Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
English Language Learning Beyond the Borders: Constructing E-Collaborative Learning between Students of Different Regions

The continuous claim about the unsatisfactory performance of Malaysian graduates during interviews and at workplace in relation to their communication skills in English is alarming. This raises questions about the extent to which future workforce is prepared for this globalised world which requires them to interact and collaborate with individuals not only from their own country but also from other countries. At higher learning institutions, many English language educators face challenges in creating language learning environment that supports intercultural communication. In preparing future workforce for international communication, English language teaching and learning needs to go beyond the four walls of a classroom, over to other regions. An alternative to provide such language learning environment is by designing e-collaborative learning that provides opportunities for language learners to learn the language with students from other countries in a meaningful way. This paper showcases the impacts of e-collaborative English language learning conducted between engineering students of one technical university in Malaysia and one higher learning institution in Bordeaux, France for about one semester. At the end of the semester, the students from both countries wrote a reflection of their experience. The data from the reflective writing were analysed using thematic analysis to highlight the impacts of the e-collaborative learning on students' intercultural communicative competence. This study highlights key considerations to structure e-collaborative language teaching and learning among students of different regions.
Compression force effect on characteristics of loratadine-succinic acid cocrystal prepared by slurry method

Loratadine belongs to second generation antihistamine (H1) drug and is known to form cocrystal with succinic acid in stoichiometry of 1:1 using slurry method. This study was conducted to further investigate cocrystal phase behavior upon compression. Sample of cocrystal phase was compressed with various compression forces into tablet form on 10 mm diameter punch. Then, the tablet was characterized for the mechanical properties and physical characterization was conducted using Differential Thermal Analysis (DTA), X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRPD), and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). According to tensile strength profile, cocrystal phase showed better mechanical property as it possessed higher tensile strength value compared to loratadine alone. DTA thermograms exhibited succinic acid characteristic peak alongside with endothermic peak of cocrystal phase which were compressed on higher force. It suggests that cocrystal undergoes partial dissociation to the starting components under compression. Powder diffractograms showed reduced intensity of tableted cocrystal compared to powder one for all compression force. SEM photomicrograph observed a loss of particle boundaries of cocrystal upon compression, as sintering phenomena occurred. It is predicted that compression force can influence physical characteristics of cocrystal of loratadine-succinic acid by driving dissociation and sintering phenomena.
The adhesive organs of Anura: A histological and molecular study

Abstract The cement gland is a secreting organ located at the anterior end of the larva of anuran Amphibia. It is a highly conserved structure even if it has different shapes in the different species. The morphology and the histology of the cement glands of seven species are analysed: Xenopus laevis, Discoglossus sardus, Bufo bufo, Bufo viridis, Rana esculenta, Rana latastei and Hyla intermedia. XCG and XAG are genes specifically expressed in the cement gland of Xenopus laevis and can be used as markers to identify cement gland territory. By Northern analysis and whole mount ’in situ’ hybridization, the expressions of these genes are tested in the studied species, the presence of homolog transcripts is detected in all the species, except Discoglossus sardus. Histological and molecular analysis show a substantial uniformity among the different types of adhesive organs. On the basis of the preliminary results obtained, some phylogenetic relations are inferred according to a recent phylogenetic tree based on molecular characters. The results seem to agree with the hypothesis that Pipi‐dae, to which Xenopus laevis belongs, are nearer to Neobatrachia than to Archeobatrachia.
Partial Characterization of Protease Activity in Squid (Todaropsis eblanae) Mantle: Modification by High‐pressure Treatment

