Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
From Near and Afar: International Secondary School Students’ Career Influences

During the previous decade, growth in the numbers of internationally mobile students included international high school students. Prior research on international students’ career development in higher education may not account for the unique context of younger international students in secondary schools. The current study investigated career influences for international secondary students, using the Systems Theory Framework (Patton & McMahon, 2021). International students in senior years completed written, open-ended surveys and in-person interviews regarding their career aspirations, plans and key influences on their decision-making. International student coordinators and school staff also offered their perspectives about these influences. Results indicate the inter-related systemic influences of individuals, significant relationships, location and country contexts, the secondary school environment, and perceived characteristics of occupations and future career pathways. Implications for supporting international high school students in the school setting and future research directions are discussed.
Root Transcriptional and Metabolic Dynamics Induced by the Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacterium (PGPR) Bacillus subtilis Mbi600 on Cucumber Plants

Bacillus subtilis MBI600 is a commercialized plant growth-promoting bacterial species used as a biocontrol agent in many crops, controlling various plant pathogens via direct or indirect mechanisms. In the present study, a detailed transcriptomic analysis of cucumber roots upon response to the Bs MBI600 strain is provided. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) analysis showed altered gene expression in more than 1000 genes at 24 and 48 h post-application of Bs MBI600. Bs MBI600 induces genes involved in ISR and SAR signaling. In addition, genes involved in phytohormone production and nutrient availability showed an upregulation pattern, justifying the plant growth promotion. Biocontrol ability of Bs MBI600 seems also to be related to the activation of defense-related genes, such as peroxidase, endo-1,3(4)-beta-glucanase, PR-4, and thaumatin-like. Moreover, KEGG enriched results showed that differentially expressed genes were classified into biocontrol-related pathways. To further investigate the plant’s response to the presence of PGPR, a profile of polar metabolites of cucumber treated with Bs MBI600 was performed and compared to that of untreated plants. The results of the current study gave insights into the mechanisms deployed by this biocontrol agent to promote plant resistance, helping to understand the molecular interactions in this system.
Flowering overlap and floral trait similarity help explain the structure of pollination networks

Co‐flowering communities are usually characterized by high plant generalization but knowledge of the underlying factors leading to high levels of generalization and pollinator sharing, and how these may contribute to network structure is still limited. Flowering phenology and floral trait similarity are considered among the most important factors determining plant generalization and pollinator sharing. However, these have been evaluated independently even though they can act in concert with each other. Moreover, the importance of flowering phenology and floral similarity, via their effects on plant generalization, in the structure of plant–pollinator networks has been scarcely studied. Here, we aim to evaluate the effect of flowering phenology and floral similarity in mediating the degree of pollinator sharing and plant generalization in two coastal communities and uncover their importance as drivers of plant–pollinator network structure. We recorded flower production per species, as well as the identity and frequency of floral visitors along the entire flowering season. We estimated the degree of flowering overlap, the degree of floral similarity (using floral traits associated with size and colour) and the degree of pollinator sharing among plant species within both communities. Structural equation models (SEM) showed a positive effect of flowering overlap on pollinator sharing and plant generalization. Pollinator sharing and plant generalization positively affected network nestedness. Furthermore, SEM showed a direct positive effect of flowering overlap on network modularity. The SEM analyses also revealed a significant interaction effect of floral similarity and flowering overlap on pollinator sharing, with consequences for network nestedness in one community. Synthesis. Our results highlight the importance of integrating multiple axes of differentiation such as flowering phenology and floral similarity into our understanding of the drivers of plant–pollinator network structure.
Actin Stress Fibers Response and Adaptation under Stretch

One of the many effects of soft tissues under mechanical solicitation in the cellular damage produced by highly localized strain. Here, we study the response of peripheral stress fibers (SFs) to external stretch in mammalian cells, plated onto deformable micropatterned substrates. A local fluorescence analysis reveals that an adaptation response is observed at the vicinity of the focal adhesion sites (FAs) due to its mechanosensor function. The response depends on the type of mechanical stress, from a Maxwell-type material in compression to a complex scenario in extension, where a mechanotransduction and a self-healing process takes place in order to prevent the induced severing of the SF. A model is proposed to take into account the effect of the applied stretch on the mechanics of the SF, from which relevant parameters of the healing process are obtained. In contrast, the repair of the actin bundle occurs at the weak point of the SF and depends on the amount of applied strain. As a result, the SFs display strain-softening features due to the incorporation of new actin material into the bundle. In contrast, the response under compression shows a reorganization with a constant actin material suggesting a gliding process of the SFs by the myosin II motors.
The Economic Impact of Rescue and Recovery Frameworks in the EU

