Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The interplay between home and host logics of accountability in multinational corporations (MNCs): the case of the Fundão dam disaster

PurposeThe major purpose of this paper is to answer the overarching questions of how multinational corporations (MNCs) address the multiple institutional logics of accountability and pressures of the field in which they operate and how the dominant logic changes and shifts in response to such pressures pre- and post-disaster situation.Design/methodology/approachIn-depth interpretive textual analyses of multiple longitudinal data sets are conducted to study the case of the Fundão dam disaster. The data sources include historical documents, academic articles and public institutional press releases from 2000 to 2016, covering the environment leading to the case study incident and its aftermath.FindingsThe findings reveal how MNCs' plurality of and, at times, conflicting institutional logics shape the organizational behaviors, actions and nonactions of actors pre-, peri- and post-disaster. More specifically, the predominance bureaucracy embedded in the state-corporatist logic of the host country before a disaster allows the strategic subunit of an MNC to continue operating while causing various forms of environmental damage until a globally visible disaster triggers a reversal in the dominant logic toward the embrace of wider, global, emergent social and environmental accountability.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to discussions regarding the need to explore in depth of how MNCs respond to multiple institutional pressures in practice. This study extends the literature concerning disaster accountability, state-corporatism and logic-shifting by exploring how MNCs respond to the plurality of institutional logics and pressures over time and showing how, in some cases, logics not only reinforce but also contrast with each other and how a globally exposed disaster may trigger a shift in the dominant logic governing MNCs' responses.
In vitro bioactivity of various pure flavonoids in ruminal fermentation, with special reference to methane formation

Polyphenols, like flavonoids, have been investigated when present in intact plants or in extracts as methane mitigating dietary supplements in ruminants. The aim of the present study was to examine pure compounds in a short-term in vitro experiment using the Hohenheim Gas Test method. We focused on the group of the flavonoids and tested which of them had the potential to mitigate methane without negatively affecting ruminal fermentation. Eight flavonoids were tested: epicatechin, luteolin-7-glucoside, quercetin, and isoquercetin in Experiment 1; catechin, gallocatechin, epigallocatechin, and epigallocatechin gallate in Experiment 2. Tannic acid, no flavonoid but a phenolic acid with known methane mitigating properties, served as positive control, and the unsupplemented basal diet as negative control. In both experiments, each of these compounds (including tannic acid) was tested at dosages of 0.5, 5.0, and 50.0 mg/g basal diet dry matter (DM) in four runs each. Gallocatechin, tannic acid, and epigallocatechin gallate (50 mg/g DM) lowered fermentation gas formation and in vitro organic matter digestibility relative to the negative control (Experiment 2). Apart from tannic acid, epicatechin, quercetin, isoquercetin, and luteolin-7-glucoside (5 and 50 mg/g DM) reduced the amount of CH4 produced in relation to total gas produced (Experiment 1). The incubation fluid ammonia concentration was decreased with luteolin-7-glucoside and tannic acid (50 mg/g DM). From the flavonoids tested especially luteolin-7-glucoside seems to have a similar potential as tannic acid to mitigate methane and ammonia formation during ruminal fermentation in vitro, both favourable in environmental respect. These results need to be confirmed in live animals.
User Requirement Validation: Challenge Exploration in Pre-project Execution

The need for validation technique for user requirement or in other term Tender Specification at the Request for Tender (RFT) is vital. Without much resource for vendor to dispose of, the outcome of this research will proof useful. The purpose of this article is to determine the gap of initial and finish software product, method of eliminate or mitigate those gaps, list of OO artefacts and their relevancy towards the research. Finding of this article will be the basis of interconnecting user requirement specification and meta-requirement via UML. Based on the result, RE plays an important role in the survivability of a project, there are a few researches being done for solutions in the field of RFT specification validation, UML is the most relevant artefacts and usability of UML diagram ranked based on consistency is relevant toward connecting UML and meta-requirement. It is suggested that further research is to be carried out that will define the connection between user requirement specification in the form of UML to meta-requirement in order to achieve the overall objective of the research.
The contractual relationships in the Italian durum wheat chain: empirical survey evidence