ABSTRACT: Optimal conditions for proteolytic activity in both nonpressurized and pressurized (300 MPa, 7°C, 20 min) squid (Todaropsis eblanae) muscle occurred at acid pH levels (pH 3) over a broad range of temperatures. Pressure treatment did not modify optimal pH and temperatures but did increase proteolytic activity. The acid cysteine proteases, and to a lesser extent the acid serine proteases, were the enzymes mainly affected by the high-pressure treatment. The sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) was indicative of increased protein hydrolysis by pressurization. Myosin heavy chain in both nonpressurized and pressurized squid was degraded at all the temperatures tested, but actin was susceptible only to proteolysis in the pressure-treated muscle at 7°C and 40°C. This behavior was not observed at 55°C.
Two new species of copepods (Crustacea) associated with the sponge phyllospongia foliascens (Pallas) from the Moluccas

Abstract Spongicola tropicanus, a new genus and species of the family Eunicicolidae, and Asterocheres brevisurculus, a new species of the family Asterocheridae, are described as copepods associated with the sponge Phyllospongia foliascens (Pallas) from the Moluccas. Spongicola is the second genus of the family and may be characterized by a two‐segmented prosome, the absence of leg 3, and the presence of leg 5. Asterocheres brevisurculus may be charecterized by one‐segmented mandibular palp, short oral siphon, and 19‐segmented female antennule.
Impact of population aging on the economic growth rate: analysis among groups of countries members of the ECLAC and OECD

O objetivo deste trabalho e estudar o impacto do envelhecimento populacional sobre a taxa de crescimento economico. Nos paises desenvolvidos, o envelhecimento tem afetado o crescimento do PIB real, mas ha sinais de que pode tambem estar afetando o crescimento em paises em desenvolvimento. A amostra de dados foi composta por 53 paises, com 19 pertencentes a CEPAL e 34 pertencentes a OCDE, no periodo de 2002 a 2014. Os resultados indicam que o envelhecimento tem afetado negativamente o crescimento nos paises mais desenvolvidos, caso dos paises pertencentes a OCDE. Para os pertencentes a CEPAL, nao se detectou relacao estatisticamente significativa entre as variaveis. A provavel explicacao e que estes paises possuem ainda algum bonus demografico, o que minimiza o impacto negativo sobre o crescimento economico. Espera-se contribuir com o debate sobre o impacto do envelhecimento populacional no crescimento economico e os reflexos nas financas publicas dos paises nesse cenario.
A CO2-Driven Gas Lift Mechanism in Geyser Cycling (Uzon Caldera, Kamchatka)

Here, we report on a new geyser (named Shaman) formed in the Uzon caldera (Kronotsky Federal Nature Biosphere Reserve, Russia) in autumn 2008 from a cycling hot Na-Cl spring. The geyser is a pool-type CO2-gas lift driven. From 2012 to 2018, the geyser has shown a rather stable interval between eruptions (IBE) from 129 to 144 min with a fountain height up to 4 m, and the geyser conduit has gradually enlarged. In 2019, the Shaman geyser eruption mode significantly changed: cold water inflow from the adjacent stream was re-directed into the geyser conduit and the average IBE decreased to 80 min. We observed two eruptive modes: a cycling hot spring (June 2019) and a cycling geyser (after June 2019). Bottom-hole temperature recording was performed in the geyser conduit to understand its activity. The TOUGH2-EOS2 model was used to reproduce the obtained temperature records and estimate geyser recharge/discharge parameters in both modes. Modeling shows that a larger cold inflow into the conduit causes a switch from cycling geyser to hot cycling spring mode. It was also found that the switch to cycling geyser mode corresponds to a larger mass of CO2 release during the time of the eruption.
Content of phenolic substances in basidiomycetes

The content of phenolic substances in freshly collected fruit bodies of several basidiomycete genera varied in the range 2:35–9·05 mg g -1 , following closely the trend of a normal function. It was necessary to use a polyphenoloxidase-inhibiting substance to obtain reliable analysis. The content of phenolics decreased, during 3 d at room temperature and following freezing at -20°C.
Genetic Variability of Seed Sugar Content in Worldwide Soybean Germplasm Collections

