Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
RIVER RUNOFF EXTREMES AND TENDENCIES: FACTORS OF RISK LIKELY RELATED TO GLOBAL CLIMATE

River Runoff Extremes And Tendencies:Factors Of Risk Likely Related To Global Climate. River runoff data are analysed at different sub-catchments in the Transylvanian Basin of the Carpathian Mountains. Spatial and temporal variability, as a source of hydrological risk, are first quantified for the 19 gauging stations. Temporal variability of decadal time-scales are statistically related to the hemisferical warning trend (0.26 K/decade) observed in the 1974-1998 period. Method of instrumental variables is used to estimate linear regression coefficients between regional rainfall and hemispherical mean temperature for this period. The sequence of consecutive years is defined for instrumental variable, that fulfil the main criterion i.e. the non-zero correlation to the independent variable (r=0.825). Regression analysis is also performed for parallel 9 precipitation stations for independent validation, and for the monthly absolute extremes of the 25 years. Another validation of the terults applies independent hydrological parameters in Hungary. Both spatial and temporal variability are about one decimal magnitude, that makes existence of continuous observations rather important. Trends of the runoff are mainly decreasing parallel to the global warming-up tendency of the investigated 25 years. For 0.5 K hemisferical warming the local order of runoff changes spreads from several percents to tens of percents. The largest area-mean decrease of runoff is analysed for the July-August period, with average decrease of 75 %. Although there are two further independent estimations in the study, that support the discovered relation between drying-out of the Basin and the warming tendency of the Hemisphere, this relation of the robust part of the runoff sample may not be extended to the tails of the distribution.
A switched reluctance generator behavior under variable speed and variable excitation

The subject of this paper is the wind powered Switched Reluctance Generator SRG and its behavior. Simulations and experimental results are presented. It was analyzed the efficiency of SRG under different conditions. Many operational test were conduced to state clearly the behavior of a prototype drove by a half-bridge (HB) converter. Variable excitation voltage and angular speed relationship is clearly established. It shows that the suitable excitation control for a wind powered SRG must adjust the operation parameters to match the desired point on certain surfaces.
Protecting Marine Biodiversity: A Comparison of Individual Habitat Quota (Ihqs) and Marine Protected Areas

Fisheries managers in the United States are required to identify and mitigate the adverse impacts of fishing activity on essential fish habitat (EFH). There are additional concerns that the viability of noncommercial species, animals that are habitat dependent and/or are themselves constituents of fishery habitat may still be threatened. We consider a cap-and-trade system for habitat conservation, individual habitat quotas for fisheries, to achieve habitat conservation and species protection goals cost effectively. Individual quotas of habitat impact units (HIUs) would be distributed to fishers with an aggregate quota set to maintain a target habitat “stock” of EFH conservation. Using a dynamic, spatially explicit fishery simulation model we explore the efficiency and cost effectiveness of an IHQ policy versus alternative marine protected area (MPA) configurations, at reducing the risk of extinguishing a habitat dependent species of unknown spatial distribution. Our findings indicate that an IHQ policy with a conservatively established habitat target is better suited to the protection of non-target species than a rotating or fixed MPA policy.
The visual image inpainging method apply to the highly lose image

Noise interference and data loss are two major problems that affect the processing results of image data transmission and storage. In order to effectively restore damaged image data, we propose a new image restoration technique based on wavelet transformation analysis. The primary feature of our proposed technique is to initially separate the given image into two principal components which encompass image veins and image color, respectfully. Then, according to the distinctive qualities of the given image, various image inpainting methods are adopted to perform image repair. By taking advantage of the separation of an image into its individual frequency components, a characteristic unique to wavelet transformation, our proposed method processes an image sequentially from the lower frequency layers of an image to the higher frequency layers. In order to substantiate the effectiveness of our proposed image inpainting method, we employed various images subject to high noise interference and/or extensive data loss or distortion. The results were extremely satisfying, even to the extent that the repaired images for distortion to over 90% show little or no indication that the image was once damaged.
Digital Mapping of Topsoil Salinity Using Remote Sensing Indices in Agh-Ghala Plain, Iran

1 Ph.D Student of Watershed Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources, Sari University of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources, Sari, Iran 2 Professor of Watershed Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources, Sari University of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources, Sari, Iran 3 Associate Professor of Watershed Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources, Sari University of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources, Sari, Iran 4 Professor of Pedology, Faculty of Water and Soil Engineering, Gorgan University of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran
The structure of taxes and economic growth in Cote d'ivoire: An econometric investigation

