Carnation Italian ringspot virus (CIRV) was obtained only twice in tests on several thousand carnations in Britain during 15 yr. The two isolates, from cultivars ‘Dusty Sim’ imported from Italy and ‘Orchid Beauty’ from the U.S.A. , were indistinguishable serologically and in host reactions. CIRV was cultured in Nicotiana clevelandii and assayed in Chenopodium amaranti-color; it was readily transmitted by leaf-rubbing inoculation to 62 of 104 plant species tested. Virus-free carnations were infected only by injecting purified preparations into the stem, and developed chlorotic spots and oval rings in the younger leaves. CIRV was eliminated from Nicotiana clevelandii plants grown for 8 weeks at 36°C. CIRV presents no threat to carnation growing in Britain. In N. clevelandii sap, CIRV was infective at a dilution of 1/50000 to 1/100000, after heating 10 min at 85 °C (but not 90 °C), and after 16 weeks at 16 °C or 23 weeks at 2 °C. After freeze-drying, the virus survived at least 7 yr storage under vacuum at room temperature. CIRV was still infective and antigenic after treatment for 30 min at 18 °C with ultraviolet radiation (750 μW/cm2), ultrasound, 2% formaldehyde or 0.2% tri-sodium ortho-phosphate (TSP). Infectivity was not wholly abolished in 30 min by 2% TSP. The virus was readily purified by overnight maceration of N. clevelandii leaves extracted in phosphate buffer + butanol, followed by differential centri-fugation. Purified preparations contained abundant isometric particles c. 29 nm diameter, and like other serotypes of the tomato bushy stunt-pelargonium leaf curl group, gave three or four specific bands in density-gradient centri-fugation. The bands corresponded to four Schlieren peaks in analytical centrifugation. Virus from the lower bands was usually less invasive in N. clevelandii than from the upper bands, although the material in the different bands contained similar amounts of nucleic acid. Only one antigenic component was found by Immunoelectrophoresis; different serotypes of the TBSV-PLCV group differed widely in immunoelectrophoretic behaviour. The present cryptogram of CIRV is */*:*/*:S/S:S/*.
Aboveground Production of Seven Marsh Plant Species in Coastal Louisiana

Results of a 2—yr evaluation of aboveground production of 7 plant species commonly found in Louisiana's coastal marshes show a generally higher level of production compared to other studies. In 5 of the 7 species significant growth occurred throughout the year. Calculated annual production in grams per square metre for each species was; Distichlis spicata–3237; Juncus roemerianus–3416; Phragmites communis–2318; Sagittaria falcata–1501; Spartina alterniflora–2658; Spartina cynosuroids—1355; and Spartina patens–6043. Sampling variability, expressed as the ratio of the standard error to the mean x 100, averaged between 8 and 18 different species. Instantaneous loss rates (mg x g(—1) x day(—1)) of dead vegetation from the marsh, averaged over the year, ranged from 4.7 for P. communis to 25.2 for S. falcata. See full-text article at JSTOR
Inhibition of DNA Polymerases Used in Q-PCR by Structurally Different Soil-Derived Humic Substances

Real-time PCR for the quantitative assessment of microbial genes in DNA extracted from environmental samples is increasingly being used in microbial ecology studies. A significant problem with the quantitative aspect of the method is the possible inhibition of the PCR process by humic substances co-extracted with the DNA. A comparison of the inhibition exerted by five structurally different humic substances on six commercially available DNA polymerases revealed large differences in the resistance of the polymerases to inhibition. Depending on the DNA polymerases (or their formulation) the addition of Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) to the mastermix reaction generally increased the resistance to the different humic substances and decreased differences between the polymerases. One of the tested polymerases was clearly hampered by the addition of BSA, indicating that BSA cannot be added to just any mastermix to improve enzyme performance. The structural differences in the tested humic acids suggest that the mechanism of the inhibition is not a feature of all organic structures, but mainly related to the presence of certain phenolic or quinonoid structures.
Virtual Iterative Precoding Based LTE POMA Channel Estimation Technique in Dynamic Fading Environments

: A method of channel estimation based on antenna characteristics in angular domain is proposed in this paper. The transmitter and receiver antenna characteristics are sampled with finite sampling frequency and finite bandwidth. The physical channel perceived by the system is a filtered channel, causing the physical channel to lose its strength into multiple taps with dominant channel power, which estimate few unknown subcarriers. These taps in physical channel are analogous to virtual in the discrete-time domain perceived by the system, which draws less gains from the antenna sections. By the proposed work, these virtual channels improves the gain and attenuation of signal transmitted through iterative precoders of Long Term Evolution (LTE) transmitters and receivers set of antennas. An analogy of the above proposed precoding technique is drawn with the time-domain Position-orthogonal multiple access (POMA) path channel model through a filtered channel estimation with infinite temporal resolution of the sampled signal. Proposed model improves the performance of LTE communication system with POMA antennas by providing a perfect channel state information (CSI) including spatial precoding and beamforming. The implementation of the proposed model is simulated in a new dynamic mxn tabs fading scenario path. The comparative results shows a better performance than the existing surveyed methods.
Cannibalism and kin recognition in Delena cancerides (Araneae: Sparassidae), a social huntsman spider

