Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Socio-economic Variables:

Abstract The present investigation was aimed at comparing the personalities of adolescents on the basis of socio-economic variables. Multidimensional Assessment of Personality Series (MAP Series Form-T) form for Teens had been used for the said purpose. The Test contained 20 dimensions and 7 items for each dimension to objectively assess the personality of adolescents. A list of adolescents of urban disorganized families was prepared from five randomly selected city schools of Hisar city. A sample of 45 urban respondents was randomly selected from the prepared list. Following the same procedure, a sample of 45 rural adolescents was taken from the list of adolescents of rural disorganized families of purposively selected villages of Hisar-I block. Personality was compared against family’s monthly income, educational level of parents and caste of the respondents. The findings indicated significant differences in personality of adolescents on the basis of said variables. Furthermore, there were significant differences between maturity, mental health, self-control, self-sufficiency and tension level of adolescents from different casts. Moreover, adolescents on the basis of family income and parental education differed significantly on their boldness, guilt proneness, leadership, maturity, mental health, self-control, self-sufficiency and tension level.
Unifying Quantitative Methodology in Social Research.

A case is made for representing quantitative methods in use in the social sciences within a unified framework based on structural equation methodology (SEM). Most of the methods now in use are shown in their SEM representation. It is suggested that the visual and verbal representations of SEM are of most use, while specific estimation and hypothesis testing methods play a lesser role. The change to a common verbal and visual representation for quantitative methods allows better understanding of quantitative methods for students, easier communication among researchers, and new improvements in quantitative approaches to social research. (Contains 8 figures and 15 references.) (Author/SLD) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ******************************************************************************** UNIFYING QUANTITATIVE METHODOLOGY UNIFYING QUANTITATIVE METHODOLOGY IN SOCIAL RESEARCH VICTOR L. WILLSON Texas A&M University Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Montreal, April, 1999 CN1 C1 0 M 2 PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY
Diet composition and niche overlap in two sympatric species of Physalaemus (Anura, Leptodactylidae, Leiuperinae) in coastal subtemperate wetlands

Physalaemus Fitzinger, 1826 is the most speciose genus of Leiuperinae frogs, with more than 40 recognized species. They are widely distributed in the Neotropical region, especially in open areas, and are among the most abundant species in several anuran communities. Nevertheless, our comprehension of the diet composition and trophic relationships of these species remains poor. In this study, we describe and compare the diet of sympatric and syntopic populations of Physalaemus gracilis and P. biligonigerus that inhabit the southernmost coastal zone of Brazil. The stomach content analyses revealed 13 distinct prey categories in the diet of P. gracilis and 12 in the diet of P. biligonigerus. On one hand the diet compositions of the species were significantly different according to both numeric and volumetric evaluations. On the other hand, Coleoptera and Formicidae were the most important prey for both species. The niche breadth was higher for P. gracilis than P. biligonigerus , and niche overlap was relatively low for both species (28%). Our results indicate that P. biligonigerus has a less generalist diet than P. gracilis , with a remarkable consumption of ants. Although both species are morphologically similar and sympatric, they appear to present different feeding strategies or preferences based on the low values of niche overlap.
Runoff regime estimation at high-elevation sites: A parsimonious water balance approach

Abstract. We develop a water balance model, parsimonious both in terms of parameterization and of required input data, to characterize the average runoff regime of high-elevation and scarcely monitored basins. The model uses a temperature threshold to partition precipitation into rainfall and snowfall, and to estimate evapotranspiration volumes. The role of snow in the transformation of precipitation into runoff is investigated at the monthly time scale through a specific snowmelt module that estimates melted quantities by a non-linear function of temperature. A probabilistic representation of temperature is also introduced, in order to mimic its sub-monthly variability. To account for the commonly reported rainfall underestimation at high elevations, a two-step precipitation adjustment procedure is implemented to guarantee the closure of the water balance. The model is applied to a group of catchments in the North-Western Italian Alps, and its performances are assessed by comparing measured and simulated runoff regimes both in terms of total bias and anomalies, by means of a new metric, specifically conceived to compare the shape of the two curves. The obtained results indicates that the model is able to predict the observed runoff seasonality satisfactorily, notwithstanding its parsimony (the model has only two parameters to be estimated). In particular, when the parameter calibration is performed separately for each basin, the model proves to be able to reproduce the runoff seasonality. At the regional scale (i.e., with uniform parameters for the whole region), the performance is less positive, but the model is still able to discern among different mechanisms of runoff formation that depend on the role of the snow storage. Because of its parsimony and the robustness in the approach, the model is suitable for application in ungauged basins and for large scale investigations of the role of climatic variables on water availability and runoff timing in mountainous regions.
Farming and the Internet: Reasons for Non-Use

