Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Phyllosphere of Organically Grown Strawberries Interactions between the Resident Microbiota, Pathogens and Introduced Microbial Agents

The use of biological control agents (BCAs) is regarded as a promising measure to control important foliar strawberry diseases such as grey mould (Botrytis cinerea) and powdery mildew (Podosphaera aphanis) in the organic strawberry cultivation. However, the use of biological control agents (BCAs) in the phyllosphere is still challenging as this environment is very harsh and dynamic, in particular under field conditions. In this thesis, the simultaneous use of BCAs was studied for its potential to overcome the challenges biological control in the phyllosphere imposes and, thereby, to achieve more consistent efficacies against B. cinerea and P. aphanis. In vitro tests revealed that inhibitory interactions can basically occur between two BCAs and that these are affected by nutritional factors. Leaf disc assays demonstrated that the simultaneous use of BCAs can result in improved suppression of P. aphanis, depending on the BCA constituents. Furthermore, several BCAs were applied as single or multiple strain treatments against B. cinerea in three years of field experiment and microbial interactions in the phyllosphere were investigated within these experiments. The simultaneous use of BCAs did not result in consistent B. cinerea control under field conditions. In the field experiment 2010, none of the tested single or multiple BCA treatments reduced B. cinerea. In the field experiments 2011 and 2012 B. cinerea incidence was significantly suppressed by simultaneously applied BCAs as opposed to single BCA treatments. Efficient BCA treatments, however, differed in 2011 and 2012. Microbial analyses on leaves from field grown strawberries by means of plate counts and 454 pyrosequencing revealed that the culturable and the non-culturable resident leaf microbiota considerably varied between different years of experiment but also in dependence on the strawberry’s development stage. Likewise, the interactions between the resident microbial communities and introduced BCAs varied as well, which have shown to be associated with inconsistent efficacies of the tested BCAs in 2011 and 2012. Also, microbial investigations revealed shifts in fungal communities after introducing fungal BCAs, which however can be regarded as neglible due to the overall considerable dynamics of the phyllosphere microbiota.
The Natural Resource Curse Revisited and Revised A Tale of Paradoxes and Red Herrings

We critically evaluate the empirical basis for the so-called resource curse and find that, despite the topic’s popularity in economics and political science research, this apparent paradox is a red herring. The most commonly used measure of ‘resource abundance’ can be more usefully interpreted as a proxy for ‘resource dependence’—endogenous to underlying institutional factors. In multiple estimations that combine resource abundance and dependence, institutional and constitutional variables, we find that (i) resource abundance, constitutions and institutions determine resource dependence, (ii) resource dependence does not affect growth, and (iii) resource abundance positively affects growth and institutional quality. JEL Codes: O11, O13, Q0
Effect of south winds on daily mortality in Athens

The present study investigated the possible effects of south winds on daily mortality in Athens during the period 1983–1991. The mortality data were assembled from the Athens city registry and registries of the adjacent municipalities. The mean daily dry bulb and dew point temperature, as well as the wind speed and duration for which the south winds were blowing, were recorded by the Institute of Meteorology and Physics of the Atmospheric Environment of the National Observatory of Athens. Temperature, dew point temperature, seasonal and long-term patterns, as well as other potential confounders, have been adjusted for. Synoptic circulation patterns over Athens have been taken into account. Regression modeling was used for the analysis adjusting for auto-correlation where appropriate. When the south winds were added to the basic model (adjusting for year, season, day of the week, temperature, dew point temperature and black smoke), an increase of 3.2% in the daily mortality (95% CI: 1.4 to 4.8%) was observed on the days when south winds were blowing, compared to the days without a south wind. When a variable for southwesterly synoptic flow was also included in the model, the effect of south winds remained approximately the same: a 2.9% increase in daily mortality (95% CI: 1.9 to 4.7%), whilst the effect of the southwesterly synoptic flow was also significant and of similar magnitude (a 3.4% increase in the daily number of deaths, 95% CI: 1.1 to 5.8%). Longer duration and higher wind speed were also associated with increased mortality. In conclusion, adjusting for all known confounders, it was found that the days on which south winds blow are characterized by increased mortality in Athens.
The Impact of Psychological Factors on Consumers Trust in Adoption of M-Commerce

