Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analytical Framework for Performance Evaluation of Research Organizations

Performance evaluation is an important measure of the total quality management, which can be used to assess the performance of an individual or an organization with respect to set goals and targets. The metrics/parameters used for evaluating the performance and the way in which these are measured by using appropriate tools and techniques play a major role in the evaluation process. Performance evaluation is even more challenging in the case of R and D organizations, where the outcome/output may not be tangible/measurable and varies from one organization to another, depending on the nature, vision, charter and character. A methodology is proposed to arrive at a framework that can help in objectively assessing or evaluating the performance of each of the laboratories of CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) based on four knowledge portfolios which are appropriately given weightages according to the impact they have on the four goods viz-Public, Private, Social and Strategic Appropriate parameters have been identified which can help in objectively evaluating the performance of the laboratory. The proposed analytical framework will facilitate quantification of performance of an R and D organization to enable resource allocation in a rational manner.
Volatility of short term capital flows and socio-political instability in Argentina, Mexico and Turkey

The paper analyzes the relationship between financial liberalization and socio-political risk by identifying the inter-dependent nature of socio-political and economic fault lines in three developing countries. Unlike the previous research, the current article suggests that domestic socio-political factors cannot be isolated from the fluctuations taking place in the economic arena. In particular, we examine the effects of short-term capital inflows on the recipient countries by exploring the dynamic relationship between the volatility of such flows and socio-political instability. Accordingly, we endogenize the volatility of short term capital inflows with political risk variables where increasing volatility by disrupting market activities and private investment increases socio-political risk, which further feeds into the volatility of such flows. In the empirical analysis using both the Granger causality tests and a simultaneous-equation approach we uncover a contemporaneous relationship between the volatility of short-term capital inflows and socio-political instability. The results also challenge the previous research regarding their use of political variables as purely exogenous from economic variables. Likewise, the legitimacy of the arguments explaining investor cautiousness vis-a-vis political developments in the developing countries with purely domestic factors also becomes questionable.
Performance verification of methodology for determination of nitrate ion in drinking water samples

Contaminated water is one of the main public health risks. One way to assess its quality is by quantifying nitrate through ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometry. In this work, the performance of the UV spectrophotometric method for nitrate ion determination in water was studied, with linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ) and robustness being verified. In the working range studied (5.0-25.0 mgN·L-1), all validation parameters are in accordance with the acceptance criteria established by INMETRO. In linearity, the value of r (0.999) was higher than the criterion (0.995). In the study of precision and accuracy, the coefficients of variation for repeatability and intra-laboratory reproducibility were 1.79 and 2.34%, and 1.44 and 2.52%, respectively (<5%). The value of the relative error (15.8 and 8.1%) was also lower than the criterion (≤ 20%). The LOD and LOQ obtained were 0.56 and 1.70 mgN·L-1, respectively. In the evaluation of the robustness no factor had a significant effect on the final result. Analyzing real samples, the percentages of recovery were between 88.5 and 103.6%, according to the established criteria (80-110%). In this way, it can be said that the method presents reliability to the intended purpose.
Collaborative Learning System-Enabling Interoperability Between Learning Tools

- In recent years, the online educational system had an ascent shift from individual learning to learning in collaboration. Earlier, people had to use different tools for different purposes in individual learning, but this paper proposes the concept of interoperability between the learning tools which is termed as Collaborative Learning Systems to create a better learning experience and gain knowledge through an interactive platform. The paper presents the proposed architectural design, data flow representations and certain evidence to show that Collaborative learning is more useful and beneficial than the traditional learning systems.
Biogenic volatile organic compound emissions from Willow trees