Soluble sugar is an important quality trait in food-grade soybeans [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ]. Desirable sugars such as sucrose, glucose, and fructose can help improve the taste and flavor of soyfood including tofu, soymilk, and natto; whereas oligosaccharides including raffinose and stachyose are indigestible by humans and animals and often cause flatulence or diarrhea. In this study, 241 plant introductions (PIs) of three maturity groups (MGs) from 28 origins were investigated for seed sugar content including glucose, fructose, sucrose, raffinose, and stachyose. Variation was detected in individual and total sugars in soybean PIs from different origins and MGs. Sucrose and stachyose are the major sugars in soybean seed. The sucrose content ranged from 1.6 to 95.4 mg g ―1 with 13 PIs containing greater than 70 mg g ―1 and 14 PIs having less than 10 mg g ―1 . The stachyose content ranged from 0.2 to 69.6 mg g ―1 with 14 PIs containing less than 10 mg g ―1 stachyose. The high sucrose and low stachyose types are the most valuable for breeding specialty soybeans for soyfood and animal feed. In addition, 30 PIs were identified as having high concentrations of glucose or fructose as major sugars. This new class of high glucose or fructose has not been reported before. While soybean germplasm with unique sugar profiles may be useful for future breeding and genetic research, environmental effects on sugar stability will need to be further investigated.
Sequence characterization and genetic variability analysis of GHR, IGF1, and IGFBP-3 genes in nine Indian goat breeds

The genes that are part of the somatotropic axis play a crucial role in the regulation of growth and development of goat and other livestock animals. The identification of genetic polymorphisms in these genes will enable us to evaluate the biological relevance of such polymorphisms and to gain a better understanding of quantitative traits like growth. The present study was undertaken with the objective to analyze the caprine growth hormone receptor (GHR), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1), and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 (IGFBP-3) genes to gain insight into the polymorphisms in these genes across different indigenous goat breeds in a panel of 80 animals. The comparative gene sequence analysis in all Capra hircus breeds under study revealed 31 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across different loci of GHR, IGF1, and IGFBP-3 genes. Out of 31 SNPs detected, 18, 8, and 5 SNPs were present in IGF-1, IGFBP-3, and GHR genes, respectively. All the mutations pointed out in the GHR and IGF1 genes were found to be synonymous and 6 of 8 SNPs in IGFBP-3 were found to be nonsynonymous. All the detected mutations were reported here for the first time. The frequencies of the SNPs were assessed in nine different goat breeds. Across breeds, the average frequency of the least frequent alleles ranged from 0.02 to 0.17.
Torque Range, a New Parameter to Evaluate New and Used Instrument Safety

The aim of the present study is to evaluate operative torque, torque at failure and the difference between these two values—the “torque range”—of two different NiTi files. We also sought to evaluate and compare these parameters for new and used files. Forty S-One 20.06 and forty M-Two 20.06 were tested, divided in four equal groups (n = 10) for each brand. Ten instruments from each brand performed three root canal treatments each on standardized extracted single-rooted teeth. Afterwards, each group was subjected to the following two tests: operative torque and torsional resistance. Mean values for all the tested groups were calculated. The results for new instruments showed that S-One developed significantly higher operative torque, but higher torsional resistance. The results for used instruments showed that the S-One 20.06 developed less operative torque and higher mean torsional resistance value compared to the M-Two. Moreover, the percentage reduction of both values was significantly higher for M-Two. The results of the present study showed a safer torsional behavior of the S-One. These results could be related to the heat treatment and the manufacturing process.
The phylogenetic structure of habitat shift and morphological convergence in Asian Clarias (Teleostei, Siluriformes: Clariidae)