This paper investigates the relationship between taxation and economic growth in Cote d’Ivoire. For this, we use data from 1961 to 2006 and a two-stage modelling technique to control for unobserved non-tax growth determinants. We find that increases in the tax burden and the share of direct tax to total tax revenue are strongly associated with decreases in economic growth, with an excessive tax burden being much more damaging than the share of direct tax. We estimate a growth-maximising tax structure over the sample period and find a time-varying tax burden with a period mean of 11.4%, and a time-varying direct tax ratio having a period mean of 12.9%. A move to a growth-maximising tax structure would generate an increase in real GDP, but would yield a reduction in tax revenues.
EXPRESSION OF LGR5 AND BETA-CATENIN IN BENIGN AND MALIGNANT COLORECTAL LESIONS IN ZAGAZIG UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL

Background: Lgr5 -(GPR49) a Wnt target gene- is one of the most important cancer stem cell markers that have been isolated in colorectal cancer (CRC). The potentiation of Wnt/Beta-catenin signaling is now believed to mediate the self-renewal and proliferation of Lgr5 stem cells. Aim: to evaluate the expression of Lgr5 and Beta-catenin in colorectal cancer and benign colorectal lesions. Methods: Representative sections from thirty benign lesions [22 colorectal adenomas, 8 ulcerative colitis (UC)], and 30 CRC cases were stained by immunohistochemical technique using anti-Lgr5 and anti-Beta-catenin. Results: High Lgr5 expression was found in 0%, 60%, and 70% of normal mucosa, benign lesions, and CRC, respectively. Higher grades of Beta-catenin expression compared to normal expression was found in benign lesions as 23.3% for grade II and 6.7% for grade III and in CRC as 73.3% for grade II and 20% for grade III. Significant statistical differences between control groups, benign and malignant lesions in both Lgr5 and Beta-catenin expression were found. Conclusion: Lgr5 is highly expressed in CRC. That may suggest a role in carcinogenesis based on the CSC hypothesis. Also, Beta-catenin is activated in most CRC. Keywords: Cancer stem cell, Lgr5, Beta-catenin, CRC.
Future electoral impacts of having a female mayor

We explore an electoral quasi-experiment where a woman nearly won or lost to a man in a mayoral election. Our data combines municipal Brazilian election results, which occur every four years, with municipal level votes for female and male candidates in state and federal deputy elections, whose districts are larger than the municipalities. Our results show that when voters are exposed to a female leader, the relative number of votes given to female candidates increases. This result depends on the political environment in which the exposure occurs. These effects on the electorate's response tend to be stronger: 01. in municipalities where there is a previous higher proportion of female councilors, and 02. when the mayors have higher education levels. Our results provide evidence that the observed electorate's gender preferences in politics are alterable, but that policy interventions aimed to equalize access will be more effective if they are targeted at underrepresented populations that have the correct skill requirements to perform in leadership positions.
Sublimate speciation at Mutnovsky volcano, Kamchatka

Sublimates from high-temperature (470-507°C) gases at Mutnovsky volcano in southern Kamchatka were collected in silica glass tubes. Only particles of altered rocks were found in a transparent zone above 480°C. From 480 to 120°C, Fe and Cd sulphides with or without NaCl change to Cd-Pb-Bi and Pb-As-Bi sulphosalts, Pb-As and Bi sulphohalides, Cd, Pb, Tl halides, and an amorphous As-S compound. Sublimates are especially enriched in cadmium, thallium and iodine. Two new Cd-bearing sulphosalts Cd4PbBi12(S,Se)23 and CdPb4Bi6(S,Se)14 containing respectively 9 and 4 atomic% Cd were described. Tl occurs as three different halides. Seven phases contain iodine as a major or minor component; four of them additionally contain bromine. Crystal sizes, shapes and quantity within deposition intervals vary according to nucleation conditions. Mineral assemblages in natural fumarolic incrustations partly repeat the sequence observed in silica tubes.
INSTITUTIONAL OWNERSHIP, EQUITY RETURN AND PRICE MOMENTUM ANOMALY

This paper examines whether momentum profit and institutional holdings are related. The empirical result shows that after controlled for the size effect, momentum profits are positively related to institutional holdings, especially for small-capitalization firms. Our finding confirms that institution investors tend to have positive-feedback trading in smaller firms. Furthermore, we find that the equity return is positively related to the institutional trading, which supports the hypothesis that institutional investors are better informed than individual investors.
The temporal dynamics of calibration target reflectance