Social behaviour in spiders is rare: of the 39 000 species of spiders known, only 23 are considered to be cooperatively social. Delena cancerides is a social species of the huntsman spider that is endemic to Australia. This species is virtually unique among social spiders, having evolved social behaviour in the absence of a snare web. It is thought that this form of social behaviour in D. cancerides has evolved via the sub-social route, that is, the extension of an ancestrally occurring period of maternal care and the delayed dispersal of juveniles. Most social spiders show no aggression towards non-kin conspecifics, prompting suggestions that spiders cannot recognize kin; however, D. cancerides individuals are highly aggressive towards conspecifics introduced from outside their own colony. In order to determine whether selective aggression in D. cancerides has its basis in kin recognition, tolerance behaviour was assessed in the context of kinship and size. We observed that, in general, juveniles preferred to starve than engage in cannibalism of any conspecifics, related or not. However, where cannibalism did occur, non-kin were preferentially eaten, indicating that this species is clearly capable of kin recognition. Size thresholds were also established, below which juveniles are tolerated by adults and above which aggressive interactions leading to death occur. We conclude that kin recognition and juvenile dispersal explain the uncharacteristically high levels of genetic polymorphism in this species.
Evolution of foraging ecology in Fennoscandian tits (Parus spp.)

Species belonging to the same genus exploit similar resources in a similar manner. Despite their general similarities in behaviour, they differ in morphology, and these differences are often interpreted as adaptations for use of different resources. Here we report on the relation between morphology, habitat selection and feeding ecology in seven tit species (Parus spp.) in Fennoscandia. A problem previously disregarded in most ecomorphological studies is that members of a guild with closely related species share their common ancestry. This historical legacy causes similarity in ecology and morphology. We have used phylogenetic information with proper comparative methods to reveal the evolutionary associations. Our field data represented the winter, when tits commonly form mixed-species flocks and exploit non-renewable and limited food resources. Our rigorous analysis confirmed the previous suggestions that the smallest tit species tend to forage in the exterior tree parts whereas the heavier species use the inner parts. Another ecomorphological pattern is that tits inhabiting coniferous habitats have more slender bills than those inhabiting deciduous habitats. After removing the effects of historical legacy, we found strong support for adaptive interpretations of among-species variation in habitat selection and foraging site selection. Ecological variation along either of these two niche axes is associated with predictable morphological variation.
On allometric equations for predicting body mass of dinosaurs

Packard and colleagues investigate the prediction of the body mass of dinosaurs, using allometric models, advocating parameter estimation via direct optimization of a least-squares criterion on arithmetic axes rather than the conventional approach based on linear least-squares regression on logarithmic axes. We examine the statistical assumptions underpinning each approach, and find the method of Packard to be conceptually unsatisfactory as it assumes absolute rather than relative variability in body mass for a given long-bone circumference, which is biologically implausible. Their proposed approach is thus unduly sensitive to small relative errors for large mammals; as the largest (the elephant) is comparatively light for its large-bone circumference, the resulting model grossly overestimates the body mass of small mammals and is likely to substantially underestimate the body mass of dinosaurs. It is also important to note, however, that the error bars for the conventional model already indicate substantial uncertainty in body mass, such that for example, the body mass of Apatosaurus louisae may be as high as 63 metric tonnes, or as low as 23 metric tonnes, with a modal value of 38 metric tonnes.
New Forced Ventilation Technology for Inert Gas System on Tankers

This investigation is devoted to the development of a new technology for cargo holds ventilation on tankers. The quality criterion for this process is the value of the residual oxygen concentration inside the hold. The long duration of the process and its high cost directly determine the quality of tanker operation. They directly affect the duration of the operating mode and the speed of tanker loading with a new type of cargo. Time reduction of the inertization of cargo holds and the use of information technology to monitor its current performance can increase the income from the operation of the tanker. It was stated that forced ventilation should be used during the supply of inert gases to the cargo holds of the vessel. When inert gases enter the cargo hold as a jet there could be increased a convective transfer between air and inert gases. In this case, inside the enclosed volume of the hold, the oxygen concentration decreases to standard values in a shorter period of time. A new forced ventilation technology has been developed for the vessels inert gas system. Its use is supplemented by information technologies that give an ability to control the basic parameters of the process.