Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Influence of annealing on properties of spray deposited ZnO thin films

Zinc Oxide (ZnO) thin films were deposited on glass substrates via the spray pyrolysis technique. The films were subsequently annealed in ambient air from 300°C to 500°C. The morphology and structural properties of the thin films were studied by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) techniques. Electrical resistivity of the thin films was measured using a data acquisition unit. The optical properties of the films were characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy and photoluminescence (PL) technique. X-ray diffraction data showed that the films were grown in the (002) direction with a hexagonal wurtzite structure. The average grain size ranged from 15 to 27 nm. Increasing annealing temperatures resulted in larger grain sizes and higher crystallinity, with the surface roughness of annealed films being more than twice if compared to unannealed film. The electrical resistivity of the films decreased with the increasing annealing temperature. TheUVand visible band emissionswere observed in the photoluminescence spectra, due to exciton and defect-related emissions, respectively. The transmission values of the films were as high as 90% within the visible range (400-700 nm).
Energy Analysis of Local Rice Processing in Benue State, Nigeria

The study examined the energy required in local rice milling process in three towns within Benue State, Nigeria. Three locations were randomly chosen in each town resulting in nine cases that were considered. Well-designed questionnaires were used for data collection. The types of energy utilization (manual, wood fuel and liquid fuel) as well as unit operations (parboiling, sun drying and milling) were identified. The energy analysis was evaluated for 1000 kg of processed rice. Result of the ANOVA showed no significant difference at 95% confidence level of all the nine cases studied. The mean value of the total energy requirement was 6639.87 MJ. The most intensive operation was parboiling, which accounts for 89.86% of the total energy required. The highest energy intensity of 8.0 MJ/kg was recorded in Otukpo. The average energy per unit product was 6.8 MJ/kg. The average productivity per unit energy is 0.15 kg/MJ.
A SEARCH FOR CANDIDATE RADIO SUPERNOVA REMNANTS IN THE NEARBY IRREGULAR STARBURST GALAXIES NGC 4214 AND NGC 4395

We present the results of a search for new candidate radio su­pernova remnants (SNRs) in the nearby starburst irregular galaxies NGC 4214 and NGC 4395 using archived radio observations made with the Very Large Array (VLA) at the wavelengths of 3.5 cm, 6 cm and 20 cm for NGC 4214 and 6 cm and 20 cm for NGC 4395. These observations were analyzed as part of our ongoing search for candidate radio SNRs in nearby galaxies: the goal of this search is to prepare a large sample of candidate radio SNRs for the purpose of a robust statistical study of the properties of these sources. Based on our analysis, we have confirmed the nonthermal nature of the discrete radio sources α and β in NGC 4214 and classify these sources as candidate radio SNRs based on their positional coincidences with HII regions in that galaxy. We have measured the flux densities of the two candidate radio SNRs at each wavelength and calculated corresponding spectral indices: we have also measured flux densities of two other discrete radio sources in these galaxies - ρ in NGC 4214 and #3 in NGC 4395 which we suspect to be additional candidate radio SNRs based on their positional coincidences with other HII regions in these galaxies. However, the radio data presently available for these sources can­not confirm such a classification and additional observations are needed. We have also calculated the radio luminosities Lradio at the wavelength of 20 cm for these two candidate radio SNRs as well as the corresponding values for the minimum total energy Emin required to power these radio sources via synchrotron emission and the corresponding magnetic field strength Bmin. We have compared our mean calculated values for these properties with the mean values for populations of candidate radio SNRs in other starburst galaxies: while the values for Lradio and Bmin are roughly comparable to the values seen in other starburst galaxies, the mean value for Emin is higher than the mean value of any other starburst galaxy. Finally, we include these two candidate radio SNRs in a discussion of the Σ − D relation for extragalactic candidate radio SNRs and find that these sources are located on the shallower end of the master Σ − D relation for all extragalactic SNRs as derived by Urosevic et al.(2005).
How to factor-analyze your data right: do’s, don’ts, and how-to’s.