The paper investigates the vertical relations along the Italian durum wheat chain and the factors affecting farmers’ behavior in adopting contractual agreements. Sale/crop-growing contracts in the durum wheat sector are analyzed through a direct survey to a sample of 261 durum wheat farmers. The questionnaire collected data on downstream relations and contract terms between farmers and processing and/or marketing firms along the durum wheat chain. A logit model is used to identify factors affecting the likelihood of contract farming between farms and processors. One of the main issues emerging is the low frequency of written contractual forms between durum wheat farmers and downstream operators. In most cases the farmers do not want constraints and reveal a lack of trust in contracts. They prefer to sell their product to a local downstream operator with whom they have a long-standing and solid relationship of trust. Moreover, results of a logistic model show that certain farm features, such as turnover and degree of specialization in durum wheat production, play an important role in driving the decision to adopt written contracts.
Induced systemic salt tolerance in rice by indigenous bacteria isolated from Java coastal plants under gnotobiotic system

Bacteria associated with plants grown in saline natural habitat provide an advantage to the host they colonize and their utilization would give a great benefit for alleviating the salt stress to the plants growing in such environment. With the objective to find the most promising bacterial strains to be used for induction of salt tolerance in agricultural crops, we evaluated 12 bacterial isolates that previously isolated from plants grown in the Java coastal area. Gnotobiotic system was performed to test the ability of isolates in enhancing salt tolerance in three different varieties of rice (Ciherang, IF8, Situbagendit) under different levels of NaCl. The result suggested that promising isolates for enhanced salt tolerance in rice seedling are E194-3, D150 and R146-6 for root endophyte, leaf endophyte and rhizoplane respectively. Isolate E194-3 (root endophyte) gave the best result at highest concentration NaCl of 200 mM by increasing the root length, shoot length, fresh weight and dry weight 21%, 39%, 62% and 49% respectively (means from three rice varieties) in comparison to uninoculated control. This study suggested that gnotobiotic assay for evaluating rice seedling growth promotion by bacterial endophyte and rhizoplane under salt condition could be used for the selection of potential bacterial strains subjected to further testing of bacterial isolates to be used in inducing salt tolerance in rice under field conditions.
Resident attendees of Macao's Drunken Dragon Festival: a cluster analysis

The present study aims to investigate resident attendees' perceptions and attitudes towards a traditional cultural festival. It further clusters the attendees and identifies the profiles of each cluster based on its demographic, attitudinal and behavioral variables. ,The Drunken Dragon Festival, a traditional cultural festival in Macao SAR, which has been embedded in the local community for about a century, is used as a case. Data collected from 378 residents on the day of the festival were factor analyzed and then grouped by using cluster analysis. ,A two-cluster solution revealed that the two groups, overall, had distinct demographic characteristics and had somewhat different perceptions and attitudes towards the festival. ,The results not only show the overall perceptions of the Drunken Dragon Festival among the resident attendees, but they also imply that the government and the organizers need to communicate with and involve the two resident attendee clusters differently. ,This study is one of the first attempts to investigate the residents' attitudes towards the transformational development of a traditional cultural festival as an effort to ensure the viability of intangible cultural heritage and to utilize it as a tourism resource.
Correlation between Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Heat-Treated Ti–6Al–4V with Fe Alloying

The microstructure and mechanical properties of a newly developed Fe-microalloyed Ti–6Al–4V titanium alloy were investigated after different heat treatments. The volume fraction and the morphological features of the lamellar α phase had significant effects on the alloy’s mechanical performance. A dataset showing the relationship between microstructural features and tensile strength, elongation, and fracture toughness was developed. A high aging temperature resulted in high plasticity and fracture toughness, but relatively low strength. The high strength favored the fine α and the slender β. The high aspect ratio of lamellar α led to high strength but low fracture toughness. The alloy with ~84 vol % α exhibited the highest strength and lowest fracture toughness because the area of its α/β-phase interface was the highest. Optimal comprehensive mechanical performance and heat-treatment procedures were thus obtained from the dataset. Optimal tensile strength, yield strength, elongation, and fracture toughness were 999 and 919 MPa, 10.4%, and 94.4 MPa·m1/2, respectively.
Classification of Retinal Pathologies using Convolutional Neural Network

Deep Learning technique has emerged as a successful approach in applications with complex functions. It is used in the areas of computer vision, speech recognition and image processing applications. The most popular deep learning architecture is Convolution Neural Network (CNN). The proposed method a pre-trained CNN based on GoogLeNet and VGGNet is used to classify the retinal diseases such as Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) and Diabetic Macular Edema (DME). Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SD-OCT) images are used for identifying the retinal pathologies. Pre-trained GoogLeNet and VGGNet predict the nature of all the subjects of the test images. 94% of accuracy, 95% specificity and 96% sensitivity for the three classes are achieved using GoogLeNet and 96% of accuracy, 99% specificity and 96% of sensitivity for the three classes are achieved using VGGNet.
The effect of insularity on avian growth rates and implications for insular body size evolution

