Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Possible host-adaptation of SARS-CoV-2 due to improved ACE2 receptor binding in mink

Abstract Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections on mink farms are increasingly observed in several countries, leading to the massive culling of animals on affected farms. Recent studies showed multiple (anthropo)zoonotic transmission events between humans and mink on these farms. Mink-derived SARS-CoV-2 sequences from The Netherlands and Denmark contain multiple substitutions in the S protein receptor binding domain (RBD). Molecular modeling showed that these substitutions increase the mean binding energy, suggestive of potential adaptation of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein to the mink angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. These substitutions could possibly also impact human ACE2 binding affinity as well as humoral immune responses directed to the RBD region of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein in humans. We wish to highlight these observations to raise awareness and urge for the continued surveillance of mink (and other animal)-related infections.
Method for Estimating Polymer-Coated Acoustic Wave Vapor Sensor Responses

A method for estimating the responses of polymer-coated acoustic wave vapor sensors has been developed. Polymer/gas partition coefficients, determined experimentally for at least 20-30 solute vapors by a simple gas chromatographic method, are used to construct linear solvation energy relationships that correlate partition coefficients on a given polymer with various solute solvation parameters. Since these parameters are known for over 2000 compounds, it is possible to estimate polymer/gas partition coefficient values for thousands of vapor/polymer pairs. It is shown how these partition coefficients can, in turn, be used to estimate acoustic wave vapor sensor responses. Comparisons of predicted surface acoustic wave vapor sensor sensitivities with observed responses confirm the general validity of the approach. The approach can be used to select polymers offering the best sensitivities for particular vapors. Limits of detection have been calculated and compared with permissible exposure limits and threshold limit values for a variety of vapors of interest in environmental remediation and occupational safety. These results indicate that polymer-coated surface acoustic wave vapor sensors are capable of detecting the majority of the vapors considered at concentrations of interest. 52 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs.
Performance of Annealed Composite Cellulose Acetate/NaA Zeolite Membrane in Carbon dioxide/Methane Gas Separation

Ramie (Boehmeria nivea) is one type of plant used to produce high quality cellulose fiber. Its fiber is convertible to cellulose acetate (CA), which is commonly used as membrane’s material. Dense CA membrane is used in gas permeation process and the performance is improvable by mineral blending and annealing. This study aims to determine the characteristics of modified CA membranes and the performance in separation of CO2/CH4 gases. Membrane preparation was carried out by using phase inversion technique, while annealing was carried out at 60 o C. Furthermore, NaA zeolite was added with various concentrations, which include 5, 10, 15 and 20%. Gas permeation was carried out at 4 barrer for an hour. The performance of the membrane was measured based on its permeability and selectivity. The results showed that CA membrane with 10% zeolite yielded the best performance with CO2 and CH4 permeability of 140.55 and 22.25 barrer respectively and selectivity of CO2/CH4 6.32. Keyword: Ramie, cellulose acetate membrane, NaA zeolite, annealing, gas permeation. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15408/jkv.v6i2. 13101
Reflecting on Corporate Governance in South Africa: Lessons Learned and the Way Forward

Background: South Africa is a corporate governance pioneer. The King Reports have offered guidance to listed companies in the country since 1994 and unlisted entities since 2016. In the drive for corporate change, attention is increasingly placed on the role of activist shareholders, in particular institutional investors, given the size of their investments. Purpose/objectives: This study aimed to gauge institutional investors’ views on the differences between the King III and IV Reports related to positive aspects and room for improvement. Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with selected institutional investors. Themes were then derived by conducting an interpretive thematic analysis. Findings: Interviewees commended the format and scope of the latest King Report but suggested that outcomes-based training should be offered to directors to ease implementation. Executive remuneration, director independence and auditor independence were highlighted as areas that require attention. Some interviewees questioned whether the current non-binding vote on executive remuneration is sufficient. They suggested that executive remuneration should be tied to performance outcomes across the triple bottom line. Participants recommended that director independence should be considered on a case-by-case basis, instead of strictly applying King IV’s suggested tenure guideline. Furthermore, mandatory audit firm rotation could enhance auditor independence, and hence transparency. Stakeholders are encouraged to demand enhanced transparency on corporate matters to enable more informed decision-making.
Thwarted beneficence: Not getting to help lowers mood

