Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Phenology and anatomy of the reproductive phase of Abies pinsapo Boiss. (Pinaceae)

Phenology and anatomy of the reproductive phase of Abies pinsapo were studied. Male cones and female cones were differentiated in the autumn, and the dormant microsporangia contained pollen mother cells (PMCs) in the premeiotic stage. The male cones broke dormancy at the end of February when the pollen mother cells began meiosis. Pollen grains were shed at the five-celled stage at the end of April-early May. The female cones broke dormancy in mid-April. Anthesis took place at the end of April. No micropylar-pollination droplet was observed. After pollination the female cones developed quickly. The most important loss of cones occurred during the pollination period. The number of archegonia varied from one to three but two was most common. Fertilization took place at the end of June. The embryos developed during the summer, and seeds were dispersed in autumn. The results are discussed in relation to other conifers.
Chemical Preservation of Alfalfa Hay for Dairy Cows

Abstract Alfalfa hay from a common field was baled at an average moisture content of 19% (dry control), at 28% with the addition of a chemical preservative, and at 29% with no preservative (wet control). The preservative consisted of 70% propionic acid and 30% formalin. Heating in storage and molding were prevented by the chemical treatment. After 4 mo of storage, the hay baled at 29% moisture content without a preservative had higher acid detergent fiber and lignified nitrogen content than hay baled dry or with a preservative. Yield and composition of milk from 16 lactating Holstein cows fed the dry control and the treated hays in a switchback trial were similar. The digestibility of dry matter, total protein, neutral detergent fiber, and organic matter were also similar. Molar percentages of rumen volatile fatty acids were similar in the two groups. Applied at 1% of the hay as baled, the preservative was effective in maintaining hay quality equal to that of hay baled at 19% moisture content.
RADIOCARBON AND DENDROCHRONOLOGY APPLIED IN A LEGAL DISPUTE: A CASE FROM COLOMBIA

ABSTRACT In 2015 a dispute arose between an electricity company (EC) and smallholder of a teak plantation when the EC felled 80 trees (without consent of the owner) in a linear transect under a rural power-line-corridor (PLC), fragmenting the teak stand in two portions. The EC stated that there were no planted trees in the area when the PLC was established in 2008. The owner asserted he planted the stand in 2006 so in 2008 the company should have seen the planted trees. We used the bomb radiocarbon (14C) signal of three felled trees and dendrochronological dating of five trees, three felled by the EC and two felled by us in 2016, to do this study to determine the age. We found that the first growth rings were dated to 2005 both in the trees felled by the EC in 2015 and felled by us in 2016, one year before that reported by the owner (2006). This year corresponds to the wood present in the cuttings during the stand’s planting year. These facts are in agreement with the owner’s testimony. The plantation was 10 years old in 2015.
Individuals’ intentions to engage in last chance tourism: applying the value-belief-norm model

Abstract For tourism to be entirely sustainable, one cannot travel. This is impossible. This paradox is particularly evident within last chance tourism (LCT), where tourists, seeking experiences with vanishing animals and land/seascapes, can accelerate the decline of those very attractions. Though recent studies hint that those with the highest intentions to visit LCT destinations are also some of the most concerned with climate change, no study has assessed the psychological drivers that may help explain why individuals are increasingly engaging in this paradox. Drawing on the VBN model, this research examines a theoretical framework to assess the psychological drivers behind individuals’ intention to engage in environmentally responsible behavior while traveling and, ultimately, their desire to participate in LCT. Results reveal that a set of environmentally referent cognitions (i.e., values, environmental worldview, awareness of consequences, and ascription of responsibility) lead to personal norms activation, which then influence tourists’ intent to behave in pro-sustainable ways and, ultimately, individuals’ intentions to engage in LCT. Findings are important as they further confirm the benefits of using VBN theory within an LCT context. For practitioners, this research strengthens the appeal of sustainable tourism operations to secure business and receive positive word-of-mouth from potential LCT tourists.
A comparison of methods for estimating activity costs of wild fish populations: more active fish observed to grow slower