A field experiment investigated the hypothesis that the nadir reflectance of calibration surface substrates (asphalt and concrete) remains stable over a range of time-scales. Measurable differences in spectral reflectance factors were found over periods as short as 30 minutes. Surface reflectance factors measured using a dual-field-of-view GER1500 spectroradiometer system showed a relationship with the relative proportion of diffuse irradiance, over periods when solar zenith changes were minimal. Reflectance measurements were collected over precise points on the calibration surfaces using a novel mobile spectroradiometer device, and uncertainty in terms of absolute reflectance was calculated as being < 0.05% within the usable range of the instrument (400-1000nm). Multi-date reflectance factors were compared using one-way ANOVA and found to differ significantly (p = 0.001). These findings illustrate the anisotropic nature of calibration surfaces, and place emphasis on the need to minimise the temporal delay in collection of field spectral measurements for vicarious calibration or empirical atmospheric correction purposes.
INDOOR PHOTOGRAMMETRY USING UAVS WITH PROTECTIVE STRUCTURES: ISSUES AND PRECISION TESTS

Abstract. Management of disaster scenarios requires applying emergency procedures ensuring maximum safety and protection for field operators. Actual conditions of disaster sites are labelled as “Triple-D: Dull, Dusty, Dangerous” areas. It is well known that in this kind of areas and situations remote surveying systems are at their very best effective, and among these UAVs currently are an effective and performing field tool. Indoor spaces are a particularly complex scenario for this kind of surveys. In this case, technological advances currently offer micro-UAV systems, featuring 360° protective cages, which are able to collect video streams while flying in very tight spaces. Such cases require manual control of the vehicle, with the operator piloting the aircraft without prior knowledge of the status quo of the survey object and therefore without prior planning of flight paths. A possible benefit in terms of knowledge of the survey object could lay in the creation of a 3D model based on images extracted by video streams; to date, widely tested methods and techniques are available for processing UAV-borne video streams to obtain such models. Anyway, the protective cage and the need to use, in these operating conditions, wide-angle lenses presents some issues linked to ever-changing image framing, due to the presence of the cage wires on the field of view. The present work focused on this issue. Using this type of UAVs, video streams have been collected in different environments, both indoors and outdoors, testing several procedures for photogrammetric processing in order to assess the ability to create 3D models. These have been tested for reliability based on data collection conditions, also assessing the level of automation and speed attainable in post-processing. The present paper describes the different tests carried out and the related results.
Divergent Thinking during the Electrospraying Processes for Implementing Engineering Teaching in Higher Education

Knowing how to do divergent thinking is very important for cultivating the creativity of college students in high education. In this paper, an advanced technique--electrospraying was exploited as an example to explain how to foster the undergraduate students’ divergent thinking. From the preparation of a working solution, the implementation of electrospraying process, the characterization of electrosprayed microparticles, and also the final potential applications of the mediated microproducts. Each of the above-mentioned steps comprises good materials for promoting the students to think divergently, learn actively, judge and make a decision using convergent thinking. It is suggested for high education that advanced technologies can be utilized as useful tools for cultivating the students’ divergent thinking and innovation capability. Keywords—Divergent thinking; Higher education; Advanced techniques; Creativity
Comparative analysis of nutritional quality between Pomfret (Pampus argenteus) and Hilsa (Hilsa ilisha), preserved and cooked under different conditions

The present study was conducted to compare the nutrients between Pampus argenteus and Hilsa ilisha. The nutrient contents of P. argenteus were higher than H. ilisha in the raw condition. They were both subjected to conventional cooking methods like open pan dry roasting, boiling, shallow frying and deep frying. They were also preserved raw up to 15 days with the preservative viz. a combination of salt and turmeric. The nutrient contents had changed due to preservation and cooking but the losses could be retained by the use of preservative. Nutrient retention mostly occurred in pomfret than in hilsa. The present study significantly revealed that cooked pomfret was beneficial due to adequate nutrient restoration and it could be preserved with preservative up to 15 days with minimal loss as compared to hilsa. Nutrient retention occurred mostly in deep frying method.
Energy Efficiency Through an On-Line Learning Approach for Forecasting of Indoor Temperature

University CEU Cardenal Herrera (CEU-UCH) has constructed a Solar house, known as SMLSystem, to participate in the Solar Decathlon Europe 2012 competition. Such construction becomes a research facility that University employs in order to test innovative solutions around the area of energy efficiency. A lot of technologies have been integrated to help to reduce the overall power consumption of the house. Among them, a predictive system, based on Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs), has been developed using the data acquired in Valencia, where the house is placed. Such system produces short-term forecast of indoor temperature, using as input the data captured by a complex monitoring system. The system expects to reduce the power consumption mainly related to Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems because of the following assumptions: the high power consumption for which HVAC is responsible (53,9% of the overall consumption); and the energy needed to keep the temperature is less tan the energy required to lower/increase it.This paper studies the viability of the development of such kind of predictive systems but for totally unknown environments, that is, without historical data. To do that it is possible to apply on-line learning approaches, where the model parameters are estimated following Bayesian methods or Gradient Descent (GD) methods, starting from an unbiased a-priori knowledge, or from a totally random model. These forecasting measures could allow the house to adapt itself to future temperature conditions by using home automation in an energy-efficient manner. Preliminary experimental results show a high forecasting accuracy with simple models and with a short training time of 4-5 days. The final idea is to develop intelligent agents, with the minimum resources, to be implemented in very cheap computer architectures.
Host use by chrysomelid beetles feeding on Moraceae and Euphorbiaceae in New Guinea