Rural broadband infrastructure and service has received a significant amount of funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. These funds should increase broadband availability, but will broadband be used in rural areas and in particular by farmers? This paper uses Agricultural Resource Management Survey data to investigate why the majority of U.S. farmers choose not to use the Internet in their farm business. Although frequently cited by policymakers, concerns about inadequate Internet service or security actually account for a small percentage of responses. This research identifies targeted educational programs that focus on alleviating perceived barriers to Internet use.
Antioxidant activity and total phenolic compounds in extracts of selected grasses [Poaceae]

The total content of phenolic compounds and DPPH• radical scavenging were determined in the aerial parts of three selected grass species: Miscanthus sinensis, dichanthium caucasicum derived from the collection of grasses at the Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute (IHAR), Botanical Garden in Bydgoszcz and Phragmites australis derived from natural source. In general, the average amount of polyphenols in selected species: 1.1795±0.1608; 1.4108±0.1086; 0.8103±0.0335 (M. sinensis; d. caucasicum; P. australis, respectively) was low. The DPPH• radical scavenging activity (%) in each investigated sample was also relatively low: 27.00±1.98; 21.22±1.14%; 15.89±0.49 (M. sinensis; d. caucasicum; P. australis respectively).
A distributed system testing framework

Supervisory Committee Dr. Stephen Neville, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Supervisor Dr. Kin Li, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Departmental Member Dr. Daniel Hoffman, Department of Computer Science Outside Member Distributed systems are becoming increasingly common. However, the testing of these systems is difficult due to their non-linear, stochastic and dynamic behaviours, and limited application-level testing support. In this thesis, a prototype cluster computingbased test harness has been developed that can be used for performance testing on a variety of distributed systems. Its usefulness is demonstrated through tests conducted on an example distributed system, including using the test harness to perform a parameter search on the system in an iterative fashion.
Parenting stress in childhood leukaemia

Parenting stress is the stress level experienced within the role of a parent (Hoekstra-Weebers et al. 1998). The source of stressors is variable and dependent on the phase of disease and chemotherapy (Sawyer et al. 2000). Failure to cope with these stressors may in turn affect the child’s emotional and social adjustment towards the diagnosis of cancer in addition to poor medical treatment adherence behaviour (Sawyer et al. 1993). The objectives of this study are to determine the level of parenting stress, the risk factors contributing to high parenting stress, and the coping mechanisms used to handle the stress. This single centred, cross-sectional study was done amongst 117 parents at the Paediatric Haematology and Oncology Unit, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) over two years duration. Self-administered questionnaires comprising the Parenting Stress Index/Short Form (PSI/SF) and Coping Inventory for Stressful Situation (CISS) were distributed to parents of children who were 12 years old and below. The mean total parenting stress score amongst parents of children diagnosed with acute leukaemia was 91.5±21.1(95% CI). A total of 27.3% of parents experienced a high total parenting stress score (defined as total PSI score ≥ 75th centile, ie ≥ 103). Task-oriented coping mechanism was used by the majority of parents. Emotion-oriented coping mechanism was the only identifiable risk factor for high parenting stress score following multiple logistic regression analysis. A parent who used emotion-oriented coping mechanism was 7.1 times (95% Confidence Interval 1.2 to 41.4) more likely to have a high parenting stress score compared to a parent who used other coping mechanisms. By identifying these at-risk parents, appropriate counselling and psychological support may be offered early to alleviate the stress as well as assist in the coping and adjustment mechanisms of these parents.
Electronic tongue system to evaluate flavor of soybean (Glycine Max (L.) Merrill) genotypes