Consumer trust plays an important role in adoption of any technology. This study targets to determine the psychological elements that affect the consumers’ trust in adoption of m-commerce. Many researchers investigate the said factors in e-commerce and online retailing, m-commerce in broad sense resembles with e-commerce but since mobile device is smaller in size so the psychological factor specifically consumer trust becomes more critical. This study focusses on partition of psychological factors that revolve around three main categories, i.e., personality-based, internal perception-based and external perception-based factors. Data is collected from 222 university students having temptation and experience of m-commerce. Subsequently, regression analysis is made in order to test the hypothesis. The research carried out on the element of psychological factors of consumers in m-commerce, reveals that among the said categories while adopting m-commerce, internal perception-based factors are the key determinants of consumer trust.
Tissue Specific Porcupine Deletion Reveals a Novel Role for Ectodermal Wnts in Musculotendon Development

Tissue Specific Porcupine Deletion Reveals a Novel Role for Ectodermal Wnts in Musculotendon Development Aaron P. Smith Department of Physiology and Developmental Biology, BYU Masters of Science The Wnt family of secreted proteins consists of 19 family members (in the mouse) and is known to signal through multiple pathways that regulate crucial processes in the development of almost all tissues. Dissecting the roles of individual Wnts has been hampered due to functional redundancy that exists between family members. We made use of a conditional allele of the Oacyltransferase, Porcupine (Porcn), that is required for the secretion of all Wnt ligands, and the Msx2Cre deleter to eliminate the secretion of all Wnt ligands from the ventral limb ectoderm, ventral abdominal ectoderm, and urogenital ectoderm. Phenotypically the limbs of these mice have several similarities with En1 mutant mice which have a double-dorsal phenotype. However, we show that appropriate dorsoventral limb pattern is maintained at the molecular level and that the observed defects are due to a failure to appropriately execute ventral pattern. Additionally, newborn mice lack ventral digital tendons and the most superficial musculature in the regions of strongest and earliest deletion. Molecular analysis indicates that tendons are lost downstream of the absent musculature and are initially patterned correctly. Thus we show a role for ectodermal Wnts in the development of underlying musculature. We additionally examine the role of limb mesenchymal Wnts in the development of deeper limb musculature utilizing the Prx1Cre deleter. The deep musculature of the autopod and zeugopod is reduced or absent in mutants and the development of superficial musculature appears to proceed normally. Hence we show that superficial muscles require only ectodermal Wnts and deeper muscles require only mesenchymal Wnts.
Unsteady simulations of compressible spatial mixing layers

A local dynamic one-equation subgrid model has been used to carry out large-eddy simulations of unsteady spatially developing compressible mixing layers. Simulations of the supersonic mixing layers studied by Samimy and Elliott' have been carried out. Despite the very high Reynolds numbers of these flows and the comparatively coarse grids employed, good qualitative and reasonable quantitative results are obtained.
Speech recognition using ANN and predator-influenced civilized swarm optimization algorithm