ABSTRACT Prosocial behavior benefits happiness, making such behavior an important strategy for achieving well-being. The present studies investigate if depriving people of the opportunity to help others lowers happiness. In Study 1 (N = 162), participants were randomly assigned to rate how they would feel if they intended to help someone and were able to help, if they intended to help someone but someone else helped first, or if they did not want to help someone. Participants who wanted to help but were deprived of this opportunity showed the lowest level of happiness (vs. other scenario conditions). Study 2 (N = 196) showed that thwarted autonomy, competence, and relatedness need satisfaction partially mediated the association between being deprived of helping someone and lower happiness. Study 3 (N = 234) replicated this effect with a different type of scenario and investigated an additional condition – when the target helps themselves. Moreover, Study 3 showed that thwarting of a fourth possible need, for beneficence, added to the mediation of the effect. These studies add to the literature on prosocial behavior and happiness by showing that being thwarted in enacting one’s prosocial intentions has negative consequences. They also add to emerging findings suggesting that beneficence may be a basic psychological need.
Evaluating Art Licensing for Digital Archives Using Fuzzy Integral

Determining how to evaluate the art licensing model is a complex multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problem. This study explores the critical factors influencing art licensing in the art and creative industry because this industry has potential contributions to a high value-added cultural economy in Taiwan. Due to the high cultural value of the National Palace Museum and the uniqueness of its cultural relics, this study takes it as an empirical case. The decision hierarchy is constructed based on a literature review and expert interviews. Furthermore, we used the fuzzy integral to calculate the weights and overall performance of the three licensing models. The empirical results illustrate that both brand licensing and image licensing groups emphasized the aspect of market environment as the primary consideration for licensing model selection. In particular, respondents considered that the adoption of a brand licensing model could facilitate the achievement of better overall performance value. The reason is that brand licensing made the company’s brand visible by imprinting the brand names of both the National Palace Museum and the company on products. This study can be used as reference model for the evaluation of art licensing by enterprises in the future.
Climate change and development in South Africa: the impact of rising temperatures on economic productivity and labour availability

ABSTRACT Climate change has a major impact on productivity of different economic sectors as well as different labour groups. Here we study the crucial linkage between gradual climate change and availability of low-skilled labour in rural areas of South Africa. Using a nationally representative panel of micro-survey data, we derive marginal impacts of rising temperatures on labour availability. Our econometric findings suggest that optimal conditions maximizing weekly labour supply are heterogeneous across sectors. We develop an analytical model of overlapping generations to study the long-term impacts of future climate and socioeconomic changes on labour supply and welfare. Overall, high exposure of low-skilled labour to climate change and rising temperatures reduces the supply of low-skilled labour which in turn, reduces the wage gap between high-skilled and low-skilled labour. However, the overall impact of climate change on economy remains negative and the welfare in terms of output per adult drops by 20% compared to the baseline case with no climate change.
Bayesian inference for merged panel autoregressive model

Abstract This paper proposes a new panel autoregressive model named as merged panel autoregressive (M-PAR) model that explains the desired inferences of merger and acquisition (M&A) concept. Bayesian analysis of the M-PAR model is introduced to show the impact of the merger series in the acquire series and then obtain the Bayesian estimator under different loss functions. It is noticed that the conditional posterior distribution of all model parameters appears in standard distribution form, so the Gibbs sampler algorithm is applied for Bayesian computation. Various Bayesian testing procedures are performed to understand the influence of the merged variables into the acquired variable. The proposed model is evaluated based on simulation exercises, with the result shows that the merged variable has a significant impact on the M&A series. On the empirical application, banking indicators of the Indian banking system are analyzed to support our model.
Synthesis of (Z)-N-(2-amino-1,2-dicyanovinyl)formamide O-alkyloximes and a study of their cyclization in the presence of base

The title compounds (3) have been prepared in high yield by reaction of (Z)-N-(2-amino-1,2-dicyanovinyl)formimidate with an alkoxyamine NH2OR (R = CH2Ph, Me). These compounds cyclize to the corresponding 5-amino-4-cyanoimidazoles 4 by reaction with ethanolic NaOH solution. In ethyl acetate and using DBU as a base, amidoximes 3 follow an unexpected cyclization pathway leading to a pyrimidine structure 5. Single-crystal X-ray structures have been obtained for both the amidoxime 3a and the pyrimidine 5a (R = CH2Ph). A strong intramolecular H-bond in the amidoxime structure, which was identified both in the solid state and in solution, may be responsible for the unusual cyclization pattern observed in these compounds.
Impact of COVID-19 on Pregnancy

