Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cataloguing and Classification Education (CCE) and training in Library and Information Science/Studies departments in South Africa

Recent reports complain about the lack of cataloguers in South Africa to support Library and Information Services. The purpose of this study is to investigate the nature, level, status and challenges of teaching cataloguing and classification in LIS schools in South Africa. Qualitative and quantitative methods, through a survey and content analysis, were employed in this study. All twelve LIS/IS departments in South Africa were targeted. Within these departments, the main sources of research data were the department heads and/or lecturers teaching cataloguing and classification, as well as the course outlines or study guides of cataloguing and classification modules or courses. Survey data was collected through interviews and largely through questionnaires that were emailed to the respondents in the various LIS departments. Content analysis was employed for curriculum and syllabus analysis. Most respondents agreed that CCE should be offered in its current form and some uniformity in the titling of courses should be achieved. While most CCE challenges are not new, intervention is still required, particularly with regards to Resource Description and Access (RDA) which must be addressed by LIS schools as soon as possible. This study informs cataloguing and classification education in South Africa, and perhaps elsewhere, by providing baseline information for the planning, teaching, marketing and recruiting of graduates qualified in the two research domains.
Nonlinear impact of inflation on economic growth in South Africa: A smooth transition regression (STR) analysis

In this paper, we challenge the notion of a monotonic relationship between inflation and economic growth in South Africa. In particular, we establish threshold effects in the inflation-growth relationship using a smooth transition regression (STR) model which is applied on data collected between 1994:Q1 and 2016:Q2. Our empirical results confirm a threshold of 5.4 percent in which the effects of inflation on economic growth are positive below this threshold whereas inflation exerts adverse effect on economic growth at inflation levels above this level. In a nutshell, our study offers support in favour of the optimal level of inflation lying between the current 3-6 percent inflation target and more specifically suggests that the monetary authorities should slightly lower the upper level of this target to about 5.4 percent as a means creating a more conducive financial environment for promoting higher economic growth.
Prevalence and Removal Efficiency of Enterococcal Species and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci of a Hospital Wastewater Treatment Plant

Simultaneous presence of various antibiotics and bacteria in hospital wastewaters creates a suitable environment, in which the bacteria, such as enterococci become resistant to the antibiotics. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of different units of the hospital wastewater treatment plant (HWTP) to remove Enterococcus spp and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE). The study was performed on the 27 samples collected from HWTP in Hamedan, Iran during December 2014 to August 2015. Enterococcus spp and VRE were identified by biochemical tests and then the isolates were confirmed by PCR. Finally, the antibiotic susceptibility test was performed using disk diffusion methods. Of the 27 samples examined, 315 a total of enterococcal isolates were obtained. Of the 315 isolates of enterococci investigated, 162 (51.42%) were identified as E. faecium, 87 (27.61%) as E. hirae, 35 (11.11%) as E. faecalis, 11 (3.5%) as E. gallinarum, 7 (2.22%) as E. casseliflavus, 4 (1.26%) E. avium, and 9 (2.85%) isolates VR E. faecium.The results of antibiotic susceptibility testing showed that of the total 315 isolates, 146 (46.34%) were resistance to tetracycline, 9 (2.85%) were resistance to vancomycin and Teicoplanin. Lower antibiotic resistance was seen with Nitrofurantoin 2 (1.26%). This study indicates a high prevalence of multidrug resistance among E. faecium isolated from HWTP, thus, it could be considered as a threat to the health and safety of wastewater workers and even public health.
The status of Sarcopoterium spinosum (Rosaceae) at the western periphery of its range: Ecological constraints lead to conservation concerns