Les couts des activites peuvent representer une fraction importante des bilans energetiques des poissons, ce qui peut se faire au detriment des taux de croissance dans les populations sauvages de poissons. Les methodes recentes d'estimation des couts des activites in situ utilisent une modelisation energetique de bilan de masse avec un contaminant, ce qui permet un examen plus etendu des couts des activites chez les populations que les methodes de rechange qui requierent plus de temps. Nous comparons les resultats d'une telle methode bioenergetique avec contaminant pour mesurer les couts des activites in situ a ceux de deux methodes de rechange independantes d'estimation des couts des activites in situ. Nous avons compare des populations de perchaudes (Perca flavescens) a croissance rapide et a croissance lente. Par la methode bioenergetique avec contaminant, les estimations des couts des activites sont 39 % plus basses dans la population a croissance rapide que dans celle a croissance basse. L'activite estimee d'apres l'enregistrement des comportements de nage est de 37 % plus basse dans la population a croissance rapide; elle est de 22-29 % plus basse dans la population a croissance rapide lorsqu'elle est calculee a partir des relations publiees entre les couts des activites et les capacites des enzymes glycolytiques des muscles blancs axiaux. Les taux de consommation sont en fait 32 % plus bas dans la population a croissance rapide, ce qui implique que les couts reduits des activites compensent amplement l'ingestion plus faible de nourriture. La concordance entre les trois mesures independantes des couts des activites vient appuyer fortement l'hypothese selon laquelle ce sont les couts des activites, plutot que l'ingestion de nourriture, qui sont les facteurs explicatifs principaux des differences de croissance entre ces deux populations sauvages de poissons.
Microwave absorber based on encapsulated expanded graphite-silicone composite as meta-“atom” for X-band application

In this work, a wideband microwave resonating-type absorber is investigated in terms of metal backed metamaterial absorber (MMA). Expanded graphite-silicone (EG-Si) composite is encapsulated in the flexible silicone rubber matrix to build periodic unit cell of the MMA. Microwave material characterization of the EG-Si composites with different weight percentages (1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11 wt. %) is carried out at X-band frequency range. CST simulation is performed to optimize the unit cell parameters i.e. a wideband absorption with at least −10 dB absorption bandwidth (BW) throughout the X-band is obtained. Simulation is also carried out to check the polarization and incident angle dependency of the absorber’s absorption performance. The resonance and absorption mechanism of the absorber are investigated with the help of simulated electric field, magnetic field and current density inside the unit cell. The absorption of the prototype absorbers is experimentally measured by waveguide measurement technique.
Contextual Modulation in Mammalian Neocortex is Asymmetric

Neural systems are composed of many local processors that generate an output given their many inputs as specified by a transfer function. This paper studies a transfer function that is fundamentally asymmetric and builds on multi-site intracellular recordings indicating that some neocortical pyramidal cells can function as context-sensitive two-point processors in which some inputs modulate the strength with which they transmit information about other inputs. Learning and processing at the level of the local processor can then be guided by the context of activity in the system as a whole without corrupting the message that the local processor transmits. We use a recent advance in the foundations of information theory to compare the properties of this modulatory transfer function with that of the simple arithmetic operators. This advance enables the information transmitted by processors with two distinct inputs to be decomposed into those components unique to each input, that shared between the two inputs, and that which depends on both though it is in neither, i.e., synergy. We show that contextual modulation is fundamentally asymmetric, contrasts with all four simple arithmetic operators, can take various forms, and can occur together with the anatomical asymmetry that defines pyramidal neurons in mammalian neocortex.
Political business cycles, bank pricing behaviour and financial inclusion in Africa

Abstract This paper analyses financial inclusion in Africa focusing on the role of political business cycles and pricing behaviour of banks. We employ a sample of 330 banks operating in 29 African countries to test for two related hypotheses. Panel fixed and random effects were estimated for the period 2002 to 2013. The regression results that ensued suggests first that loan price increases in pre-election and election years. Building on this result and employing various specifications of financial inclusion, the second results suggest that, high bank loan prices in election years tend to increase financial access more, compared to non-election years, and that, high deposit price reduces financial usage but increases financial access in election years, compared to non-election years. By extension, these results have important policy implications for policymakers.
Germin. Compartmentation of the protein, its translatable mRNA, and its biosynthesis among roots, stems, and leaves of wheat seedlings

(1) Onset of growth during germination of the isolated wheat embryo is allied with the emergence of a protein we have called germin. This study was undertaken to learn if germin is present and synthesized in the root, stem, and leaf during postgerminative growth of the wheat seedling. (2) Seedlings were grown from mature wheat grains on water-soaked filter paper and organs excised at various times were pulse labeled with [35S]methionine. Germin is synthesized in all organs at all times between 1.5 and 7 days. (3) During early seedling development (1.5 days), the fraction of [35S]methionine incorporated into germin, relative to other proteins, is much greater in the case of stem than other organs, either in vivo or when cell-free protein synthesis is directed by bulk RNA from different organs. (4) During late seedling development (4–7 days), when root growth is greater than stem growth, total isotope incorporation into germin is much greater in roots than stem. (5) Quasi-quantitative estimates of germin in pep.
The sequence of a 23·4kb segment on the right arm of chromosome VII from Saccharomyces cerevisiae reveals CLB6, SPT6, RP28A and NUP57 genes, a ty3 element and 11 new open reading frames