This paper proposes a hybrid optimization technique, predator-influenced civilized swarm optimization, by integrating civilized swarm optimization (CSO) and predator–prey optimization (PPO) techniques. CSO is the integration of the attributes of particle swarm optimization and a society civilization algorithm (SCA). In the SCA, the swarm is divided into a few societies, and each society has its own society leader (SL); other individuals of the society are termed society members. The combination of all such societies forms a civilization, and the best-performing SL becomes the civilization leader (CL). In CSO, SLs and members update their positions through the guidance of their own CL and SLs, respectively, along with their best positions. In the proposed technique, the PPO technique is integrated with CSO, in which a predator particle is included in the swarm. The predator always tries to chase the CL in a controlled manner, which maintains diversity in the population and avoids local optimum solutions. The proposed optimization technique is applied to optimize the weights and biases of an artificial neural network (ANN) trained for speech recognition. Two databases have been used; one is a TI-46 isolated word database in clean and noisy conditions, and the other is a self-recorded Hindi numeral database. To evaluate the performance of the proposed technique, 2 performance criteria, correlation coefficient and mean square error, are applied. The results obtained by an ANN with the proposed technique outperform the results obtained by an ANN trained with particle swarm optimization, PPO, CSO, and backpropagation techniques in terms of correlation coefficient and mean square error.
Immune regulation of avian influenza vaccine in hens using Hypericum perforatum L. methanol extraction

Hypericum perforatum L. has been widely used for centuries as a medicinal herb. In present study, the effect of Hypericum perforatum extract (HPE) as a dietary supplement on humoral regulation to influenza vaccine in hens was investigated. Chicks were immunized with reassortant avian influenza (AI) virus H5 subtype vaccine, inactivated (H5N1, Re-5+Re-4 strain) administered intramuscularly on day 20 of age (primary vaccination) followed by a boosted 20 days after the first vaccination. Chicks received the basal soybean meal-corn diet supplemented with 0 (control), 250, 500, and 1,000 mg kg-1 HPE for 7 days starting on the day of each vaccination. Antibody concentration against AI was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method and antibody titer within a few days of vaccination detected by hemagglutination inhibition (HI) test. Diet supplementation with HPE at 500 mg kg-1 was associated with increased antibody level to H5 subtype AI by 9.82% after the first vaccination and by 30.63% after the boost (P less or equal 0.05). Furthermore, HPE also increased Re-4 polyclonal H5 subtype AI antibody titer by 11.27% after first immunization and 27.40% after second immunization (P less or equal 0.05), respectively. While, Re-5 polyclonal H5 subtype AI antibody titer in 500 mg kg-1 HPE addition level of HPE were higher than control group after 1st vaccination and the 2nd vaccination, especially increased by 7.70% and 16.44% in antibody peaks (P less or equal 0.05), respectively. HPE administered as a dietary supplement in the peri-immunization period augmented the humoral immunity of hens to the influenza vaccine. These findings suggest that HPE may be useful in the poultry industry.
MITOCHONDRIAL DNA D-LOOP ANALYSIS OF SOUTH WESTERN

aInternational Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). P.O. Box 30709. Nairobi 00100. Kenya. bDepartment of Biochemistry. University of Nairobi. P.O. Box 30197. Nairobi 00100. Kenya. cInternational Trypanotolerance Centre (ITC). The Gambia. dAgricultural Research. Private Bag 0033. Gaborone. Botswana. eInstitute of Animal Breeding. Georg-August-Universität Göttingen. Germany. fProject de Développement Rural de la Préfecture du Lac (PDRPL). B.P. 782. N'Djamena. Tchad. gInternational Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). P.O. Box 5689. Addis Ababa. Ethiopia. hInstitut Sénégalais de Recherches Agricoles. Dakar. Sénégal. iInstitut de l'Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles (INERA). Ouagadougou. Burkina Faso. jSerere Agricultural and Animal Production Research Institute. Privatebag. Soroti. Uganda. kInstitut d'Economie Rurale. P.O Box 258. Rue Mohamed V. Bamako. Mali. lDepartment of Animal Science. University of Malawi. Bunda College of Agriculture. Malawi. mInstitute for Animal Breeding. Federal Agricultural Research Centre. Mariensee. Germany.
THE ROLE OF SEMANTIC TRANSFER IN CLITIC DROP AMONG SIMULTANEOUS AND SEQUENTIAL CHINESE-SPANISH BILINGUALS