Island populations often differ in consistent ways from their mainland counterparts with respect to their ecology, behaviour, morphology, demography and life-history characteristics; a set of changes referred to as the ‘island syndrome’. To understand the ecological and evolutionary drivers of the island syndrome requires characterization of suites of interacting traits. While patterns in some types of traits, e.g. body size, are well characterized across a range of taxa, key gaps remain. Growth rate is one such trait, being an important determinant of both increases and decreases in body size, and can vary with changes in predation pressure and food limitation; two factors that are known to differ between mainland and island environments. Using a phylogenetic meta-analytic approach, we characterize differences in growth rates among mainland and island altricial bird populations, controlling for environmental factors. We found a trend towards slower growth on islands in small-bodied (less than 1 kg) bird species. This is consistent with the idea that the pattern of body size increases in small-bodied island colonists is associated with the evolution of slower growth combined with shifts in age and size at maturity in relaxed predation regimes.
Therapeutic Strategies with Synbiotics, Thalidomide, and Celecoxib for Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia

Dysregulation of proinflammatory cytokines promotes immune-mediated injuries. Epithelial-cell proliferation and an increase in lung macrophages have both been associated with the 2003 SARS-CoV infection. Proinflammatory cytokines as well as lipopolysaccharide and pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) promote macrophage transition which promotes ongoing inflammation. PAMPs are primarily sensed by Toll-like receptors and/or by angiotensin-converting enzyme 2; this interaction serves to activate NF-κB to promotes synthesis and secretion of proinflammatory cytokines. Activated immune cells secrete large amounts of specific proinflammatory cytokines including IL-1, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α, and TGF-β1 which can promote severe lung injury. As such, immunomodulatory drugs alone may have an impact on the cytokine storm even without the addition of antiviral agents. The central transcription factor, NF-κB, induces angiogenesis during cancer progression; combinations of pharmacological agents, including thalidomide and celecoxib, show promising results in cancer treatment studies. This may be due to a low-level, chronic cytokine storm similar to that described for acute and chronic hepatitis as well as for cirrhosis and hepatoma. As previously described, I have used thalidomide, celecoxib, and low dose cytotoxic agents since 2000 for the successful treatment of a variety of cancers. This regimen is cited or introduced in leading medical journals. Thalidomide is an immunomodulatory agent that modulates the activities of NF-κB in combination with the cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor, celecoxib. The combination of thalidomide and celecoxib might limit the inflammatory symptoms when used to treat severe COVID-19 pneumonia due to infection with SARS-CoV-2.
Motion and Muscle Activity of Synchronized Rolling-Type Double-Leg Circles on a Pommel Horse

Experimental analyses of motions of a double-leg circle were conducted for a smooth and dynamic movement. A motion capture system provided the data for two different gymnasts; one is well trained and the other has an average skill level. Lissajous analysis was done for a tip-toe circling motion and a rolling motion around a longitudinal axis of a body. The results show that synchronization between the tip-toe circling and the body-rolling around the body’s longitudinal axis is crucial. Muscle activity was also analyzed from electromyogram data when the gymnasts performed double-leg circles, and the muscle activity characteristics of synchronized rolling-type circles were uncovered.
Chicken feather protein hydrolysate as a biostimulant improves the growth of wheat seedlings by affecting biochemical and physiological parameters

We derived a protein hydrolysate with rich content, which includes proteinogenic and nonproteinogenic amino acids, from chicken feathers by using an alkaline hydrolysis procedure with high yield success. After foliar application of aqueous solutions (0.05%, 0.075%, and 0.1%) of chicken feather protein hydrolysate (CFPH) to the seedlings of wheat ( Triticum aestivum L. `Altindane? and `Bezostaya? ), their effects were evaluated on important physiological and biochemical parameters. Treating plants with CFPH stimulated the expression of RuBisCo and increased root and shoot lengths, fresh and dry weights of the seedlings, and photosynthetic pigment content. In addition, applying CFPH at 0.075% and 0.1% concentrations decreased the content of reactive oxygen species, such as O 2 . and H 2 O 2 , and the levels of lipid peroxidation (as malondialdehyde) and phenolic compounds, while augmenting free proline content. On the contrary, CFPH application ameliorated the antioxidant parameters, including enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants. CFPH stimulated the activities of guaiacol, ascorbate, and glutathione peroxidase while it did not affect those of superoxide dismutase and catalase. Enzyme activity results agreed well with the isoenzyme expression profiles. In conclusion, the application of CFPH improved the parameters under consideration in wheat seedlings, suggesting that CFPH has the potential to be used as a suitable biostimulant in plant cultivation.
Application of Metaheuristic Algorithms in Truss Structure Sizing Optimization