The DNA sequence of 23427bp from the right arm of chromosome VII of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is reported. The sequence contains 18 open reading frames (ORFs). Four of these are identical to genes already known. G5970 corresponds to the CLB6 gene. G6169 is identical to the SPT6 gene. G6178 represents the RPS28A gene and G6320 corresponds to the 3′‐region from the NUP57 gene. Four ORFs (G5978, G5982, G5984, G5995) belong to a Ty3‐1 element. A further ORF (G5975) encodes a tRNAcys. The other ORFs revealed no significant similarity to any known gene.
Experimental models using radionuclides for assessment of the effects of natural drugs

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the extracts of Nectandra membranacea (N. membranacea), Ginkgo biloba (EGb) and Passiflora (PEF) on the morphology of red blood cells (RBC), on the biodistribution of sodium pertechnetate (99mTcO4Na), on the morphology of duodenum and on the labeling of blood constituents (BC, IF-P, IF-BC) with technetium-99m (Tc-99m). Morphometry studies also were performed. The results show that EGb promotes alteration of the labeling of BC, IF-P and IF-BC (p<0.05). The N. membranacea extract does not promote significant alteration of the radiolabeling, and PEF extract alters the IF-P labeling. N. membranacea, EGb and PEF extracts were able to alter the RBC morphology (P<0.05). N. membranacea extract and EGb modifies the biodistribution of the 99mTcO4Na, and EGb influences the morphometry of duodenum isolated from rats (P<0.05).
Implementation of Local Wisdom Values of Piil Pesenggiri as Character Education in Indonesian History Learning

The objectives of this study are: i) to find out the implementation of character education; ii) to find out the implementation of Piil Pesenggiri local wisdom values as character education in Indonesian history learning; and iii) to find out the obstacles in the implementation of Piil Pesenggiri local wisdom values as character education in Indonesian history learning. The method used in this research is descriptive qualitative research method with a case study approach in State Senior High School 2 Kalianda. The results showed that: i) the implementation of character education in State Senior High School 2 Kalianda was generally applied to all subjects, including Indonesian history subjects; ii) the implementation of Piil Pesenggiri local wisdom values as character education in the process of Indonesian history learning was carried out by compiling a syllabus and lesson plan (RPP) by incorporating into Indonesian historical material about the Lampung people's resistance strategy toward European colonization consisting of the stages of planning, implementation, and evaluation; and iii) the constraints experienced by teachers in implementing Piil Pesenggiri local wisdom values as character education in the process of learning history includes the lack of learning resources and the negative influence of the
A new proposal for the m + a methodology in segregating populations of cowpea

: The evaluation of segregating populations in plant breeding programs is an onerous and time-consuming process. Early identification of populations with genetic potential can be done by m + a methodology. However, the possibility of a modification in the traditional methodology in order to make it more efficient, that is, faster and cheaper, was envisaged. Thus, the objective of this study was to compare the genetic gains obtained by both methodologies, the traditional one and the proposed modification. For this, ten segregating bean-cowpea populations were evaluated at two distinct levels of homozygous F 3:4 and F 3:5 . Genetic values were predicted by two different statistical genetic models. This was possible due to the methodology proposed here to present a much shorter execution time than the traditional methodology. Thus, with a shorter evaluation time, the breeding program manager can plan the evaluation of a larger number of populations in a short time.
Beyond Yield Response: Weather Shocks and Crop Abandonment

Recent panel estimates of weather effects on crop yields have been central for discussing future food security under climate change, but these estimates only carry limited behavioral response. Growers can adjust harvest decisions when experiencing weather shocks. Using US county-level data on corn and soybeans, I show that harvested ratios, measured by harvested over planted acres, respond to temperature nonlinearly, and they are substantially decreased when temperature exceeds 35°C. Corn harvested ratios are more positively affected by moderate heat and less negatively affected by extreme heat, reflecting growers’ behavioral response incentivized by the higher revenue of corn. Under a 1.5°C warming, neglecting harvested ratio responses can overestimate production loss by more than 10% for corn but underestimates that by more than 15% for soybeans. Evidence of response heterogeneity suggests that market condition and crop insurance further complicate the induced harvest adjustments, and adaptation exists through within-season crop substitution and irrigation.
Effects of environmental conditions on the use of forward‐looking infrared for bear den detection in the Alaska Arctic