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and is an emerging disease. There has been a rapid increase in cases and deaths since it was identified in Wuhan, China, in early December 2019, with over 4,000,000 cases of COVID-19 including at least 250,000 deaths worldwide as of May 2020. However, limited data about the clinical characteristics of pregnant women with COVID-19 have been reported. Given the maternal physiologic and immune function changes during pregnancy, pregnant women may be at a higher risk of being infected with SARS-CoV-2 and developing more complicated clinical events. Information on severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) may provide insights into the effects of COVID-19's during pregnancy. Even though SARS and MERS have been associated with miscarriage, intrauterine death, fetal growth restriction and high case fatality rates, the clinical course of COVID-19 pneumonia in pregnant women has been reported to be similar to that in non-pregnant women. In addition, pregnant women do not appear to be at a higher risk of catching COVID-19 or suffering from more severe disease than other adults of similar age. Moreover, there is currently no evidence that the virus can be transmitted to the fetus during pregnancy or during childbirth. Babies and young children are also known to only experience mild forms of COVID-19. The aims of this systematic review were to summarize the possible symptoms, treatments, and pregnancy outcomes of women infected with COVID-19 during pregnancy.
Effect of artificial seagrass on hydrodynamic thresholds for the early establishment of Zostera marina

Abstract Seagrass meadows have disappeared on many coastal sections due to anthropogenic disturbances, diseases, and/or eutrophication. To facilitate informed seagrass restoration, we i) quantified the hydrodynamic dislodgement thresholds for newly transplanted Z. marina shoots, and ii) tested the effect of artificial seagrass (ASG) as a hydrodynamic protection measure. Experiments were carried out by planting Z. marina rhizomes with living shoots into a sediment bed and exposing them to a range of wave and current conditions in a flume. The use of ASG significantly reduced wave height, as well as current velocity. The applied waves led to the development of ripples whereas currents led to erosion of the sediment bed. The number of shoots that were uprooted and dislodged increased with increasing bed shear stress and erosion. By reducing bed shear stress, the ASG raised the input current velocity threshold, which the transplanted shoots were able to withstand. The present study offers insight into the effect of artificial seagrass (ASG) on wave and current attenuation, as well as sediment erosion and shoot dislodgement. Our results help to inform the setting of hydrodynamic thresholds for the early establishment of Z. marina and to define the improvement of hydrodynamic conditions by ASG.
Improving the Quality of Tutorials to Create a Quality Culture Through an Integrative Selection of Tutors

Open University is needed to meet the needs of studying without being limited by space, time, amount, cost, age, and distance with a quality tutor. This study aims to describe the ideal form of tutor recruitment, the role of tutors and get quality tutors. This survey research was conducted at the Distance Learning Program Unit (DLPU) Surabaya with data collection methods through observation, interviews, questionnaires and documentation. Sources of data were obtained from Study groups, Tutors, Department of Education, Regional Responsibility in the tutorial period 2019.1 and 2019.2. Data were analyzed descriptively. The results showed that: (1) The ideal form of tutor recruitment is through tutor selection, through the tutor candidate test, through agency recommendations and special offers. (2) The role of tutors in the professional learning process is that tutors are still needed for certain subjects, as innovators and motivators, to play a role in reducing dropout. (3) To get quality tutors and not only as a part-time job so that tutors in working remain professional is to build a sound system. The obligations and rewards that are received appropriately. Between taxes and a decent income. Also, between expertise or rank need to be adjusted to the level of compensation which is given.
Assessment of freshwater sediment quality: potential ecological risk and ecotoxicity tests as complementary approaches

ABSTRACT The main objective of this study was to assess the quality of sediments collected from rivers in the Northeast of Algeria. A dual approach, including trace metals assessment as well as ecotoxicity tests (Microtox® solid and leachate phase assays), was conducted. Results showed that surface sediments were contaminated with Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn. By using sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) and potential risk index, we concluded that there was a significant potential risk for benthic fauna. Microtox® solid and leachate phase assays showed that sediments with the highest trace metal contents appear to be potentially ecotoxic for Allivibrio fisheri. In this study, in attempting to link chemical characteristics with ecotoxicity test results, we got a trend going in the right direction. Samples with highest metal contents appear to be potentially ecotoxic for A. fisheri. These results suggest the usefulness of a diversity of approaches in sediment quality assessment.
Sustainable food consumption intentions related to food safety among young adults

A long-term sustainability of food consumption is in the mainstream of the current trends in the production and consumption patterns of food. A growing number of analyses question this issue nowadays. Despite several papers investigating the profile of sustainable consumers, understanding of the determinants of consumer decision-making and intention towards sustainable food consumption needed further investigation. This study investigates determinants of sustainable food and food safety on consumer behaviour among young customers in Hungary. The objective of this paper is to explore the intention factors of food safety based on sustainable consumption patterns. To gain a better insight in sustainable consumption patterns, the research process was quantitative in nature.
An Assessment of High-Density UAV Point Clouds for the Measurement of Young Forestry Trials