This paper provides empirical support to the important role of efficient pre-insolvency frameworks in fostering a culture of early restructuring and second chances in EU Member States and the positive impact that this has on entrepreneurship, as well as the timeliness and cost of corporate and household deleveraging. The analysis is based on a set of composite indicators measuring specific efficiency aspects of rescue and recovery frameworks. These were built using principal component analysis applied on a comparison of the legal provisions they encompass. Econometric analysis carried out on the basis of these indicators suggests that, across the EU, efficient pre-insolvency frameworks are positively associated with relatively higher levels of entrepreneurship and deleveraging episodes with a relatively milder impact on financial stability and economic activity.
The Impact of Image Dimensions toward Online Consumers’ Perceptions of Product Aesthetics

Marketers and industrial designers devote considerable attention to the visual attributes of products, based on the premise that the visual appearance of products influences consumers’ judgments of the products’ attributes. This research investigated consumers’ perceptions about particular types of innovative products (revolutionary technology‐driven products), with 275 consumers sample purchased from an independent marketing company. To achieve the main goal, interrelations among image of product and aesthetics of product have been examined using structural equation modeling with two psychological moderators: consumer innovativeness and needs for uniqueness. The results of this study provide evidence that individual differences in uniqueness motivation moderated how online consumers’ perceptions of a product's image characteristics influenced perceptions of value showing consumers’ need for uniqueness was more influential toward perceptions of the product's value than perceptions of functional value. Consequently, these findings expand understanding of the consumer characteristics that respond to perceptions of products’ epistemic value.
Investigating effects of product visual designs on consumer judgments with the aid of eye-tracking

Product visual designs convey a variety of information about these products to consumers. These designs play an important role in affecting consumer judgments, which further determine purchase decisions. Understanding how consumers decode visual designs to form judgments as well as how to use visual designs to affect consumer judgments are important. Insights in these will help designers make better design decisions and also present new possibilities of product design. This dissertation employs eye-tracking technology to assist in understanding consumers’ decoding processes. First, eye-tracking is used to examine how consumers evaluate visual designs to determine preferences and product differences. Then, eye-tracking is utilized to help investigate influences of (1) pairing products that have both commonalities and differences and (2) visual cues on consumer judgments separately. Product features, defined as visible product attributes, are important constitutions of product visuals. Study 1 uses eye-tracking to address two topics about product features: (1) feature importance in preference decisions and (2) whether or not consumers can detect a feature’s size change. Results from eye-tracking how subjects evaluated product images to determine preferences showed a feature’s gaze data (e.g., how long the subjects fixated on the feature) significantly correlated with the feature’s importance rating provided by the subjects. Results from eye-tracking how subjects detected differences between product images showed noticeable and unnoticeable feature size changes had significantly different corresponding gaze data. Statistical models of gaze data can predict importance and size change saliency of a feature. Purchase decisions often require comparing products that have both commonalities and
An Ultrasensitive and Selective Determination of Cadmium Ions at ppt Level Using an Enzymic Membrane with Colorimetric and Electrochemical Detection

Cadmium ions (Cd2+) are extremely toxic heavy metal pollutants found in the environment, and which endanger human health. Therefore, it is critical to develop a sensitive and simple method for rapidly detecting Cd2+ in water samples. Herein, an enzymic membrane was developed based on an easy and rapid immobilization method of horseradish peroxidase (HRP), for determination of Cd2+ in drinking water. Hence, for the first time, an enzymic membrane was applied for the detection of Cd2+ without being pretreated. In the first format, the inhibition of horseradish peroxidase was performed using a colorimetric microplate reader. Under optimal conditions, the achieved limit of detection was 20 ppt. In addition, an electrochemical biosensor was developed, by combining the enzymic membrane with screen printed electrodes, which showed a linear calibration range between 0.02–100 ppb (R2 = 0.990) and a detection limit of 50 ppt. The use of this enzymic membrane proved to be advantageous when reversible inhibitors such as the copper ion (Cu2+) were present in water samples, as Cu2+ can interfere with Cd2+ and cause erroneous results. In order to alleviate this problem, a medium exchange procedure was used to eliminate Cu2+, by washing and leaving only cadmium ions as an irreversible inhibitor for identification. The use of this membrane proved to be a simple and rapid method of immobilizing HRP with a covalent bond.
Deficit-Oriented Beliefs, Anti-Black Policies, Punitive Practices, and Labeling: Exploring the Mechanisms of Disproportionality and Its Impact on Black Boys in One Urban “No-Excuses” Charter School