An electronic tongue system was tested as a fast and efficient analytical tool for flavor evaluation of soybean genotypes. Grain samples of 25 soybean lines were analyzed using 0.25 g of milled samples added to 100 mL of distilled water and mixing for one minute on a magnetic stirrer. An aliquot (50 mL) from the filtered liquid was used for the analysis on a pre-fixed frequency of 1 kHz and alternate tension of 50 mV. Two analyses were conducted in a complete randomized design with three replicates. Electrical response (capacitance) of eight polymeric chemical sensors used to analyze the soybean lines were submitted to Principal Component Analysis (PCA). In the spatial distribution of the PCA graphic, the lines close to each other were similar, while the distant ones showed different characteristics. The electronic tongue system was efficient in discriminating flavor of soybean lines.
The Different Between Methods and Determining of Metabolisable Energy Levels with Enzyme and Gas Techniques in Concentrate Feeds

This investigation was carried out with totally 35 concentrate feed samples; oat (5), barley (5), corn(5), wheat (5) soybean meal (5), cottonseed meal (5), sun flower meal (5). All the 35 samples were collected from different regions of Turkey. Enzyme and gas techniques were used to identify the levels of metabolisable energy (ME) of the feeds. ME levels of oat, barley, corn, wheat, soybean meal, cottonseed meal, sunflower meal with the enzyme technique were determined as 2083.10, 2394.68, 2399.00, 2391.68, 1882.37, 1748.50 and 1847.24 kcal/ kg DM, respectively. ME levels of oat, barley, corn, wheat, soybean meal, cottonseed meal, sunflower meal with gas technique for 24 h incubations were found as 2880, 3060, 2940, 2450, 2250, 2090 and 2130 kcal/kg DM, respectively. The ME values of 48 h incubations of feedstuffs in gas techniques were found as 3370, 3580, 3460, 3060, 2740, 2690, 2320 kcal/kg DM, respectively.
A fuzzy model for sensitivity analysis in real options

This paper adopts a promising concept of uncertainty, incorporating both stochastic processes and fuzzy theory to capture the somewhat vague and imprecise ideas the manager has about the future expected cash flows, the profitability of the project, the costs of the project and many other variables involved in an investment decision. Thus, uncertainty in real option valuation can be faced introducing fuzziness in the fundamental items of the classical approach. In particular, three examples of real options are examined and the computational experiments are performed. It is shown that fuzziness can play the role of a sensitivity analysis of the real option value with respect to the key decisional variables.
Dynamics of defect-induced dark solitons in an exciton-polariton condensate

We study theoretically the emission of dark solitons induced by a moving defect in a nonresonantly pumped exciton-polariton condensate. The number of created dark solitons per unit of time is found to be strongly dependent on the pump power. We relate the observed dynamics of this process to the oscillations of the drag force experienced by the condensate. We investigate the stability of the polariton quantum fluid and present various types of dynamics depending on the condensate and moving obstacle parameters. Furthermore, we provide analytical expressions for dark soliton dynamics using the variational method adapted to the non-equilibrium polariton system. The determined dynamical equations are found to be in excellent agreement with the results of numerical simulations.
Knowledge and Control in the Contemporary Land Rush: Making Local Land Legible and Corporate Power Applicable in Rural Sierra Leone