The current article provides a guideline for conducting factor analysis, a technique used to estimate the population-level factor structure underlying the given sample data. First, the distinction between exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses (EFA and CFA) is briefly discussed; along with this discussion, the notion of principal component analysis and why it does not provide a valid substitute of factor analysis is noted. Second, a step-by-step walk-through of conducting factor analysis is illustrated; through these walk-through instructions, various decisions that need to be made in factor analysis are discussed and recommendations provided. Specifically, suggestions for how to carry out preliminary procedures, EFA, and CFA are provided with SPSS and LISREL syntax examples. Finally, some critical issues concerning the appropriate (and not-so-appropriate) use of factor analysis are discussed along with the discussion of recommended practices.
The Intergenerational Effects of Residential Schools on Children’s Educational Experiences in Ontario and Canada’s Western Provinces

The intergenerational effects of Canada’s Indian Residential Schools have been widely discussed, but limited empirical work exists. I use the confidential wave of the 2001 Aboriginal Peoples Survey of Children and Youth (APSCY) to study the association between mothers’ residential school attendance and their children’s educational outcomes and experiences in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia. Holding a number of factors constant, I demonstrate that children whose mothers attended residential school are more likely to be suspended or expelled and have worse school experiences on average than children whose mothers did not. Children are also more likely to live off reserve and less likely to speak an Aboriginal language if their mothers attended a residential school. I also examine some contextual factors that may influence the relationship between mothers’ residential school attendance and their children’s educational outcomes. These findings suggest that dealing with the intergenerational legacy of residential schools is necessary for improving the educational outcomes of today’s Aboriginal youth.
Numerical Analysis of Composite Steel Concrete Structural Shear Walls with Steel Encased Profiles

The use of common reinforced concrete shear walls in high rise buildings is sometimes limited because of the large amount of reinforcement localized at the end of the element. A good alternative in avoiding this disadvantage is to use composite steel concrete structural shear walls with steel encased profiles. This solution used for high rise buildings, offers to designers lateral stiffness, shear capacity and high bending resisting moment of structural walls. The encasement of the steel shapes in concrete is applied also for the following purposes: flexural stiffening and strengthening of compression elements; fire protection; potentially easier repairs after moderate damage; economy with respect both to material and construction. Until now in the national and international literature poor information about nonlinear behaviour of composite steel concrete structural shear walls with steel encased profiles is available. A theoretical and experimental program related to the behaviour of steel concrete structural shear walls with steel encased profiles is developed at “Politehnica” University of Timisoara. The program refers to six different elements, which differ by the shape of the steel encased profile and also by the arrangement of steel shapes on the cross section of the element. In order to calibrate the elements for experimental study some numerical analysis were made. The paper presents the results of numerical analysis with details of stress distribution, crack distribution, structural stiffness at various loads, and load bearing capacity of the elements.
An econometric analysis of deficiencies noted in port state control inspections

The factors to consider in selecting which vessels to board for port state control (PSC) inspections are crucial. This paper tries to identify these factors using 4080 reported PSC inspections from the Swedish Maritime Administration for the period 1996–2001. It relies on count data models and compares results from the Poisson, negative binomial, random effect and random parameters models. The results suggest that three factors are the main determinants of the number of reported deficiencies: the age at inspection, the flag of registry and the type of ships. Conversely, the year when the inspection occurs does not seem to be a significant factor. Estimations also stress that the relationship between the age at inspection and the number of deficiencies detected is not similar for different vessel types. For instance, the number of deficiencies detected decreases for chemical carriers and Ro–Ro passenger vessels older than 25 and 22 years old, while for instance the effect is rather small for tanker and bulk carriers and only occurs when vessels are older than 35 years.
The Role of Motivational Persistence and Resilience Over the Well-being Changes Registered in Time

The present study investigates the interaction between personal characteristics that are considered nowadays strengths used to face difficult events or transition period. A number of 200 married or living together participants completed self-reports for common goals, motivational persistence, resilience and well-being. Results show that persistence and resilience do interact with each other at an individual level but also from a family concept perspective. Moreover, maintaining a positive outlook and family spirituality do have an impact over the intensity and direction of the relationship between long term purposes pursuing (LTPP) and recurrence of unattained purposes (RUP) and changes in well-being registered in time. Resiliency as a personal characteristic and family resilience show good psychometric qualities for this study. Although some of the results are descriptive, in-depth analyses of direction and intensity of the relationships lead the final conclusions to suggestions for further research and implications for psychological practice.
Rapid transfer of photosynthetic carbon through the plant-soil system in differently managed species-rich grasslands