The composition and host specificity of chrysomelid communities, feeding on 15 species of Moraceae and 15 of Euphorbiaceae in New Guinea is detailed. All 30 plant species were trees or shrubs, growing in rainforest and coastal habitats. Chrysomelids were collected alive and tested in the laboratory for feeding on the plant species from which they were obtained. Only specimens which fed were considered in the analyses. Sampling spaimed almost over three years and 9,186 individuals from 93 species, belonging to 5 subfamilies were collected. Eumolpinae and Galerucinae dominated in terms of abimdance and species richness. The foliage-feeding community consisted almost exclusively of adults, as eumolpine and most of the galerucine larvae were probably root-feeders. Species richness of chrysomelid communities varied from 1 to 27 species per host plant species, and abundance from 8 to 1,462 individuals. Trees without diverse chrysomelid communities were fed upo»mostly by generalists, whilst high density chrysomelid communities were dominated by specialists. Usually, Galerucinae were more host specific than Eumolpinae, but the overall host specificity of chrysomelids was rather low. In particular, there was a large overlap in the chrysomelid communities among congeneric plants. Most of the chrysomelid species fed on several congeneric hosts and were not strict monophages. Within Ficus, where such evaluation was possible, the similarity of chrysomelid communities did not reflect phylogenetic relationships among the host plants. Considered across plant genera, specialisation to a single genus was the most frequent case. Plant palatability, estimated from feeding experiments using a generalist species of weevil, was negatively correlated with the average host specificity in the chrysomelid community supported by this plant species; polyphagous chrysomelid species tended to be concentrated on palatable hosts. In conclusion, the patterns of host use by Eumolpinae and Galerucinae appear to be shifted towards oligophagy, in comparison with most of other subfamilies, feeding on Temperate herbs. Low host specificity of adults ieeding on the foliage may be caused by the predominance of species with root-feeding larvae, and may explain the importance of plant palatability for the composition of chrysomelid communities.
Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity Among Greek Army Recruits

OBJECTIVE Obesity poses a major public health issue whose prevalence is reaching epidemic proportions, especially among younger ages. Our aim was to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity among Greek men recruited in the army, and to evaluate potential associations with place of residence and educational level. SUBJECTS & METHODS Height and weight were measured in 3,684 men, aged 23.2±2.8 (mean ± standard deviation) years. Body mass index (BMI, kg/m 2 ) was used as measure of adiposity. Associations between BMI categories and level of education (≤9 school years, >9 years) and between BMI categories and place of residence (urban, rural) were evaluated using chi-square test. RESULTS Average BMI was 25.2±4 kg/m 2 . The prevalence of overweight (25 30) was 10.0% and was not associated with educational level. Obesity was associated with place of residence; individuals from rural areas were more obese than those from urban areas (p=0.04). Our results, when compared to those of similar studies conducted in 1969, 1990, and 2006 showed a significant increase in mean BMI. CONCLUSION Overall, we documented a high and increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity (43.7%) among younger Greek men.
Photometric procedure for quantitative analysis of Aflatoxin B1 in peanuts by thin-layer chromatography using charge coupled device detector

A photometric procedure was developed for determination of aflatoxin B1 in peanuts by TLC-CCD technique. The quantification and detection limit were 1.2 μg kg-1 and 0.4 ng per spot, respectively, with mean recovery of 98%. The CCD camera is sufficiently sensitive to detect small changes in spots fluorescence intensity and the results for performance confirmed the efficiency of the method. Another important property of CCD detector is its linearity for a wide range of luminous stimulus determined by analysis of five-point calibration curves using the intensity of AFB1 fluorescence versus AFB1 concentration (0.8 to 4.8 ng per spot). The method was applied to the analysis of thirty nine peanut samples and aflatoxin B1 levels ranged from 16 to 115 μg kg-1. The TLC-CCD and the photometric procedure developed in this study demonstrated to be a simple and efficient tool for quantitative analyses of AFB1 in peanut samples.