Substantial media and academic attention has recently focused on changing patterns of land control in the ‘Global South’, wherein foreign governments and corporations seek to control land for food, fuel and feed production. Recent scholarship describes such projects as symptomatic of a broader liberalization of global governance. However, few studies investigate how such liberal governance is applied on the ground in host countries. This paper fills this need by examining one such case in Sierra Leone, and describing the various technologies of control deployed to make local land legible to the corporate eye and therefore manageable within the liberal model. As I show, such imported technologies are disrupting and displacing traditional modes of authority and allowing the company concerned to apply power and manage both the land and the local people. At the same time, however, these technologies generate frictions on the ground, creating dangerous tensions between the various actors in the local setting.
Crisis-Related Changes in the Specialization of Advanced Economies in Global Value Chains

Analysis of globalization-induced gains and losses necessitates not only new types of data to complement that compiled in traditional trade statistics but also new analytical approaches. This article surveys the literature that addresses the evolution of the global value chain approach, an analytical perspective that is able to capture in greater depth than earlier theories the causes and consequences of the ongoing process of global reorganization of production. Our specific focus is, on the one hand, changing activity specialization within the new global division of labour and the related changes in competitiveness of advanced economy actors; and, on the other hand, crisis-related changes in global value chains. We conjecture that advanced economy actors have been continuously shifting their specialization towards ‘the edges of the value chains’ into activities requiring higher skills, which result in the capture of higher value for them. We show that this process has further accelerated during the financial crisis.
Syngas Production from Combined Steam and Carbon Dioxide Reforming of Methane over Ce-modified Silica-supported Nickel Catalysts

This study investigates the physicochemical attributes of Ce-modified Santa Barbara Amorphous-15 (SBA-15) supported Ni catalyst and evaluates its catalytic performance for combined steam and CO2 reforming of methane in order to produce synthesis gas. Both 10 % Ni/SBA-15 and 10 % Ni/Ce-SBA-15 catalysts were prepared by conventional wetness impregnation method and characterised via Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area, H2 temperature-programmed reduction (H2-TPR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. Both 10 % Ni/Ce-SBA-15 and 10 % Ni/SBA-15 catalysts possessed high BET surface area of 595.04 m2 g-1 and 493.73 m2 g-1. XRD measurement revealed the existence of NiO phase with crystallite sizes of 15.5 nm and 13.6 nm for the corresponding 10 % Ni/SBA-15 and 10 % Ni/Ce-SBA-15 catalysts whilst cerium (IV) oxide (CeO2) particles were well dispersed on the mesoporous SBA-15 support surface. H2-TPR results showed that NiO to Ni0 reduction was completely obtained at temperature beyond 800 K and the reduction temperature was contingent on the degree of metal-support interaction associated with size and location of NiO nanoparticles on support. Ce-modified catalyst was more stable and active than unmodified Ni/SBA-15 catalyst. 10 % Ni/Ce-SBA-15 catalyst exhibited a significant enhancement in CH4 conversion (up to 11.06 %) and H2 yield (30.51 mol%) reasonably due to the high oxygen storage capacity and redox property of CeO2 phase incorporated into the mesoporous framework of SBA-15 support. H2/CO ratio of 10 % Ni/Ce-SBA-15 catalyst was stable at about 1.74 while a lower value of 1.14 was observed for 10 % Ni/SBA-15 catalyst indicating the occurrence of parallel reactions including CH4 steam reforming reaction and CH4 dry reforming reaction.
The Role of (Geoelectric and Hydrogeologic) Parameters in the Evaluation of Groundwater reservoir at South of Jabal Sinjar area.

In this study the (geoelectric – hydrogeologic) parameters which are obtained by the quantitative interpretation of (80) Schlumberger Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) points distributed in six linear profiles within the study area are used in addition to (6) pumping test locations for the groundwater reservoir located to the south of Jabal Sinjar (Sinjar anticline). The studied area covers about 7920Km 2 . The (VES) field readings were interpreted manually by using the auxiliary point method-partial resistivity curve matching,then the interpreted results enhanced by using computer software specialized for the 1D- (VES) resistivity curves interpretation. The (VES) results analyzed by using modern techniques in order to construct a new predicted hydrogeologic maps through the application of an empirical statistical relations between geoelectric and the Hydraulic parameters. The results of empirical relations represent the predicted hydraulic parameters for the points where no pumping tests achieved. The results represents the predicted hydraulic conductivity (K), Transmissivity(Tr), Specific capacity(Sc) and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS). A computer software used to display the results as maps to display the calculated hydrogeologic parameters variation across the studied area. This result helps to delineate the most productive and good quality groundwater within the study area. Keyword: geoelectrical-Hydrogeologic relations, Groundwater reservoir evaluation.
MANAGEMENT EFFICIENCY IN FOOTBALL: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF TWO EXTREME CASES