This paper considers the demography, ecology, and conservation perspectives of the western populations of the clonal dwarf-shrub Sarcopoteriumspinosum (L.) Spach. While in the Middle East the species dominates large areas, westwards it is less common and many populations have become extinct since the late 19th century. We highlight the ecological limitations and their implications for the conservation of the species at the periphery of its range. In southern Italy we studied the demographic traits of two populations and the age spatial structure of a third. Ramet density and lifespan appear to be lower than in the Middle East. The floristic analysis of the stands studied and a climatic analysis over the whole range of S. �spinosum provide a key for the interpretation of such differences. Given that summer drought stress decreases westwards, both the sprouting vigor and the ecological space available for S. �spinosum become limited by increasing competition. This makes the populations more likely to become extinct in changing landscapes, as revealed by the decreasing extent of occurrence and area of occupancy due to habitat loss. Although S. �spino- sum is not at risk in the Middle East, at the western border of its range it qualifies as an endangered species.
Evaluation of hydropower upgrade projects - a real options approach

When evaluating whether to refurbish existing hydropower plants or invest in a new power plant, there are two important aspects to take into consideration. These are the capacity chosen for the production facilities and the timing of the investment. This paper presents an investment decision support framework for hydropower producers with production facilities due for restoration. The producer can choose between refurbishing existing power plants and investing in a new production facility. A real options framework is proposed to support the investment decision. Using a case from Norsk Hydro ASA, a Norwegian hydropower producer, we employ the framework to evaluate the investment opportunities. Our main contribution is an approach that combines hydropower scheduling and real options valuation, and the results from our analysis suggest feasible investment strategies for Norsk Hydro ASA.
Effect of Investor Sentiment on Future Returns in the Nigerian Stock Market

Nigerian stock market for a period covering the time from the first quarter of 2008 to fourth quarter of 2015. The OLS regression and granger causality techniques were employed for data analyses. The results showed that (1) investor sentiment has a significant positive effect on stock market returns even after control for fundamentals such as Industrial production index, consumer price index and Treasury bill rate; (2) there is a uni-directional causality that runs from change in investor sentiment (ΔCCI) to stock market returns (Rm). Derived finding showed that the inclusion of fundamentals increased the explanatory power of investor sentiment from 3.96% to 33.05%, though at both level, investor sentiment (ΔCCI) has low explanatory power on stock market returns. The study posits existence of a dynamic relationship between investor sentiment and the behaviour of stock future returns in Nigeria such that higher sentiment concurrently leads to higher stock prices.
Employment and Macroeconomic Variables: Evidence from Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore

This study examines the meaningful relationship between employment and macroeconomic variables such as domestic capital, gross domestic product and government expenditure in three major ASEAN economies, namely Malaysia, Singapore and Philippines. Johansen (1991) cointegration method coupled with VECM (vector-error-correction model) testing procedure is employed to analyze the impact of the selected variables. The period of interest is 1970-2005 using annual data. The empirical results demonstrate mixed results whereby though cointegration could be detected for all three countries; in the case of Malaysia, the causality that could be detected are, capital granger causes employment and employment granger causes government expenditure, as for Singapore, trade granger causes capital and lastly for the case of Philippines, both income and trade granger causes government expenditure.
Title : Sub 1 GHz M 2 M communications standardization : The advancement in white space utilization for enhancing the energy efficiency

Energy efficiency of machine to machine (M2M) communications terminals is one of the major design goals of M2M networks, resulting from anticipated over 50 billion M2M communications devices to be deployed into the networks by 2020 [1]. The stakeholders in the M2M communications have observed that it will be environmental and economic catastrophic to deploy M2M communications devices without solving the energy inefficiencies associated with wireless devices that are expected to be used for M2M communications. In view of the aforementioned energy challenge, sub 1GHz spectra have provided enormous opportunities that can be energy efficient, cost effective and coverage efficiency which can be utilized for M2M communications. This work will evaluate the energy efficiency benefits of optimized Sub 1GHz spectra for M2M communications. Keywords— Energy Efficiency, IEEE 802.11ah / 802.11af / 802.22 / 802.15. 4 Standards, M2M Communications, Sub 1GHz Communications, Weightless Standard.
Multi Objective Particle Swarm Optimization based Mixed Size Module Placement in VLSI Circuit Design