This study examines the acquisition of the featural constraints on clitic and null distribution in Spanish among simultaneous and sequential Chinese-Spanish bilinguals from Peru. A truth value judgment task targeted the referential meaning of null objects in a negation context. Objects were elicited via two clitic elicitation tasks that targeted anaphoric contexts and left-dislocated topics. An acceptability task tested sensitivity to left-dislocated object drop. Although simultaneous bilinguals were mostly undistinguishable from monolinguals, the late learners differed from both of these groups across tasks. Age of arrival led to different outcomes, with late learners showing more deficits than the child learners. Late learners avoided using clitics and relied on lexical and null objects. Residual transfer effects were observed among the child learners in the form of insensitivity to the features that serve as the basis for null argument identification and clitic deficits in production. It is also argued that transfer persists despite early and intense exposure to the second language in a natural environment because of the existence of an unmarked argument identification option in the first language.
Errors in nanoparticle growth rates inferred from measurements in chemically reacting aerosol systems

Abstract. In systems in which aerosols are being formed by chemical transformations, individual particles grow due to the addition of molecular species. Efforts to improve our understanding of particle growth often focus on attempts to reconcile observed growth rates with values calculated from models. However, because it is typically not possible to measure the growth rates of individual particles in chemically reacting systems, they must be inferred from measurements of aerosol properties such as size distributions, particle number concentrations, etc. This work discusses errors in growth rates obtained using methods that are commonly employed for analyzing atmospheric data. We analyze “data” obtained by simulating the formation of aerosols in a system in which a single chemical species is formed at a constant rate, R. We show that the maximum overestimation error in measured growth rates occurs for collision-controlled nucleation in a single-component system in the absence of a preexisting aerosol, wall losses, evaporation or dilution, as this leads to the highest concentrations of nucleated particles. Those high concentrations lead to high coagulation rates that cause the nucleation mode to grow faster than would be caused by vapor condensation alone. We also show that preexisting particles, when coupled with evaporation, can significantly decrease the concentration of nucleated particles. This can lead to decreased discrepancies between measured growth rate and true growth rate by reducing coagulation among nucleated particles. However, as particle sink processes become stronger, measured growth rates can potentially be lower than true particle growth rates. We briefly discuss nucleation scenarios in which the observed growth rate approaches zero while the true growth rate does not.
Improved Delay-and-Sum Beamforming Algorithm for Breast Cancer Detection

We have evaluated a modified delay-and-sum (DAS) beamforming algorithm for breast cancer detection with a microwave radar-based system. The improved DAS algorithm uses an additional weight factor calculated at each focal point to improve image quality. These weights essentially represent the quality of preprocessing and coherent radar operation. Using a multistatic UWB radar system based on a hemispherical antenna array, we present experimental detection of 7 mm and 10 mm phantom tumours. We show that the new proposed DAS algorithm improves signal-to-clutter ratio in focused images by 2.65 dB for 10 mm tumour, and by 4.4 dB for 7 mm tumour.
On the nexus between landslide susceptibility and transport infrastructure – agent-based vulnerability assessment of rural road networks in the Eastern European Alps

Abstract. Road networks are complex interconnected systems. Any sudden disruption can result in debilitating impacts on human life or the economy. Interruptions of the transport flow may lead to potentially severe consequences in terms of both direct and indirect losses. In particular, road systems in mountainous areas do not feature redundant elements at comparable economic efficiency. Therefore, assessment of network vulnerability is of major importance for guaranteeing the smooth functioning of societies, especially in those regions. Among various menacing hazards, landslides protrude as particularly destructive events jeopardizing the integrity of land transport systems by causing structural damage and network interruptions. The aim of this paper is to present how road infrastructure is vulnerable towards landslides events, with emphasis on the consequences for the affected road users. This is addressed on the Austrian region Vorarlberg, which allows cross-learning and cross-comparison of, for example, rural and urban areas, also at different scales. The focus of this case study is on resilience issues and support for decision making in the context of a large scale sectoral approach. By taking into account derivates of a high-resolution digital terrain model as well as geological properties, a landslide susceptibility map of the test region is derived by means of the weight of evidence method. This susceptibility map is concatenated with historic data of landslide inventories and a digital road graph in order to identify critical sections of the road network. Subsequently, effects of interruptions of the road network at these critical links are analyzed by applying a mesoscopic multi-agent transport simulation model. Results show the merits of using agent-based traffic modeling for assessing the impacts of road network interruptions on rural communities by providing insight into the characteristics of the population affected, as well as the effects on its daily routine in terms of detour costs.
Do IPO Hot and Cold Markets Exist at the Indonesia Stock Exchange