Popular science Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) are a versatile group of non-methane hydrocarbons (chemical compounds made of carbon and hydrogen) emitted by vegetation. The most common BVOCs from plants are some chemical compounds like isoprene, monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes. BVOCs are involved in plant growth, reproduction and defense mechanisms. Besides, BVOC play an important role in tropospheric (lower portion of atmosphere) chemistry and could increase methane’s lifetime, form tropospheric ozone and increase CO2 concentration. In August 2012, emissions of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) from willow (Salix) trees were measured in Lund, southern Sweden. For the last 25 years willow has been cultivated as an agricultural crop for bioenergy production and played an important role in Swedish energy sector by producing wood fuel. During this period, more than 16000 ha of short rotation willow plantations have been planted in Sweden. But willow trees are suspected to emit substantial amounts of BVOC to the atmosphere. BVOC emission measurements were carried out on two Salix fragilis trees and one Salix phylicifolia tree. Emission rates of different BVOCs were found to vary between different individuals of the same species of willow trees as well as between the subspecies of willow trees. Emissions of BVOCs were detected to depend on temperature and light intensity. Salix trees were found to emit large amounts of isoprene. Especially Salix phylicifolia emitted 98% isoprene of total BVOC emission, whereas Salix fragilis trees released about 85% of the total BVOC mass as isoprene. But isoprene is an extremely reactive compound and reacts with other atmospheric gases. Isoprene emission potential for Salix phylicifolia was 56.4 µg g-1dw h-1 (microgram per gram dry weight of leaves per hour) whereas 16.9 µg g-1dw h-1 and 44.4 µg g-1dw h-1 were measured for the Salix fragilis trees. Isoprene emission potentials for Willows were higher compared to other vegetation. As isoprene is a highly reactive compound and has great impact on atmosphere and climate system, we should think about alternative bioenergy plants which emit less or no isoprene at all. Non-isoprene emitting poplars are an option for the future biofuel plantation.
Preparation of Graphene / TiO 2 Composite Nanomaterials and Its Photocatalytic Performance for the Degradation of 2 , 4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid

The graphene (GR)was prepared by an improved electrochemical strippingmethod using a high-purity graphite rod as rawmaterial and high temperature heat reduction in hydrogen atmosphere, and the graphene/TiO 2 (GR/TiO 2 ) composite nanomaterials were manufactured by the method of sol-gel and high temperature crystallization in hydrogen atmosphere using butyl titanate and electrolysis graphene as precursors. The physical and chemical properties of the composites had been characterized by using Xray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV-Vis spectrophotometer (UV-Vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Transmission ElectronMicroscope (TEM), and specific surface area (SSA) by BETmethod.The photocatalytic properties of GR/TiO 2 composites nanomaterials in anoxic water were studied by using 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) as probe. The results showed that graphite was well intercalated and peeled by a facile electrolysis method in different electric field environment; a well dispersed and rings structure of graphene was prepared by coupling ultrasound-assisted changing voltage electrochemical stripping technology. The as-prepared GR/TiO 2 composites had good performance for the photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-D in anoxic water; the chlorines were removed from benzene ring; the middle products of dichlorophenol, chlorophenol, phloroglucinol, and so forth were produced from the photocatalytic redox reaction of 2,4-D in anoxic water; parts of 2,4-D were decomposed completely, and CO 2 and H 2 O were produced.
GENETIC VARIATION OF YELLOW BARBELL ( CARASOBARBUS LUTEUS ( HECKEL , 1843 ) ) FROM FOUR POPULATIONS USING MITOCHONDRIAL DNA COI GENE SEQUENCES

The aim of this study is to determine genetic variation of C. luteus populations by conducting gene sequence analysis of mtDNA COI locus. Total DNA of 48 individuals from 4 populations in total was isolated using a commercial kit. Sequence analysis was conducted through 3500 XL Genetic Analyzer device following the amplification of target mtDNA locus via Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). With sequence analysis of mtDNA COI locus, 9 polymorphic sites and 4 haplotypes were determined. Haplotype and nucleotide diversity were calculated between 0.409 0.535 and 0.00089 0.00534, respectively. Pairwise FST results ranged between -0.16880 and 0. 33181, values of Diyarbakır population were found to be statistically significant compared to all of the other populations. Totally 4 haplotypes were detected in Median-Joining Network haplotype network. Tajima’s D and Fu’ Fs tests values were statistically insignificant for all populations (p>0.05). All results obtained in this study are the data that were extracted for C. luteus species for the first time. Haplotypes determined for mtDNA COI 625 locus are new results for the literature, generated a critical data set in terms of genetic diversity of this species.
A framework for the construction of level set methods for shape optimization and reconstruction

The aim of this paper is to develop a functional-analytic framework for the construction of level set methods, when applied to shape optimization and shape reconstruction problems. As a main tool we use a notion of gradient flows for geometric configurations such as used in the modelling of geometric motions in materials science. The analogies to this field lead to a scale of level set evolutions, characterized by the norm used for the choice of the velocity. This scale of methods also includes the standard approach used in previous work on this subject as a special case. Moreover, we apply this framework to some (inverse) model problems for elliptic boundary value problems. In numerical experiments we demonstrate that an appropriate choice of norms (dependent on the problem) yields stable and fast methods.
Correlation of Antenatal Umbilical Cord Coiling Index with Perinatal Outcome