Catfishes of the genus Clarias are an important component of the ichthyofauna in Asia and in Africa. Previous studies demonstrated a high diversity in number of species, morphology and habitat, but little was known on the evolutionary processes underlying this diversity. We analysed an original data set of molecular sequences (cytochrome b and 16S genes), habitat and geographic distributions, as well as 29 morphometric measurements taken on 454 specimens of Asian Clarias. Maximum likelihood phylogeny estimation showed an unexpected cryptic diversity due to strong morphological convergence. The patterns of intra- and interspecific phylogenetic divergence are overall explained by geographic isolation. The analysis of habitat transitions with Markovian models showed that Asian Clarias evolved from an ancestor probably living in clear waters. The most frequent transitions occurred between clear and white waters, whereas transitions towards black waters occurred only from clear waters and were rare events. The morphometric analysis suggests a complex pattern of morphological evolution with repeated convergence towards an elongated form in black waters. The phylogeographic patterns of diversification of Asian Clarias agree with previous studies on other groups and the hypothesis that changes in sea level during the Pleistocene had little influence on shaping biodiversity on the Sunda Shelf. Resume Les poissons-chats du genre Clarias sont un composant important de l'ichthyofaune en Asie et en Afrique. Des etudes ont montre une diversiteelevee en nombre d'especes, morphologie et habitat, mais les processus evolutifs a l'origine de cette diversite restent encore peu connus. Nous avons analyse des donnees originales de sequences moleculaires (genes du cytochrome b et du 16S), d'habitat, de distributions geographiques ainsi que 29 mesures morphometriques. L'estimation de la phylogenie par maximum de vraisemblance montre une diversite cryptique inattendue due a une forte convergence morphologique. Les divergences phylogenetiques intra- et interspecifiques sont globalement expliquees par l'isolement geographique. L'analyse des transitions d'habitat a l'aide de modeles markoviens montre que les Clarias asiatiques ont evolue depuis un ancetre qui vivait probablement en eaux claires. Les transitions les plus frequentes ont eu lieu entre les eaux claires et les eaux blanches, alors que les transitions vers les eaux noires n'ont eu lieu que depuis les eaux claires et furent des evenements rares. L'analyse morphometrique suggere une evolution morphologique complexe avec une divergence initiale a partir d'une morphologie ancestrale, et une convergence repetee vers une forme allongee dans les eaux noires. La diversification phylogeographique des Clarias asiatiques est en accord avec des etudes precedentes sur d'autres groupes et l'hypothese que les changements du niveau de la mer au cours du Pleistocene ont eu peu d'influence sur la structuration de la biodiversite dans l'Asie du Sud-Est.
An Upland Forest Continuum in the Prairie‐Forest Border Region of Wisconsin

It has been said that the desirable order of ecological research in a given region is first, the study of communities, second, the study of the individual species, and last, the study of the habitat (Yapp 1922). Sociological investigations of constituent species and their numerical relations should precede autecological studies if the latter are to have maximum meaning. This sequence should lead to a greater efficiency in research, in that an initial knowledge of any natural groupings of species may enable the autecology of the groups to be studied simultaneously, with a resultant saving in time and travel expenses. The grossly inadequate state of autecological knowledge of even our most common species indicates that the current haphazard method of attack is faulty; if aggregations of species occur together under similar environmental conditions in nature, they could be studied in a systematic program. A long-term investigation of the communities of Wisconsin has been underway since 1946 with a view to determining the existence and the floristic nature of such aggregations (Curtis and Greene 1949). The present paper deals with the upland hardwood forests of the p)rairie-forest border region of the state and their interrelations with each other and with certain physical factors of the environment. Deep appreciation is expresse(l to Professor P. B. Whitford, hlio
Surface modification of small intestine submucosa in tissue engineering

Abstract With the development of tissue engineering, the required biomaterials need to have the ability to promote cell adhesion and proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Especially, surface modification of the scaffold material has a great influence on biocompatibility and functionality of materials. The small intestine submucosa (SIS) is an extracellular matrix isolated from the submucosal layer of porcine jejunum, which has good tissue mechanical properties and regenerative activity, and is suitable for cell adhesion, proliferation and differentiation. In recent years, SIS is widely used in different areas of tissue reconstruction, such as blood vessels, bone, cartilage, bladder and ureter, etc. This paper discusses the main methods for surface modification of SIS to improve and optimize the performance of SIS bioscaffolds, including functional group bonding, protein adsorption, mineral coating, topography and formatting modification and drug combination. In addition, the reasonable combination of these methods also offers great improvement on SIS surface modification. This article makes a shallow review of the surface modification of SIS and its application in tissue engineering.
Bayesian Singing Transcription Based on a Hierarchical Generative Model of Keys, Musical Notes, and F0 Trajectories