This study focuses on IPO Initial Returns in Hot and Cold IPO Markets at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) between the period of 2001 and 2005. This study uses a regression analysis where the first day IPO stock return is the dependent variable and a dummy variable that represents Hot and Cold IPO Markets is the main independent variabel. It is found that Hot and Cold Markets do exist at the IDX. More importantly, it is found that the difference in IPO Initial Returns between Hot and Cold Markets while controlling for other factors is 36.8%. The Investment Sentiment Hypothesis has been found to explain the existence of Hot and Cold Markets. The hypothesis implies that jumps in IPO Initial Returns during Hot Markets are due to the increase in the first day closing prices which are higher than the increase in the offering prices. The Monopsony Power Hypothesis and information spillovers across IPOs respectively may also provide alternative explanations to the phenomenon. Investment banker community in a small economy learns information from each other and, thus, has full information on the number of firms that will go public in the following period. Consequently, investment bankers have a high bargaining power of investment bankers in lowering the offering prices.
CISTUS LADANIFER SOLAR DRYING, MILLLING AND PELLETIZING

Cistus ladanifer, also known as rockrose or labdanum, local species, used in some industries, such as cosmetic and perfumery, was used to produce pellets. Samples of raw material were collected and dried in a solar kiln reaching moisture content (wet basis) of 16% for trunks and 33% for leafs. The moisture content was monitored during the solar drying. The solar kiln used was instrumented with indicated sensores, datalogger and PC softwares to monitorize solar radiation, air relative humidity and temperatures, with the final objective of recording data. A calculated amount 23256 kJ/kg was needed to dry the raw material. The dryed samples were then wheight and feeded at constant mass feed rate into a Retsch SM 100 grinding mill, passing through internal sieves with holes of 5, 7 and 10 mm diameter. The energy needed for milling the raw material was monitored and the influence of using different sieves on the energy needed for the process, was evaluated. Sawdust obtained was then characterized in therms of moisture content and average mean diameter was calculated. The sawdust obtained, that passed through the three sieves presented similar moisture content values, arround 12% (wet basis). Particle mean diameter calculated was of 579, 721 and 1068 µm for the sawdust that pass trought the sieves containing holes with 5, 7 and 10 mm diameter, repectively. The milling process revealed energy consumption values of 277, 174 and 98 kJ/kg for milling Cistus ladanifer passing through sieves of 5, 7 and 10 mm diameter hole, repectively. This feedstock was then peletized at constant mass feed rate with an energy consumption of 76, 108 and 94 kJ/kg, respectivly. Durability and water resistance tests were performed to the pellets produced, revealing indexes ranged between 78- 85% and 58-76%, respectively.
The Analysis of Serbian Customers Satisfaction with e-services Quality Dimensions of Lodging e-intermediaries

Abstract With the constantly rising share of online accommodation bookings, finding out how customers perceive the website e-service quality is becoming increasingly important in order to build strong satisfaction and create loyal customers. The main goal of the study was to analyze how Serbian customers perceive the quality of service provided by lodging e-intermediaries. Correlation matrix and multiple regression analysis were used to determine the impact of each of 6 e-service quality dimensions on satisfaction of e-intermediary customers. The questionnaires were distributed during the research period of 3 months (July-September, 2015). The study has shown that only three out of six dimensions have impact on customer satisfaction, comprising 63.9% of total customer satisfaction: reliability, information quality, and personalization.