Background/Context: Embedded in “common sense” and state-mandated reforms to close “the achievement gap,” the urban school, especially those sites with a no-excuses orientation to learning, can produce and reproduce the carceral state in students’ lives. The seemingly innocuous policies and processes limit access to educational opportunities and create disproportionate out-of-class time, which can emerge as the connective tissue for criminalization and the school-to-prison nexus that disproportionately affects Black males in the United States. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study: The objective of the study was to illuminate the more unspoken mechanisms of disproportionality in school while concurrently raising awareness of how everyday practices, like school-imposed mis/labeling, contribute to the symbolic violence and dehumanization of Black and Latinx boys in school. Research Design: The article includes purposeful observations and semi-structured interview data with school personnel and students drawn from a 14-month ethnographic study. Findings/Results: The findings from this study revealed that the mechanisms of disproportionality ranged from explicit anti-Black policies to more tacit systems and processes, but all reflected how the no-excuses environment contributes to the connective tissue of criminalization and the school-to-prison nexus for boys of Color. The finding centers on three systems and policies that are influenced by carceral logic and the enforcement of student alienation. Conclusion/Recommendations: The findings from the study reveal the need for a radical transformation of no-excuses public charter schools, one that is community-based and rooted in an Afrocentric education. If educators and other school personnel are working in tandem with community members, they can reassess their negative misperceptions of minoritized communities that begin to shape infractions rooted in anti-Blackness. A community-based approach can begin to dismantle the school-to-prison nexus. Furthermore, an Afrocentric education approach requires school personnel to understand the history and culture of people of African descent and to see students’ full humanity. Here, students’ lived experiences would be centered within the diaspora, while sociocultural norms that may have been criminalized in the past would be valued and accepted.
Therapeutic Efficacy of Third-Generation Percutaneous Vertebral Augmentation System (PVAS) in Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fractures (OVCFs): A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Purpose This study aimed to assess whether the third-generation PVAS was superior to percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) or percutaneous kyphoplasty (PKP) in treating patients with OVCFs. Methods Databases, including Pubmed, Embase, and Cochrane library, were searched to identify relevant interventional and observational articles in vivo or in vitro comparing the third-generation PVAS to PVP/PKP in OVCFs patients. A meta-analysis was performed under the guidelines of the Cochrane Reviewer's Handbook. Results 11 in vivo articles involving 1035 patients with 1320 segments of diseased vertebral bodies and 8 in vitro studies enrolling 40 specimens with 202 vertebral bodies were identified. The vivo studies indicated no significant differences were found in visual analog scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), operation time, or injected cement volume (P > 0.05). The third-generation PVAS was associated with significant improvement in vertebral height and Cobb angle (P < 0.05) and also with a significantly lower risk of cement leakages and new fractures (P < 0.05). The vitro studies suggest that the third-generation PVAS was associated with better anterior vertebral height (AVH) and kyphotic angle (KA) after deflation and cement. No significant differences were found in stiffness or failure load after cement between the two groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion Based on current evidence, although providing similar improvement in VAS and ODI, the third-generation PVAS may be superior to PVP/PKP in local kyphosis correction, vertebral height maintenance, and adverse events reduction. Further high-quality randomized studies are required to confirm these results.
Evidence for Seawater Retreat With Advent of Meghalayan Era (∼4200 a BP) in a Coastal Harappan Settlement

The transformation of mature (urbanized) phase of the ancient Indus civilisation between ∼4200 and 3800 years Before Present (yr BP) overlaps with the beginning of the Meghalayan Age (∼4200 ± 100 yr BP). Though exact cause(s) for decline of urbanized Indus phase are not yet clear, researchers continue to debate whether monsoonal dryness was the sole cause or several other regional factors manifested in a compounding manner. Here, we show a regional relative sea level fall in the downstream area of Indus habitation (south‐western Gujarat region) which initiated at 4150 ± 230 and continued up to 3625 ± 200 yr BP. We provide a multi‐proxy (chronological, sedimentological, mineralogical, isotopic and elemental abundance) data set from a well‐dated vertical sediment trench from Lothal (ancient dockyard area of Indus era) to support this inference. Chief proxies used for inferring the relative sea level fall were bulk sediment carbon and sulfur contents along with their stable isotopes (δ13C and δ34S) and foraminiferal assemblage. The conspicuous shifts in majority of proxies hint at a lowering of sea stand at the regional level that likely dried this ancient Harappan dockyard (used for sea trade). Findings of our study possess implications for Holocene climate changes and their plausible impact(s) on Harappan trade and culture. Additionally, it invites evidences for large scale geological changes at ∼4200 yr BP distinct to the Meghalayan era.
Current Practice and Approaches of Immunotherapy in Cancer Treatment