Field studies of structural optimization have gained increased attention due to the rapid development of metaheuristic algorithms. One widely known metaheuristic algorithm, Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), has been extensively used to solve many problems and is reported to have fast convergence behavior and good accuracy. As many problems become more complex, studies have been focused on improving PSO searching capability. This study presents the application of PSO and its variants in optimizing truss structures. The performances of PSO and several PSO variants, namely, linearly decreasing inertia weight PSO (LDW-PSO) and bare bones PSO (BB-PSO), were compared and investigated. All optimization algorithms were tested in 72-bar and 25-bar spatial truss problems. The results indicate that BBPSO was the best algorithm in terms of optimum solution, consistency, and convergence behavior.
Quality of life assessment in patients who have undergone oncologic resection of rectum: a retrospective, three arms, single centre, observational study

Quality of life (QOL) measurement plays an important role in the field of oncology as it aims to include the patient as well as disease outcomes in the assessment of treatment. The term QOL is used to describe factors that influence the living condition of the society or the individual. The WHO defines QOL as, “the individual perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value system in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations standards and concerns”. It is a multidimensional global construction introduced as a keyword in the United States National Library of Medicine in 1977. ABSTRACT
How much remains? Local value capture from tourism in Zambezi, Namibia

Abstract High hopes are pinned on tourism and its catalytic potential to foster growth in remote rural areas. In the Zambezi region of northeastern Namibia, tourism plays a key role in the design of community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) programmes for nature conservation. Local communities form conservancies, small village-based entities of bottom-up nature conservation activities. These conservancies are granted rights for the use of natural resources, which are then transferred to tourism investors and trophy-hunting companies. Thus, conservancies partly determine tourism’s developmental outcomes on a local level. By applying a global production network (GPN) approach, the objective is, first, to assess how much of the turnover generated in the Zambezi region remains in the region and, second, to examine the extent to which conservancies, as newly formed local institutions, enable communities to capture value from tourism. A mixed-methods approach is applied, using a business survey, qualitative interview data and financial reports which allow a calculation of value capture. Roughly 20% of the value generated by the tourism industry in the Zambezi region is captured locally. In addition, conservancies play a key role in the GPN, acting as hinges between the local and the global: conservancies are involved in the production of the resource, mediate in strategic coupling processes and use regulatory and bargaining power to capture value. Conservancies therefore have the potential to increase local gains from tourism. On the one hand, these results underline the importance of local institutions for value capture in GPN analysis. On the other hand, as local linkages are limited and the level of local ownership is low, policies are needed that ensure the participation of local residents beyond direct transfer payments from private enterprises to communities.
Advances in Hydrologic Forecasts and Water Resources Management

The impacts of climate change on water resources management as well as the increasing severe natural disasters over the last decades have caught global attention. Reliable and accurate hydrological forecasts are essential for efficient water resources management and the mitigation of natural disasters. While the notorious nonlinear hydrological processes make accurate forecasts a very challenging task, it requires advanced techniques to build accurate forecast models and reliable management systems. One of the newest techniques for modelling complex systems is artificial intelligence (AI). AI can replicate the way humans learn and has the great capability to efficiently extract crucial information from large amounts of data to solve complex problems. The fourteen research papers published in this Special Issue contribute significantly to the uncertainty assessment of operational hydrologic forecasting under changing environmental conditions and the promotion of water resources management by using the latest advanced techniques, such as AI techniques. The fourteen contributions across four major research areas: (1) machine learning approaches to hydrologic forecasting; (2) uncertainty analysis and assessment on hydrological modelling under changing environments; (3) AI techniques for optimizing multi-objective reservoir operation; and (4) adaption strategies of extreme hydrological events for hazard mitigation. The papers published in this issue can not only advance water sciences but can also support policy makers toward more sustainable and effective water resources management.
Isolation and Characterization of 32 Microsatellite Markers in Hermann's Tortoise, Testudo hermanni (Testudinidae)

Abstract. We used 454-sequencing to identify and characterize 32 microsatellite loci for the Western Hermann's tortoise (Testudo hermanni hermanni) for which primer sequences, characteristics, and multiplexes are provided. These markers have been tested for one continental (Var) and one insular (Corsica) French population as well as for the Eastern Hermann's tortoise (Testudo hermanni boettgeri). For these 3 populations, 24 loci were polymorphic. These microsatellite markers will be particularly useful to assess the genetic diversity and characteristics of the different Hermann's tortoise populations and will have direct applications for its protection, notably with respect to reintroduction and conservation programs.