Placement process is one of the vital stages in physical desi gn. In this stage, modules and elements of circuit are placed in distinct locations according to optimization basis. Pla cement algorithms try to minimize the longest delay along the paths in the circuit and/or minimize the total wire length. So placement is an important step in circuit architecture. After it, we ca n reach to routing stage. It is known that particle swarm optimization (PSO) is one of the practical evolutionary algorithms for this kind o f applications. In this project, a novel method for optimized module placement has been used. According to this process objectives in this issue were wirelength and overlap removal function, consequently we were forced to use multi-objective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO) in the algorithm. Structure of MOPSO is in a way that introduces set of answers, we had been tried to find a unique answer with mi nimum overlap. This algorithm has less run time as compared with other methods of placement, run time plays an important role in VLSI circuit design. Also the experiments on GSRC benchmarks show that the proposed algorithm is effective, and gives out many optional results for users choice in the physical design of VLSI circuits.
HYBRID ORGANIC SOLAR CELLS BASED ON POLYMER/METAL OXIDE NANOCRYSTALS

In this paper, we investigated the effects of ZnO nanoparticles in the active layer of organic solar cells with different hole transport layers (PEDOT:PSS and TiO2 nanoparticles). The active layer consists of conjugated polymer poly (3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT), phenyl C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) and ZnO nanoparticles. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the devices was improved by incorporating ZnO nanoparticles in the active layer of the devices. The mixing increased the absorbance in the visible region of the absorption spectra. The conjugation of ZnO nanoparticles enhanced the surface roughness of the films. The mixing improved the percolation path for charge carriers in the active layer of the devices.
Homology Functionality for Grayscale Image Segmentation Research Article

Topological tools provide features about spaces, which are insensitive to continuous deformations. Applied to images, the topological analysis reveals important characteristics: how many connected components are present, which ones have holes and how many, how are they related one to another, how to measure them and find their locations. We show in this paper that the extraction of such features by computing persistent homology is suitable for grayscale image segmentation.
Direct Actions of Granulocyte-Colony Stimulating Factor on Human Neuronal and Monocytic Cell Lines

Introduction: Granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) administration produces beneficial effects in rodent models of stroke, trauma and neurodegenerative diseases by acting on both bone marrow-derived and neuronal cells. The aim of the study was to elucidate cellular mechanism(s) of G-CSF action by direct application to neuronal and monocytic cell lines. Method: Cell culture models of monocytes (THP-1) and neurons (SH-SY5Y) cells were incubated with G-CSF. The following parameters were measured: G-CSF receptor binding kinetics; DNA synthesis; signal transduction, in particular expression of alternatively spliced protein kinase C (PKCδVIII) and the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2; changes in adhesiveness and migratory properties induced by G-CSF in the monocytic cells. Results: G-CSF receptor binding kinetics in the two lines differed, with Kd in the neuronal line being significantly higher than that of the monocytic cells. Despite higher affinity of G-CSF for receptors on the monocytic cells, G-CSF treatment increased Bcl-2 expression in the neuronal line at lower concentrations than that required in the monocytic cell line. G-CSF did not increase either cellular adhesiveness or migration through a semi-permeable membrane, whereas monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP-1) significantly improved migration. Conclusions: The cellular and molecular responses to G-CSF treatment of monocytic cells suggest that neither changes in adhesiveness nor migratory capacity are responsible for the beneficial effects of G-CSF administration in models of neurologic diseases. G-CSF induction of anti-apoptotic signaling in neurons is an important component of its neuroprotective effects in models of brain injury.
Impact of Ambidextrous Marketing on Market and Financial Performance