Industrial off‐road activity in winter overlaps denning habitat of polar bear (Ursus maritimus) and grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) in the North Slope oilfields of Alaska (United States). To prevent disturbance of dens, managers have used forward‐looking infrared (FLIR) cameras to detect dens, but the effectiveness of FLIR under different environmental conditions is unresolved. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of environmental variables on FLIR‐based techniques for arctic bear den detection. Using a FLIR‐equipped unmanned aircraft system (UAS), we conducted observations of artificial polar bear (APD) and grizzly bear (AGD) dens from horizontal and vertical perspectives between December 2016 and April 2017. We recorded physical characteristics of artificial dens and weather conditions present during each observation. We captured 291 images and classified each as detection or nondetection based on the number of pixels representative of a den “hot spot. ” We used logistic regression to model the effects of four weather variables on the odds of detection (detection). We found that UAS‐FLIR detects APDs two times better than AGDs, and that for both species detections are four times more likely from the vertical than horizontal perspective. Lower air temperature and wind speed, and the absence of precipitation and sunlight increased detection for APDs. A 1°C increase in air temperature lowered detection by 12% for APDs and by 8% for AGDs. We recommend that UAS‐FLIR surveys be conducted early in the denning season, on cold, clear days, with calm winds, in the absence of sunlight (e.g., civil twilight). Our study further refines the application of FLIR techniques for arctic bear den detection and offers practical recommendations for optimizing detection. Putative den locations should be confirmed by a secondary method to minimize disturbance as anthropogenic activity continues in the Arctic.
Subgraph Detection for Average Detectability of LTI Systems

Observation and detection of network systems aim to reconstruct the evolution of the dynamical system based on the measurement of few nodes. In large-scale networks, reconstructing the exact state of each node becomes harduous and is often superfluous in practice, since reconstructing an aggregated version of the system can be sufficient. In the light of this observation, we consider the notion of average detectability: a system is said to be average detectable if it is possible to reconstruct the average of the subset of its unmeasured nodes. We show here that for a particular type of network systems, that is, negative uniform networks, the average detectability property is satisfied when the subgraph induced by the unmeasured nodes is regular. Next, we introduce the relaxed notion of quasi-regularity, which ensures an approximate reconstruction of the average. Motivated by these results, we design algorithms to detect regular induced subgraphs (RIS) and quasi-regular induced subgraph (q-RIS). We also propose an extension to detect multiple quasi-regular induced subgraphs (mq-RIS) that is meant to reconstruct the average of several subgraphs of the system. Finally, we apply our method to the estimation of a linearized SIS model of epidemic diffusion that takes place over a simulated contact network between the largest cities of France.
Recharge Estimation Using CMB and Environmental Isotopes in the Verlorenvlei Estuarine System, South Africa and Implications for Groundwater Sustainability in a Semi-Arid Agricultural Region

Groundwater recharge remains one of the most difficult hydrogeological variables to measure accurately, especially for semi-arid environments where the recharge flux is much smaller than in humid conditions. In this study, groundwater recharge was estimated using chloride mass balance (CMB) in the Verlorenvlei catchment, South Africa where the effects of recent severe drought conditions in an already semi-arid environment have impacted both agricultural activity as well as the RAMSAR-listed Verlorenvlei estuarine system. Chloride, 18O and 2H tracers were used to improve understanding of the groundwater flow patterns and allowed the fresh parts of the groundwater system, defined by Ca2+-HCO3− groundwater types, to be separated from those where additional salts were being introduced through groundwater mixing, and thus characterized as Na+-Cl− groundwater types. Recharge rates calculated from CMB in the fresh parts of the system were between 4.2–5.6% and 11.4–15.1% of mean annual precipitation for the headwater valley and mountains of the Krom Antonies and are largely consistent with previous studies. However, much lower recharge rates in the valleys where agriculture is dominant contrasts with previous results, which were higher, since groundwater-mixing zones were not recognised. Although the chloride concentration in precipitation is based on only one year of data between 2015 and 2016, where 2015 had on average 28% less precipitation than 2016, the results provide a snapshot of how the system will respond to increasing drought frequency in the future. The results suggest that low rates of groundwater recharge under dry spell conditions will impact on low flow generations which are required to sustain the Verlorenvlei estuarine lake system. Overall, the study highlights the importance of combining hydrochemical tracers such as bulk chloride and stable isotopes with numerical modelling in data-scarce catchments to fully understand the nature of hydrological resilience.
Play-by-Play Justice: Tweeting Criminal Trials in the Digital Age

Abstract Journalists routinely live-tweet high-profile criminal trials, a practice that raises questions about access to justice and the principle of open court. Does social media open up the justice system? There is a normative debate in the literature about the use of Twitter and social media in the courtroom. This paper takes on this debate by exploring the relationship between digital technologies and criminal justice. Through a systematic examination of journalists’ tweets during two key trials (Ghomeshi and Saretzky), we ask to what extent can the live-tweeting of court proceedings achieve greater access to justice in Canada? We argue that while the live-tweeting does provide more access to court, potentially furthering the principle of open court, the nature of this access provides little in the way of increased engagement with the public and its understanding of the legal system. This paper makes contributions to both the legal studies and digital politics literatures.