Cancer has been and continues to be one of the leading causes of human deaths. Thousands lose their lives to the different types of cancer each year. Cancer remains one of those invincible barriers in the health sector that humans are quite far from overcoming. As cancer remains to be incurable, works are being done every day globally to come up with better ways to treat it. Conventional methods of treatment like chemo and radio therapies have adverse effects on health and thus, new approaches are being used for cancer treatment. One such approach is the use of our body’s own defense mechanism to attack and kill malignant cells. This review will highlight the different components of human immune system that are being used to treat cancer. It will give an idea of the mechanism of action of each of these components and indicate why they are better choices compared to traditional treatments. Side effects and/or challenges of each immunotherapy have also been included.
Additively-Manufactured Ultra-Light Shaped-Profile Windings for HF Electrical Machines and Weight-Sensitive Applications

Nowadays, additive manufacturing (AM) is becoming a more feasible solution for scalable electric drives compared to traditional production systems. Also, with the significantly growing automotive sector, innovation in electric machine technology is evolving rapidly. With the unmatched freedom in geometry, AM offers a great deal of flexibility in the design of electrical machine parts. Not only the passive parts can be printed such as the frame and the shaft of the electrical machine, but also active parts, such as windings, can be printed in lightweight materials such as Al-Si-Mg-based alloy. The main focus of this paper is to further utilize AM in the design of electrical machine windings, with low weight and low losses especially at high frequency (HF) operation. Aiming at HF loss reduction, different AM coils are prototyped using different materials, and their performance is compared with traditionally-manufactured coils. Moreover, a new design concept of shaped-profile conductors is presented with reduced proximity effect and less impact by the cross-slot leakage flux. This design combines high electromagnetic performance and ultra-light weight merits, allowing for higher-power density electrical machines.
Binary Exploitation in Industrial Control Systems: Past, Present and Future

Despite being a decades-old problem, binary exploitation still remains a serious issue in computer security. It is mainly due to the prevalence of memory corruption errors in programs written with notoriously unsafe but yet indispensable programming languages like C and C++. For the past 30 years, the nip-and-tuck battle in memory between attackers and defenders has been getting more technical, versatile, and automated. With raised bar for exploitation in common information technology (IT) systems owing to hardened mitigation techniques, and with unintentionally opened doors into industrial control systems (ICS) due to the proliferation of industrial internet of things (IIoT), we argue that we will see an increased number of cyber attacks leveraging binary exploitation on ICS in the near future. However, while this topic generates a very rich and abundant body of research in common IT systems, there is a lack of systematic study targeting this topic in ICS. The present work aims at filling this gap and serves as a comprehensive walkthrough of binary exploitation in ICS. Apart from providing an analysis of the past cyber attacks leveraging binary exploitation on ICS and the ongoing attack surface transition, we give a review of the attack techniques and mitigation techniques on both general-purpose computers and embedded devices. At the end, we conclude this work by stressing the importance of network-based intrusion detection, considering the dominance of resource-constrained real-time embedded devices, low-end embedded devices in ICS, and the limited ability to deploy arbitrary defense mechanism directly on these devices.
Factors that affect the response of rural beef cattle property to technical assistance

The aim is to evaluate the factors that affect the response to technical assistance in beef cattle farms. Data were collected from 19 rural properties with the main economic activity focused on beef cattle, assisted by the technical and managerial program (ATER). The information was got from technical visits and structured interviews for 24 months. To assess the impact of the application of technological innovations on assisted properties, we analyzed the participation of the owner in technological training and implementation of other technology besides pasture reform; productivity, profitability, and production increment were determined in the period before and after the ATER. The producers technological training could not increase (P>0.05) productivity. The best responses (P<0.05) of productive increase (6% in productivity/ha) by technical assistance combined with pasture reform, and some other technological innovations, such as livestock-crop integration, and introducing a new species of forages, and fixed-time artificial insemination. These responses occurred in properties with low productivity (linear effect and ranking correlation of -0.62) and with the occupation of around 60% of the area (quadratic effect and ranking correlation of -0.50), independent (P>0.05) of the owners qualification and the percentage of degraded area. We can conclude that pasture reform should not be used as the only technological innovation at the beginning of the technical assistance process in beef cattle. An economic occupancy rate of the property close to 60% of the total area allows for a greater response to technological advances.