Firms need ambidextrous marketing functions which is being capable of exploitation and exploration of markets. In this research, impact of ambidextrous marketing on market performance and financial peformance is revealed using Structural Equation Model (SEM). Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) operating in information technology have been selected. For this reason, sample of the study was collected via questionnaire through 392 SME’s managers and owners. According to the results of the model; marketing exploitation has significant and positive direct effect on market performance while marketing exploration has significant and positive effects on market and financial performance. When dependent variables are examined, it is revealed that market performance has significant and positive direct effect on financial performance. As a result, it is demonstrated that ambidextrous marketing has impact on market and financial peformance.
Improvement on Hybrid SNCR-SCR Process for NO Control: a Bench Scale Experiment

The reducing agent [ammonia (NH3)] injection procedure was improved for the hybrid process of selective non-catalytic reduction followed by selective catalytic reduction (hybrid SNCR-SCR) to remove nitric oxide (NO) through a bench-scale experiment. Instead of injecting all of the NH3 from the SNCR inlet, part of it was injected from the SNCR inlet and part from the SCR inlet, to react with NO in the flue gas. The experiment resulted in the significant reduction of NO. The effects of the operational conditions such as the SNCR reaction temperature, the SCR reaction temperature, and the initial concentration ratio of NH3 to NO were also investigated. Under the initial NO concentration of 300 ppm (dry, 6% 2O), the space velocities of SNCR 5100-6300 hr^(-1), the space velocities of SCR 7100-10000 hr^(-1), and with the initial concentration ratios of NH3 to NO 1.0-1.5, the best operational temperatures were discovered to be SNCR reaction of 850℃ and SCR reaction of 350℃ for the improved hybrid SNCR-SCR process. In addition, a correlation equation has been developed of the maximum NO reduction under the above best-operational temperatures for the hybrid SNCR-SCR process, and closely fits with the experiment results.
Social Network Community Detection for DMA Creation: Criteria Analysis through Multilevel Optimization

Management of large water distribution systems can be improved by dividing their networks into so-called district metered areas (DMAs). However, such divisions must be based on appropriated technical criteria. Considering the importance of deeply understanding the relationship between DMA creation and these criteria, this work proposes a performance analysis of DMA generation that takes into account such indicators as resilience index, demand similarity, pressure uniformity, water age (and thus water quality), solution implantation costs, and electrical consumption. To cope with the complexity of the problem, suitable mathematical techniques are proposed in this paper. We use a social community detection technique to define the sectors, and then a multilevel particle swarm optimization approach is applied to find the optimal placement and operating point of the necessary devices. The results obtained by implementing the methodology in a real water supply network show its validity and the meaningful influence on the final result of, especially, elevation and pipe length.
Pharmacological and Phytochemical Screenings of Ethanol Extract of Etlingera linguiformis (Roxb.) R.M.Sm. Growing in Bangladesh

The present study was conducted to investigate the bio-activities of ethanol extract of Etlingera linguiformis (Roxb.) R.M. Sm. as well as to determine the chemical profiles of the extract. The antibacterial and antifungal activities of the crude extract were evaluated by the disc diffusion method against 4 Gram positive and 7 Gram negative pathogenic bacteria and 7 fungi using Ciprofloxacin and Fluconazole as standards, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined by the serial dilution method. The anti-atherothrombosis activity was assessed by using Streptokinase (SK) as standard. Moreover, the in-vitro anti-inflammatory and membrane stablization tests were performed. In the anti-bacterial and antifungal activity test, the zones of inhibition were found within the range of 10.0-15.0 and 10.0-22.0 mm, respectively. The highest zone of inhibition was obtained against Bacillus cereus (15.0 mm) and Blastomyces dermatitidis (22.0 mm). In the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) test the crude extract inhibited the growth of Blastomyces dermatitidis significantly at 31.2 ? g/ml. In the anti-atherothrombosis activity test, the extract revealed moderate clot lysis by 15.15%. Moreover, the extract produced inhibition of protein denaturation and haemolysis by 34% and 38.98% in the in vitro antiinflammatory and membrane stablization tests. Preliminary phytochemical screenings of the crude extractives demonstrated the presence of alkaloids, steroids, tannins, reducing sugars and gums. The extract also exhibited good biological activities. Therefore, the plant should be subjected to systematic bioactivity guided isolation in order to obtain the active molecules. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.3329/bpj.v16i1. 14488 Bangladesh Pharmaceutical Journal 16 (1): 33-37, 2013
Heavy vehicle productivity trends and road freight regulation in Australia