The measurement of forestry trials is a costly and time-consuming process. Over the past few years, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have provided some significant developments that could improve cost and time efficiencies. However, little research has examined the accuracies of these technologies for measuring young trees. This study compared the data captured by a UAV laser scanning system (ULS), and UAV structure from motion photogrammetry (SfM), with traditional field-measured heights in a series of forestry trials in the central North Island of New Zealand. Data were captured from UAVs, and then processed into point clouds, from which heights were derived and compared to field measurements. The results show that predictions from both ULS and SfM were very strongly correlated to tree heights (R2 = 0.99, RMSE = 5.91%, and R2 = 0.94, RMSE = 18.5%, respectively) but that the height underprediction was markedly lower for ULS than SfM (Mean Bias Error = 0.05 vs. 0.38 m). Integration of a ULS DTM to the SfM made a minor improvement in precision (R2 = 0.95, RMSE = 16.5%). Through plotting error against tree height, we identified a minimum threshold of 1 m, under which the accuracy of height measurements using ULS and SfM significantly declines. Our results show that SfM and ULS data collected from UAV remote sensing can be used to accurately measure height in young forestry trials. It is hoped that this study will give foresters and tree breeders the confidence to start to operationalise this technology for monitoring trials.
Trajectory Design of Perseus: A CubeSat Mission Concept to Phobos

The Martian satellites Phobos and Deimos hold many unanswered questions that may provide clues to the origin of Mars. These moons are low Δv stopover sites to Mars. Some human missions to Mars typically identify Phobos and Deimos as staging bases for Mars surface exploration. Astronauts could base initial operations there in lieu of repeated voyages to and from the planet surface, to refuel transiting spacecraft, to teleoperate robotics and other critical machinery, and to develop habitable infrastructure ahead of human landings. Despite their strategic and scientific significance, there has been no successful dedicated mission to either moon. For this reason, we propose Perseus, a geological imaging CubeSat mission to Phobos. Perseus, a 27U, 54kg CubeSat will return thermal and visible images at resolutions better than currently available over most of Phobos’ surface. This includes visible images at 5m/pixel and thermal images at 25m/pixel of Phobos’ surface. The Perseus mission is nominally intended to be a co-orbital mission, where the spacecraft will encounter Phobos on its Martian orbit. However, a hyperbolic rendezvous mission concept, to image Phobos on a hyperbolic flyby, is also considered to reduce the risks associated with orbit capture and to reduce mission costs. This paper presents the preliminary feasibility, science objectives, and technological development challenges of achieving these science goals. We then formulate two rendezvous concepts as a series of three nonlinear optimization problems that span the design tree of mission concepts. The tree’s root node is the heliocentric cruise problem, which identifies the near-optimal launch and arrival windows for the Perseus spacecraft. The leaf nodes of the design tree are the two rendezvous concepts that identify near-optimal co-orbital and hyperbolic trajectories for Phobos’ reconnaissance. The design problems are solved using evolutionary algorithms, and the performance of the selected mission concepts is then examined. The results indicate that a co-orbital encounter allows about one encounter per day with about 6 min per encounter. The hyperbolic encounter, on the other hand, allows a single encounter where the spacecraft will spend about 2 min in the imaging region with respect to Phobos. The spacecraft will obtain higher resolution images of Phobos on this feasible region than have ever been seen for most of the surface. These detailed images will help identify candidate landing sites and provide critical data to derisk future surface missions to Phobos.
The Effect of Trust on the Various Dimensions of Climate Change Attitudes

The struggle against climate change will not be successful without a sufficient level of collective action. However, a necessary precondition for this is the existence of trust between people. The literature on trust and attitudes to climate change is displaying a growing tendency, and today the results of numerous empirical studies are available. Although, for the time being, on the basis of these studies, we only have a fragmented picture from which it appears that trust is having a significant effect on attitudes to climate change at both the micro and macro levels. The current paper tries to progress on this path and reveal the role of trust in various dimensions of the attitude to climate change using the data of the European Social Survey originating from 22 countries. The results show that while climate change beliefs and climate concern display no relationship with trust, neither on the individual or national level, trust does have a clear effect on the feeling of individual responsibility in connection with climate change and on support for the various policy measures. In addition, it is also investigated whether the effect of trust can be shown to exist in the relationships between climate concern and the feeling of individual responsibility, and climate concern and policy support. The results show that in both cases the relationship is stronger in those countries characterized by a higher level of social trust.
Design and synthesis of α-helical peptides and mimetics

The α-helix is the most abundant secondary structural element in proteins and is an important structural domain for mediating protein–protein and protein–nucleic acid interactions. Strategies for the rational design and synthesis of α-helix mimetics have not matured as well as other secondary structure mimetics such as strands and turns. This perspective will focus on developments in the design, synthesis and applications of α-helices and mimetics, particularly in the last 5 years. Examples where synthetic compounds have delivered promising biological results will be highlighted as well as opportunities for the design of mimetics of the type I α-helical antifreeze proteins.