This article describes automatic singing transcription (AST) that estimates a human-readable musical score of a sung melody represented with quantized pitches and durations from a given music audio signal. To achieve the goal, we propose a statistical method for estimating the musical score by quantizing a trajectory of vocal fundamental frequencies (F0s) in the time and frequency directions. Since vocal F0 trajectories considerably deviate from the pitches and onset times of musical notes specified in musical scores, the local keys and rhythms of musical notes should be taken into account. In this article we propose a Bayesian hierarchical hidden semi-Markov model (HHSMM) that integrates a musical score model describing the local keys and rhythms of musical notes with an F0 trajectory model describing the temporal and frequency deviations of an F0 trajectory. Given an F0 trajectory, a sequence of musical notes, that of local keys, and the temporal and frequency deviations can be estimated jointly by using a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method. We investigated the effect of each component of the proposed model and showed that the musical score model improves the performance of AST.
Ranking of Al-CSA composite by MCDM approach using AHP–TOPSIS and MOORA methods

Abstract A systematic and efficient approach for the selection of material is necessary to choose a best alternative for the structure or component under consideration. The multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approaches are well suited to deal intricacy in judgment of material assortment. In this paper, integrated MCDM approaches like analytical hierarchy process (AHP)–technique for order preference by the resemblance to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) and AHP–multi-objective optimization on the basis of ratio analysis (MOORA) methods are used to rank aluminum-coconut shell ash (CSA) composites. The weightage for each criterion is calculated by AHP method and utilized in the TOPSIS and MOORA approaches to rank the materials. The target-based attributes such as density (physical property), hardness, tensile strength, toughness (mechanical properties), wear rate, and coefficient of friction (tribological properties) of the prepared composites are considered in the selection of criteria process. The composites are fabricated using stir-casting process by varying the volume fraction (5, 10, 15, and 20%) of CSA incorporated with Al-1100 matrix. A detailed study on the MCDM approaches revealed that Al-15% CSA composite emerged as the best material followed by Al-10% CSA composite among all, whereas the base matrix is found as the poor performed material in this study.
Impacts of biogenic CO2 emissions on human health and terrestrial ecosystems: the case of increased wood extraction for bioenergy production on a global scale

Biofuels are a potentially important source of energy for our society. Common practice in life cycle assessment (LCA) of bioenergy has been to assume that any carbon dioxide (CO2) emission related to biomass combustion equals the amount absorbed in biomass, thus assuming no climate change impacts. Recent developments show the significance of contributions of biogenic CO2 emissions during the time they stay in the atmosphere. The goal of this article is to develop a global, spatially explicit method to quantify the potential impact on human health and terrestrial ecosystems of biogenic carbon emissions coming from forest wood extraction for biofuel production. For this purpose, changes in aboveground carbon stock (ΔCforest) due to an increase in wood extraction via changes in rotation time are simulated worldwide with a 0.5° × 0.5° grid resolution. Our results show that both impacts and benefits can be obtained. When the extraction increase is reached by creating a longer rotation time, new growth is allowed resulting in carbon benefits. In a case study, we assessed the life cycle impacts of heat production via wood to determine the significance of including biogenic CO2 emissions due to changes in forest management. Impacts of biogenic CO2 dominate the total climate change impacts from a wood stove. Depending on the wood source country, climate change impacts due to heat production from wood either have an important share in the overall impacts on human health and terrestrial ecosystems, or allow for a large additional CO2 sink.