Aim: To study the association between antenatal umbilical cord coiling index (aUCI) and perinatal outcome. Materials and methods: This prospective study was conducted on 100 patients. The aUCI between gestational age 28 and 42 weeks was calculated by color Doppler as the reciprocal of the distance between a pair of coils. It was then correlated with the following pregnancy outcomes: mode of delivery, preterm delivery, birth weight, meconium staining, Apgar score at 1 and 5 minutes, and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions. Hypocoiled cords were those having umbilical cord coiling index (UCI) less than 10th percentile and hypercoiled cords were those having UCI >90th percentile. The results were statistically analyzed by chi-square test. Results: The mean UCI was 0.61 ± 0.16. The hypocoiled umbilical cords (UCI < 10th percentile) were significantly associated with low birth weight, meconium staining, low Apgar score at 1 minute, and increased NICU admissions with a p-value < 0.05. Conclusion: Hypocoilled cords are significantly associated with adverse perinatal outcome.
Paleomagnetism indicates no Neogene rotation of the Qaidam Basin in northern Tibet during Indo-Asian collision

Paleomagnetic data were obtained from Tertiary red sedimentary rocks at two locations separated by several hundred kilometers within the Qaidam Basin. In the east-central part of the basin, 30 sites from the lower Pliocene Youshashan Formation yielded characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) directions with intermediate unblocking temperatures (100‐600 8C); ChRM with high unblocking temperatures (to 680 8C) was isolated from 14 sites. In the same area, ChRM directions were obtained from six sites within the Oligocene Lower Gancaigou Formation. Characteristic magnetization was also determined from 16 sites within the Lower Gancaigou Formation exposed in the E Bo Liang range of the north-central Qaidam Basin. When compared with equivalentage expected directions for Eurasia, the mean paleomagnetic directions indicate no Neogene vertical-axis rotation of the Qaidam Basin or the Altyn Tagh fault. The Qaidam Basin may act as an indentor translating without rotation toward the North China block and driving clockwise vertical-axis rotations by differential shortening within the Nan Shan fold-and-thrust belt.
Gas Chromatograph Setup and Analytical Method for Quantifying Chlorinated VOC in Gas and Liquid Phase

Oil Vapor recovery is a critical process in downstream chemical industries, in oil and gas industries and in environmental protection. It is crucial for researches to accurately quantify the concentrations of VOCs in both gas and aqueous phases before and after treatments (physical adsorption and catalytic remediation). In this paper, we introduce the GC configurations for both online analysis for gas phase samples and headspace analysis for aqueous samples. Data analysis and error propagation analysis are also discussed.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INFLATION AND UNEMPLOYMENT: THE ARDL BOUND TESTING APPROACH FOR TURKEY1 ENFLASYON VE İŞSİZLİK ARASINDAKİ İLİŞKİ:

Inflation and unemployment are among the most important economic and social problems encountered by both developed and developing countries. As countries are trying to lower inflation and maintain price stability, they also strike to increase production and hence economic growth by lowering unemployment rates. Therefore, policymakers are committed to these two variables. The relationship between inflation and unemployment is examined by the Phillips Curve approach in macroeconomics literature. This approach suggests that an inverse relationship exists between inflation and unemployment. In other words, higher inflation rate results in lower unemployment and lower inflation rate leads to higher unemployment. This study aims to test the validity of the Phillips Curve throughout the years 1987-2016 by the ARDL approach regarding the Turkish economy. In the analysis, the stability of the series is examined first, and then the cointegration test is utilized to investigate whether or not a long-term relationship exists between the series. As a result of the cointegration analysis, it is concluded that there is no long-term relationship between the variables in the model where the inflation is considered as the dependent variable. The unemployment rate is taken as the dependent variable, the existence of a long-run relationship among the variables included in the analysis would be determined.
The effect of hygroscopicity on eddy covariance estimates of sea-spray aerosol fluxes: a comparison of high-rate and bulk correction methods

Abstract. The eddy covariance technique is the most direct of the methods that have been used to measure the flux of sea-spray aerosol between the ocean and atmosphere, but has been applied in only a handful of studies. However, unless the aerosol is dried before the eddy covariance measurements are made, the hygroscopic nature of sea-spray may combine with a relative humidity flux to result in a bias in the calculated aerosol flux. "Bulk" methods have been presented to account for this bias, however, they rely on assumptions of the shape of the aerosol spectra which may not be valid for near-surface measurements of sea-spray. Here we describe a method of correcting aerosol spectra for relative humidity induced size variations at the high frequency (10 Hz) measurement timescale, where counting statistics are poor and the spectral shape cannot be well represented by a simple power law. Such a correction allows the effects of hygroscopicity and relative humidity flux on the aerosol flux to be explicitly evaluated and compared to the bulk corrections, both in their original form and once reformulated to better represent the measured mean aerosol spectra. In general, the bulk corrections – particularly when reformulated for the measured mean aerosol spectra – perform relatively well, producing flux corrections of the right sign and approximate magnitude. However, there are times when the bulk methods either significantly over- or underestimate the required flux correction. We conclude that, where possible, relative humidity corrections should be made at the measurement frequency.
The diffusion of complementary ICTs: An empirical test