Analysis of managerial efficiency in sport economics typically focuses on evaluating coach decisions instead of assessing the organization as a whole. This paper studies the relative importance of variables related to power and managerial decisions by estimating stochastic production frontiers models for the Chilean and Italian football. We find the presence of technical inefficiencies in both cases. However, managerial decisions play a more significant role in the Italian league. This difference can be explained by a less open and balanced competition in the Chilean case, that could be due to a lower demand and/or financial constraints faced by small clubs in that country.
Multilocus sequence typing of Xylella fastidiosa isolated from olive affected by “olive quick decline syndrome” in Italy

The recent finding of Xylella fastidiosa ( Xf ) in olive trees in southern Italy, the scanty molecular information on this bacterium and its association with the olive quick decline syndrome (OQDS) prompted the necessity to isolate and acquire more genetic data on the type of strain present in that region. For the first time, the bacterium was isolated from infected olive on culture media. Genetic information were obtained through genomic comparison with other subspecies or strains. The sequences of thirteen genes from its genome, comprising seven housekeeping genes ( leuA, petC, lacF , cysG, holC, nuoL and gltT ) usually used in multilocus sequence typing (MLST) systems, and six genes involved in different biochemical functions ( RNA Pol sigma-70 factor, hypothetical protein HL, 16S rRNA, rfbD, nuoN, and pilU ), were analyzed. The sequences of the biochemical function genes were explored individually to study the genetic structure of this bacterium, while the MLST genes were linked together into one concatameric sequence (4161 bp long) to increase the resolution of the phylogenetic analysis when compared with Xf strains previously reported. Sequence analyses of single genes showed that the Xf olive strain is distinct from the four previously defined taxons ( Xf subsp. fastidiosa , Xf subsp. multiplex , Xf subsp. sandyi and Xf subsp. pauca ) with a dissimilarity rate that reached 4%. In particular, Xf from olive shared the greatest identity with the strain “9a5c” (subsp. pauca ), but was nevertheless distinct from it. Similarly, the MLST based on concatameric sequences confirmed the genetic variance of Xf from olive by generating a novel sequence type profile (ST53). Phylogenetic tree analyses showed that Xf from olive clustered in one clade close to subspecies pauca (strains “9a5c” and “CVC0018”), but was nevertheless distinct from them. These results indicate molecular divergence of this olive bacterium with all other strains yet reported.
Seed germination and proline accumulation in rice (Oryza sativa L.) as affected by salt concentrations.

Plant cells accumulate praline as an osmoprotectant to conserve osmotic stability and prevent damage. However, the accumulation of proline may not be associated with tolerance to salinity. This study considered the influences of NaCl and Na2SO4 compositions, at different concentrations, on seed germination and accumulation of proline in eleven rice genotypes. Rice seeds were grown in petri dishes in the laboratory and treated with distilled water as a control and NaCl and Na2SO4 (1:1 molar concentration ratio) at 2.5, 5.0, 7.5 and 10 dS m-1 electrical conductivity for 14 days. The mean germination time (MGT) was positively affected by the increase in the concentration of salt. Conversely, there was a negative relationship between germination index (GI) and salt concentration. Shirodi, Fajr, and Shafag can be classified into salt tolerant group, while Tarom-e-Hashemi was identified as salt susceptible, based on MGT and GI. Slight changes were recorded within dry weight and water content of seedlings at different salt levels. The maximum accumulation of proline was observed at 5 dS m-1 salt concentration. No relationship was established between the accumulation of proline and the growth parameters.