Australia’s road freight task has increased six-fold over the past 35 years, yet over the same period total kilometres travelled by commercial vehicles has increased only three-fold, implying a near two-fold increase in average heavy vehicle productivity. Several factors have contributed to this increase in heavy vehicle productivity, not least of which has been relaxation of heavy vehicle mass and dimension regulations, permitting larger, more productive vehicles wider access to the road network. In particular, the availability of larger heavy vehicle configurations—such as six-axle articulated trucks, introduced in the 1970s, and B-doubles, introduced in the late 1980s—with higher mass carrying capacity has facilitated both rapid growth in the articulated truck freight task and the transfer of freight from smaller to larger articulated trucks. With road freight projected to nearly double over the next two decades, policy makers will be faced with significant heavy vehicle traffic growth without continued productivity growth. This paper presents an empirical model of aggregate heavy vehicle freight shares and heavy vehicle productivity growth. The model provides an objective means of forecasting future heavy vehicle productivity trends, and evaluating the impact of future reforms. The paper presents projections of future heavy vehicle productivity growth using the model. The results suggest that even without significant further reform, substitution to larger heavy vehicle combinations will continue, resulting in further increases in heavy vehicle productivity but at a much lower rate than previously.
Interactive comment on “ North Atlantic Oscillation model projections and influence on tracer transport ” by S

We would like to thank the Referees for their careful reading of our manuscript. We are very grateful for the comments, constructive criticism and very useful suggestions received on how to improve the paper, and we appreciate the effort that the Referees put in reviewing the manuscript. We add below replies to the Referee common comments, together with the planned analysis to overcome the issues present in the manuscript. More detailed comments regarding each Referee review can be found at the end.
An Authentication Method Based on The Hands Scheme

Back of the hand scheme, fingers skin lines and nails structure can be used as new parameters of biometric features for human identification in high accuracy. In this paper, a new method for extracting unique features from back of the hand, fingers wrinkle and nails structure has been presented. At first fingers skin pattern and nails pattern which has been obtained by the edge operators are added to back of the hand scheme with multiplayer effect. Then basic data have been obtained from back of the hand’s image according to characteristics of PCA filter. Identification and authentication in this method have been based on three main processes: separation, feature extraction and feature matching. Initially, we separate back of the hand area from the background completely by pre-processing of the image. In next step that is the most important step in the process, the appropriate features for identification are extracting. The results of the proposed method show the proper performance of this new method of extracting features for human identification.
Air-sea Interaction under Hurricane Wind Conditions

where U10 -the wind velocity at a standard meteorological height 〉10=10 m. which relate this coefficient to U10 are obtained either by generalizing empirical data (Garratt, 1977; Large & Pond, 1981, Taylor & Yelland, 2002; Fairall et al., 2003) or by numerical models (see, for example, Janssen, 1989; Janssen, 1991, Makin et.al, 1994; Hara & Belcher, 2004). Numerous field measurements give increasing dependencies of CD on wind speed, which relates to increasing of wave heights with the wind. The aerodynamic drag coefficient of the sea surface is a critical parameter in the theory of tropical hurricanes (Emanuel, 1995). To illustrate it we consider here the ideas of theory of energy balance in a tropical cyclone suggested by (Emanuel, 1986; Emanuel, 1995, Emanuel, 2003). According to this theory the mature tropical cyclone may be idealized as a steady, axisymmetric flow whose energy cycle is very similar to that of an ideal Carnot engine,