We analyze the simultaneous diffusion of multiple ICTs that are related. A new econometric model is used to examine the presence of complementarities, testing for strong one-step-ahead non-causality and strong simultaneous independence. Results indicate significant complementarities between CAD and CNC technologies. Prior adoption of either of the two technologies has a large effect on the posterior adoption of the other one; in addition, simultaneous adoption is found to be more likely than adoption of the two technologies in isolation. Consistent with the presence of complementarities, we also find evidence of substantial price crosseffects: a decrease in the price of CAD (or CNC) increases the adoption probability of CNC (or CAD). Lastly, the increase in the likelihood of adopting the complementary technology turns out to depend on several plant-specific moderating factors. JEL codes: L11, O11
DERIVATION OF DIGITAL TERRAIN MODELS IN THE SCOP++ ENVIRONMENT

Airborne laser scanning is widely used for the derivation of terrain information in wooded or open areas but also for the production of building models in cities. For this, the generation of a digital terrain model (DTM) is also required. In this paper the filtering and classification of laser scanner data with iterative robust linear prediction in a hierarchical fashion using data pyramids is described. The coarse-to-fine approach is advantageous because it strengthens the robustness of the method and makes it faster. The results for test data sets of the OEEPE are presented.
The Impact of Conflict and Security Budget for Conflict Management on Gross Domestic Product in Nigeria

This study assessed the impact of conflict and security budget for conflict management on gross domestic product in Nigeria. Secondary source of data gathered from published articles on peace and development, internet reports on conflicts, publications from the Federal Ministry of Finance and National Bureau of Statistics from 2000-2012 was employed. The statistical tools used to analyze the data include regression analysis, correlation analysis and the line graph analysis. From the result of the analysis it was observed that incidence of conflict and gross domestic product has a positive correlation with an association measure of 68%. Also, it was found that incidence of conflict contributed significantly to the behavior of gross domestic product and it was found that increase on incidence of conflict reduces the gross domestic product of Nigeria. The existence of a strong positive correlation was found between security budget for conflict management and gross domestic product with an association measure of 72.7%. It was equally found that security budget for conflict management contributed significantly to the behavior of gross domestic product in Nigeria. The result explained further that as security budget increases gross domestic product increases. This result implies that as more money is been budgeted for conflict management, gross domestic product increases in turn; since there will be less of conflict and greater room for economic development.
A real site application of a diagnose method at Estimating Insulated Cables Degradation using Non Linearity Indicators

The quality of electricity supply, among other issues, deals with continuity indicators as one of the most important factors for the characterization of an adequate service as far as power quality is concerned. In this context, one of the major problems responsible for the unscheduled interruptions is related to the degradation of electrical cables insulation and the well-known water tree effect emerges as an important cause for the deterioration of their insulation layer. If this phenomenon happens large loss of insulating properties of dielectric material used to build up such component will occur. In light of these facts, the development of procedures to evaluate, predict and indicate the operational status of operating cables shows highly attractive in order to improve the quality and reliability of energy supply. Focusing this subject, this paper presents a synthesis of existing methods and a new trend towards the mentioned matter. By using experimental measurements, carried out in medium voltage commercial operating cables in a distribution utility throughout non-invasive approach, applied voltage and insulating leakage currents are obtained so support the analysis. The data are used to obtain degradation indexes to estimate the cables physical operational conditions and the found indicators are further considered in viewing the effectiveness of the strategies for the diagnosis purposes.
A comparison of structural reform scenarios across the EU member states - Simulation-based analysis using the QUEST model with endogenous growth

This paper calibrates the Roeger-Varga-Veld (2008) micro-founded DSGE model with endogenous growth for all EU member states using country specific structural characteristics and employs the individual country models to analyse the macroeconomic impact of various structural reforms. We analyse the costs and benefits of reforms in terms of fiscal policy instruments such as taxes, benefits, subsidies and administrative costs faced by firms. We find that less R&D intensive countries would benefit the most from R&D promoting and skill-upgrading policies. We also find that shifting from labour to consumption taxes, reducing the benefit replacement rate and relieving administrative entry barriers are the most effective measures in those countries which have high labour taxes and entry barriers.