Plant-soil interactions are central to short-term carbon (C) cycling through the rapid transfer of recently assimilated C from plant roots to soil biota. In grassland ecosystems, changes in C cycling are likely to be influenced by land use and management that changes vegetation and the associated soil microbial communities. Here we tested whether changes in grassland vegetation composition result- ing from management for plant diversity influences short- term rates of C assimilation and transfer from plants to soil microbes. To do this, we used an in situ 13 C-CO2 pulse- labelling approach to measure differential C uptake among different plant species and the transfer of the plant-derived 13 C to key groups of soil microbiota across selected treat- ments of a long-term plant diversity grassland restoration ex- periment. Results showed that plant taxa differed markedly in the rate of 13 C assimilation and concentration: uptake was greatest and 13 C concentration declined fastest in Ranun- culus repens, and assimilation was least and 13 C signature remained longest in mosses. Incorporation of recent plant- derived 13 C was maximal in all microbial phosopholipid fatty acid (PLFA) markers at 24 h after labelling. The greatest in- corporation of 13 C was in the PLFA 16:1! 5, a marker for ar- buscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), while after 1 week most 13 C was retained in the PLFA18:2! 6,9 which is indicative of assimilation of plant-derived 13 C by saprophytic fungi. Our results of 13 C assimilation and transfer within plant species and soil microbes were consistent across management treat- ments. Overall, our findings suggest that plant diversity restoration management may not directly affect the C assim- ilation or retention of C by individual plant taxa or groups of soil microbes, it can impact on the fate of recent C by changing their relative abundances in the plant-soil system. Moreover, across all treatments we found that plant-derived C is rapidly transferred specifically to AMF and decomposer fungi, indicating their consistent key role in the cycling of recent plant derived C.
Optimal pressure sensor placement for leak localisation using a relaxed isolation index : application to the Barcelona water network

Water distribution networks are large complex systems that are affected by leaks, which often entail high costs and may severely jeopardize the overall water distribution performance. Successful leak localisation is paramount in order to minimize the impact of these leaks when occurring. Sensor placement is a key issue in the leak localisation process, since the overall performance and success of the leak isolation method highly depends on the choice of the sensors gathering data from the network. Common problems when leak isolating in large scale highly-gridded real water distribution networks include leak mislabelling and large isolation areas obtention due to similarity of the measurements, which may be caused by topological issues and led to incomplete coverage of the whole network. The sensor placement strategy may minimize these undesired effects by setting the sensor placement optimisation problem with the appropriate assumptions e.g. geographically cluster alike leak behaviors, taking into account real aspects of the practical application such as the acceptable isolation distance. Here, a sensor placement methodology considering these assets and a general sensor distribution assessment method for leak diagnosis in water distribution systems is presented for a real District Metered Area (DMA) located within the Barcelona water distribution network.
DEAR : A New Technique for Information Extraction and Context-Dependent Text Mining

The desire to store and the need to use electronic data has greatly increased as the power, availability, and connectivity of computers has grown. A large portion of this data is in the form of unstructured text documents. Locating specific information within this amorphous mass of documents is an area of active research. Our contribution to this pursuit is the development of the Document Entity and Resolution (DEAR) system. This system combines semantic similarity matching as provided by the open source WordNet database with the ability to recognize named entities through the OpenCalais system. When used in concert, this provides a novel way for users to quickly find relevant content and detect and identify uniquely named entities within that content. The theory behind the system is defined and the working system is described. This system is then applied to a collection of assessment documents as a proof-of-concept test of its viability. The results are promising and indicate that further research is warranted.
Management of strategic change at new Kenya Co-operative Creameries Co. Ltd

Parastatals are institutions owned by the Government through its Ministries and are more business oriented as compared to mainstream Ministries. The study sought to establish the Strategic Change Management Approaches adopted by New Kenya Co-operative Creameries (New KCC) Ltd and the challenges encountered in management of strategic change. The study was conducted using a case study research design. The researcher conducted in-depth interviews with New KCC Head of Departments who were and are involved in the management of strategic change. Information was also obtained from company’s records, which were useful in compilation of the study report. The study identified that to a large extent both planned and emergent approaches to change were adopted. The change effort was planned and there is a clear line in sight to a future desired state. The approach was top-bottom where change activities were decided at the top and passed down for implementation. The emergence of a down-up approach was encouraged with the participation of various departmental in initiating reform activities. This is because change cannot be characterized as a rational series within a given period of a time but rather a continuous process. In the decline stemming the company instituted measures like change ownership, financial controls, and improving the processing capacity which reversed the downward trend. Next they instituted quality certifications, putting its employees on performance contracts. Despite the constraints, change management at New KCC made considerable gains. The reform effort has resulted to detailed manpower and succession planning which effectively addresses the future needs of the group and career development of individual employees.
Economic Crisis and Innovation: Is Destruction Prevailing Over Accumulation?

The 2008 economic crisis has severely reduced the short-term willingness of firms to invest in innovation. But this reduction has not occurred uniformly and a few firms even increased their investment in spite of the adverse macroeconomic environment. This paper, based on the latest three waves of the UK Community Innovation Survey, compares drivers of innovation investment before and during the crisis. We find that the crisis led to a concentration of innovative activities within a small group of fast growing new firms and those firms already highly innovative before the crisis. The companies in pursuit of more explorative strategies towards new product and market developments are those to cope better with the crisis.
Implementation of Mobile Agent Architecture for E- Commerce Application for Mobile Devices

Mobility" is a term which newly acclaimed with the increased used on mobile devices. To support business application on remote places this proposed architecture helped by a mobile intelligent agent. By using mobile devices, buyers or sellers can create a mobile intelligent agent; the ability of mobile migration (mobility) on internet agents can do the business on behalf of buyers & seller. Mobile agents are beneficial to do the business anytime and anywhere. Searching for appropriate trader and negotiating with the trader is handled by mobile agent which reduce the time consuming task of the user. As we know that mobile devices owns the limited bandwidth connections with greater expenses. The proposed system architecture can address the problem of expensive connection with limited bandwidth. After launching mobile intelligent agent through network, seller/buyer can disconnect from mobile devices and later on can reconnect to devices for the results. For moving across the network; FIPA standardization provides flexibility & increase interoperability among other agent systems and scalability is provided by proposing system architecture. As per market survey; with compared to other mobile operating system, Android captured 80% market share worldwide for that reason the proposed system is designed for Android mobile devices. For delegating of human users (Buyers / Sellers) on the distributed system environment agents are created and by the migration process on the internet the agents can handle the shopping job on behalf of them and generate the results. The proposed system is demonstrated by C# (Server side) and Android application development tool (Client side). The proposed article helps to understand the proposed system architecture and operation of mobile agents in the system.
Relationship between Financial Compensation and Organizational Commitment among Malaysian Bank Workers

This research examines the relationship between financial compensation and organizational commitment among workers in the banking industry, Malaysia. This research is significant in addressing the preceding gap on the types of financial compensation such as salaries, bonuses and merit pay with a stronger relationship with organizational commitment. Although these variables have been widely studied, few studies have explored their relationship to organizational commitment. Quantitative methodology is utilized to explore the relationship between financial compensation and organizational commitment. In data collection, a questionnaire was administered among 150 workers working in several selected banks in Bera; a town situated in the state of Pahang, Malaysia. Simple random sampling was used to select the respondents in the survey. The research findings showed that there is a significant relationship between financial compensation such as salaries, bonuses and merit pay and organizational commitment. Besides that, merit-based pay is identified as the dominant factor in influencing the organizational commitment among the bank workers under study. The research findings contribute to a better understanding for all related parties on the application of theories and model in relation with financial compensation aspects and organizational commitment.
Technical culture of kenaf produced under Tunisian semi arid conditions

4 paginas. -Trabajo presentado al: 14th Meeting of the FAO-CIHEAM Sub-Network on Mediterranean Pastures and Fodder Crops. "New approaches for grassland research in a context o climate and socio-economic changes". (Samsun,Turkey, Oct 3-6, 2012)
Review of Anisotropic Flow Correlations in Ultrarelativistic Heavy-Ion Collisions

Anisotropic flow phenomena are a key probe of the existence of Quark-Gluon Plasma. Several new observables associated with correlations between anisotropic flow harmonics are developed, which are expected to be sensitive to the initial fluctuations and transport properties of the created matter in heavy-ion collisions. I review recent developments of correlations of anisotropic flow harmonics. The experimental measurements, together with the comparisons to theoretical model calculations, open up new opportunities of exploring novel QCD dynamics in heavy-ion collisions.
Impact of Infrastructure and Agroclimate on the Location of Rural Bank Branches in Pakistan: A Preliminary Assessment

Rural financial institutions play an important role in development and growth of the agricultural sector. In developing economies some rural areas are adequately served by financial institutions, while others have little or no access to these institutions. This uneven pattern of geographic location of rural bank branches has been attributed largely to regional differences in agroclimatic conditions and infrastructural endowments. We have estimated several alternative specifications which can be helpful in understanding the spatial distribution of commercial bank branches across the rural areas. Our results indicate that the location of rural bank branches is significantly influenced by infrastructural endowments and agroclimatic environment.